Whey Honey Baton
By: Angie's Recipes
Published: Thursday, December 10, 2009 - 2:19am

Ingredients




Whey:	

150 grams Quark 40%% (or Fromage fraise)
500 grams Fresh milk 3.5%%
Dough:	

1 teaspoon +½  Fresh yeast, crumbled
300 grams Whey (from above)
50 grams Honey
500 grams German #550 bio flour(white bread flour)
1 teaspoon +¼  Sea salt
50 grams Unsalted butter, softened

Preparation

1 Whisk together the quark and milk in a medium bowl. Set aside in a counter at room temperature overnight. The following day, gently warm the sour milk so that curds form. Strain the sour milk for a few of hours through a sieve lined with cheese cloth set over a pot. The strained curds can either be seasoned with sugar (salt if preferred) and used as a spread, or to make a cheesecake. 2 To make a dough, whisk the yeast with whey and honey. Stir in half flour and salt to make a yeast batter. Leave the batter, covered, in a warm place for 30 minutes. Rub the butter into the remaining half flour, until it is evenly incorporated and the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. 3 Stir the yeast batter into the butter-flour mixture. Combine together until a soft dough forms. Cover the bowl and leave for 10 minutes. Rub the work-surface with 1 teaspoon of olive oil and knead the dough for 10 seconds, ending with the dough in a smooth, round ball. Wipe the bowl clean and rub with 1 teaspoon of olive oil, return the dough to it, cover and leave for 10 minutes. Repeat the light kneading twice more, at 10-minute intervals, then leave the dough for 30 minutes until it has become soft and elastic. 4 Shape the dough into a baton (or a ball)place it smooth-side down into a flour-dusted cloth. Leave it for about 1 hour at room temperature. Preheat the oven to 210C/410F. Upturn the dough on to a flour-dusted baking tray. Make a few of slashes over the top and bake the bread in the center of the oven for about 40 minutes or until the loaf is a good brown colour. Cool on a wire rack.

About


Whey is the liquid remaining after milk has been curdled and strained. Whey is quite simple to make.  Fill a bowl or wide-mouthed jar with fresh, unpasteurized milk.  Cover tightly and let sit at room temperature until it curdles and separates. This may take 3-4 days.  Strain through cheesecloth, catching the liquid in a bowl.  This is whey-- it is a by-product of the manufacture of cheese. It will keep in the fridge for up to six months.  For a quicker whey, whip Fromage frais or Quark into unpasteurized milk and leave them overnight to sour.