Sally Lunn
Sally Lunn from King Arthur Flour
Before no knead bread-mania hit the internets there was Sally Lunn, a sticky batter bread with origins in Bath, England.
Sally Lunn is a large bun or teacake made with a yeast dough including cream and eggs, similar to the sweet brioche breads of France. Served warm and sliced, with butter, it was first recorded in 1780 in the spa town of Bath in southwest England.
In Miss Leslie's Directions for Cookery by Eliza Leslie, Philadelphia, 1851, she states: "Send it to table hot, and eat it with butter." Leftover Sally Lunn can be toasted, then buttered and spread with a jam if desired.
Today, you will find Sally Lunn served with Clotted Cream and Strawberry or other jam. Clotted cream and fresh berries is also a nice topping.
Sally Lunn
from http://ursulalecoeur.com/
This recipe is adapted from Beard on Bread (Knopf, 1973) by James Beard. The process is time-consuming because Sally Lunn requires two risings, but the resulting bread is so delicious you won’t believe you made it yourself.
1 package active dry yeast
1/3 cup sugar
½ cup warm water
½ cup lukewarm milk (do not boil)
1 stick butter (8 tablespoons) melted in the milk
1 teaspoon salt
3 eggs at room temperature
3 ¾ to 4 cups all-purpose flour
1) Combine the yeast, sugar and warm water in a mixing bowl and allow to rest for five minutes.
2) Melt butter over low heat in the milk. Add salt and add to yeast mixture.
3) Add the eggs one at a time and stir well with a wooden spoon.
4) Add the flour in small amounts and beat well after each addition.
5) Add up to 4 cups of flour until the batter is stiff, but workable.
6) Cover the bowl with a clean cloth and let the batter rise until it is doubled in size. (This takes approximately 2 hours.)
7) Beat dough down with a wooden spoon for about 1 minute.
8) Arrange dough in a well-greased 9- or 10-inch tube pan.
9) Cover with a cloth and let rise until the dough reaches the top of the pan. (This takes approximately 2 to 2 ½ hours.)
10) Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 45 to 50 minutes. When the bread is golden brown and sounds hollow when you tap it with your knuckles, it is ready.
11) Invert on a rack to cool or serve warm. It’s possible to cut the cool bread into slices with a serrated knife. If serving hot, pull apart with your hands. Serve with sweet butter and preserves.
Makes one 9- or 10-inch tube pan
Sally Lunn
from http://www.kingarthurflour.com/
These light, airy rolls, with a hint of sweetness, are a nice change from toast at breakfast or brunch. While the classic Sally Lunn bread is usually baked in one large round, we prefer to dollop the soft dough into a muffin pan, for easy individual servings.
1 cup (8 ounces) whole milk
6 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon lemon oil or 1 tablespoon grated lemon rind (zest); or 2 teaspoons vanilla, if preferred
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon instant yeast (SAF Gold instant yeast preferred)
Combine the milk, butter, and sugar in a microwave-safe measuring cup or bowl, or in a saucepan. Heat to lukewarm, stirring to soften/melt the butter. Pour the mixture into a mixing bowl, and let it cool until it's below 120°F, about 15 minutes.
Add the lemon or vanilla, salt, 2 cups of the flour, the eggs, and yeast.
Beat the mixture on medium speed for about 3 minutes; if you're using a bread machine, program the machine for dough or manual, and mix for several minutes, until everything is well combined.
Add the remaining flour to the mixture and beat for about 3 minutes, until it becomes a soft, cohesive dough. Note: This is a very sticky, wet dough; it's too sticky to knead, so has to be beaten to develop its gluten.
Cover the dough and allow it to rise for 45 to 60 minutes, or until almost doubled in bulk. If you're using the dough cycle of a bread machine, simply let the machine complete its cycle.
Lightly grease the cups of two standard muffin pans (24 cups total). If you don't have two muffin pans (or want to make a loaf, in addition to rolls), lightly grease one muffin pan, plus a 6" soufflé dish or other round, bakeable dish or small loaf pan.
Divide the dough among 18 cups of the muffin pans, filling each a bit more than half full. If you're using one muffin pan, add dough to each cup then shape the remainder into a loaf, and place it in the small pan of your choice.
Cover the pans, and let the rolls rise for 45 to 60 minutes, until they're noticeably puffy. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.
Bake the rolls until they're golden brown and a digital thermometer inserted into the center of one reads at least 190°F, about 15 minutes. If you're making a loaf as well as rolls, bake the loaf for about 25 to 30 minutes, tenting it with aluminum foil after 15 minutes to prevent over-browning.
Remove the rolls from the oven, and turn them out of the pan onto a rack. Brush with melted butter, if desired. Wrap completely cooled rolls airtight, and store at room temperature for several days; freeze for longer storage.
Serve rolls with butter and jam, at breakfast or brunch; or as part of an afternoon "high tea."
Yield: 18 rolls; or 12 rolls and 1 small loaf.
