Lucy Wang’s Ube Bread

Directions

1. For the starter, in a medium saucepan, cook water and bread flour over medium-low heat until the mixture clumps together. Remove from pan; shape into a ball. Wrap tightly; refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.
2. Remove starter from fridge and allow to come to room temperature. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine all-purpose flour, milk, sugar, butter, yeast, ube extract and salt with the paddle attachment until combined. Add starter. Switch to dough hook attachment; knead on low for 30 minutes.
3. Turn dough onto a floured surface; shape into a ball. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
4. Preheat oven to 340°. Punch down the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide it into fourths. Roll each fourth into a ball. Working with one ball at a time, roll the dough into an 8-inch-long oval.
5. Fold the long edges of the oval into the middle, making long even lines on both sides. Starting from the bottom, roll the dough into a log, pinching the seam to seal and leaving spirals visible on ends. Repeat with the remaining dough balls.
6. Place the dough logs into a greased 9×5-inch (or 9x4x4-inch) loaf pan, seam sides down. Cover the pan with a kitchen towel and let the dough rise in a warm place until it reaches about 1/2-inch below the edge of the pan, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 340°.
7. Bake until the bread is deeply golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes, or until the internal temperature reads at least 190°. (Cover the pan loosely with foil during the last 10 to 15 minutes, if needed, to prevent over-browning.) Let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.