Firstly, mill the flour. I mill 450g total of mostly hard wheat berries to get my fresh milled flour. But, this flour will be used in two different places in the recipe.

So, let’s use part of the flour to make the paste.

Put 1/3 cup of fresh milled flour (36g) and 1/2 cup milk (120g) into a sauce pan, stir to combine.

Heat this mixture on medium-high heat until it forms a paste. This should only take about 3-5 minutes. Once it forms a paste, remove from the heat, and allow it to cool at room temperature. (*Tip- I like to put my butter in while the paste is cooling so it will start to soften and melt.)

While that mixture is cooling, put the water, softened butter, sugar, sea salt, egg, and lemon juice into your mixer.

Mix these ingredients to incorporate. Then add in the paste mixture.

Then, add the remaining flour into the mixer bowl, and mix to combine until no flour is left. Cover, and let this mixture sit for about 15 minutes. This is the autolyse period and it allows the fresh milled flour to absorb the liquid and the bran to soften. Because the yeast is not in the mixture yet, you can do this autolyse period for longer if you prefer.

After the autloyse period, then put in the yeast, and mix to incorporate.

Once the yeast is added, Start the kneading process. Make sure not to knead the dough with the cover on your mixer, this will overheat your dough, and cause it to break down.

Knead until the dough is nice and stretchy. Typically, 6-8 minutes in a Bosch style mixer, 16-20 minutes in an Ankarsrum style mixer, or 25-30 minutes in a Kitchen aid mixer (allow extra time for a Kitchen Aid style mixer to have breaks in between kneading to prevent overheating of the mixer.) These kneading times will vary for everyone, this is just the most common times for these style of mixers.

Once the dough is nice and stretchy, and doesn’t easily tear. Then, cover and allow it to rise until double. This can take somewhere between 1-2 hours. (Instant yeast or warmer rooms will be closer to 1 hour. Active dry yeast or cooler rooms will be closer to 2 hours.)

While the dough is rising, prepare your 9×13 baking sheet with parchment paper, or grease with softened butter.

Once the dough has doubled in size, place some olive oil on your counter, and hands. Then, divide the dough into 12 equal parts. (I just guesstimate the dough amount, but you can weigh them if you prefer for accuracy. If you want larger buns, divide into 8 pieces instead of 12.)

Shape the dough into 12 balls with some surface tension. To do this, I like to flatten each piece of dough, then fold all the edges to the middle pressing the air out between the dough layers. Then, lightly push my finger up through the bottom of the dough ball (not so tight that it rips the dough) to create surface tension on the top of each ball. Then, pinch the bottom together. After shaping, the top should have a tight tension on the top of the dough ball.

Put each dough ball onto the prepared pan, Then, press down to flatten the dough ball like a disk. Cover the tray, and then allow to rise a second time. 35-45 minutes. (*Tip- usually the second rise time is close to half the the first rise time.)

During the end of the second rise, preheat the oven to 350*F.

*Optional- If you like a browned shiny top to your buns, then brush the tops of the dough with a simple egg wash before baking. (1 egg mixed with a dash of water or milk.) Also, you can sprinkle the tops with sesame seeds if you prefer.

Once the buns have risen, they should appear smooth and puffy, then bake for 20-25 minutes. Check the center of the buns to make sure they are done. The internal center should be at 190*F for yeast buns. (If you made larger buns, the bake time may be a few minutes more.)