Add all the flour, instant yeast, sugar, butter, and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. With the machine on a low speed, let the ingredients blend together, then slowly pour in 1 ½ cups of the milk. Next, slowly pour in one cup of the water.
7 cups all-purpose flour, 4 tsp instant yeast, 2 tbsp granulated sugar, 4 tbsp butter, 1 tbsp kosher salt, 1 ¾ cup whole milk, 1 - 1 ½ cup water
Once the mixture is fairly combined, gradually increase the speed to medium. If the dough looks very dry or the machine starts to labor, add in the reserved water.
Mix until the dough is smooth and starts to stretch and pull away from the sides of the bowl.
Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and knead by hand for a couple of minutes or the dough starts to come together into a smooth ball.
Place the dough into an oiled mixing bowl and cover loosely with a damp towel or plastic wrap. Put in a warm place and let rise until it is roughly doubled in size, about 1 to 2 hours.
Gently turn the dough onto a floured surface and form into a rough rectangle, taking care not to deflate the dough too much. Cut into two equal pieces.
Roll each piece into a log, roughly 9 inches long, pinching down the seam to seal.
Place each log into a greased 9x5 loaf pan, making sure the seam side is on the bottom.
Cover loosely with plastic wrap and place in a warm place and let rise until the dough reaches almost the top of the pan, another 1-2 hours.
While the dough rises, preheat the oven to 350F.
When the dough has fully risen, gently brush the tops with the reserved milk using a pastry brush. Be gentle so as not to deflate the dough.
Bake the loaves for 40-50 minutes until golden brown in color. If desired, you can check the internal temperature as well, they will be fully cooked at 195F.
Turn out the loaves immediately onto a wire rack to cool. The internal structure of the bread is still developing at this stage of the process, so wait until the loaves are fully cool before slicing.