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1
Combine the flour, sugar, salt, crumbled fresh yeast, beaten eggs, and all of the milk in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Mix on low speed until no dry flour remains, then raise to medium speed and develop the gluten fully — the dough will clear the sides of the bowl and become smooth and elastic. This foundation is done when the dough passes the windowpane test: a small piece stretches to translucency without tearing.
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2
Reduce to low speed and add the softened butter in small pieces, waiting for each addition to be absorbed before adding the next. Once all butter is incorporated, return to medium speed and mix until the dough is once again smooth, supple, and pulls cleanly from the bowl. It should feel silky and slightly tacky — not sticky. This is where the dish lives or dies: butter added too early or too fast will inhibit gluten development and produce a greasy, dense crumb rather than a cotton-like one.
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3
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured container, cover, and ferment at 26 °C for 1 hour. After 1 hour, perform one fold: stretch the dough up from each of the four sides and fold it over itself. The dough should feel noticeably more aerated and hold its shape when folded.
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4
Cover the container and retard the dough in the refrigerator at 4 °C for a minimum of 4 hours; overnight is ideal. The dough is ready to proceed when it is firm, cold throughout, and has risen modestly — the cold retard is complete when a finger pressed into the surface leaves a slow-filling indent.
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5
Turn the cold dough onto an unfloured surface. Scale and divide into pieces of 60–70 g each. Pre-shape each piece into a tight ball by rolling it under a cupped palm. Cover with a cloth and rest for 10 minutes — the dough is ready to shape when it relaxes slightly and no longer springs back immediately when pressed.
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6
Shape each ball into a navette: place a ball on the surface and, using both palms, roll it into a tapered cylinder roughly 12 cm long, applying firmer pressure at the ends to create distinct points while leaving the centre noticeably thicker. Place seam-side down on parchment-lined baking sheets. The shape is correct when the roll resembles a pointed shuttle — blunt or squared ends indicate insufficient tapering.
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7
Apply the first egg wash (yolk beaten with milk) in a thin, even coat over each roll. Using kitchen scissors held at a low angle, make 4–5 shallow diagonal cuts across the domed surface of each roll, barely penetrating the skin. The cuts should be evenly spaced and touch only the surface — if they sink deep into the dough, they will cause the rolls to split open during baking rather than opening gently.
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8
Proof at 27 °C for 60–75 minutes. The rolls are ready to bake when they have nearly doubled, appear visibly swollen, and jiggle gently when the tray is nudged. The scissor cuts will have begun to open, showing pale dough beneath.
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9
Apply the second egg wash with care, working gently so as not to deflate the proofed rolls. Bake in an oven preheated to 180–185 °C (conventional) for 12–15 minutes. The rolls are done when they are deeply golden — not pale, not dark brown — with scissor-cut openings that have bloomed to reveal a pale, pillowy interior. The crust should yield to light pressure and the kitchen should carry a warm, milky sweetness.