Brioche

Brioche is a leavened pastry of French origin dating back as far as 14th century. It is slightly sweet, characterized by a high fat to flour ratio which provides a rich and tender crumb.

I have been planing to make it for some time and finally got to it today. I like to frequently endeavor into making something new from my very particular, but long “to do” list. Year end and Christmas time brings the whole family together, and for me that is more than enough motivation to stimulate my baking desire. My childhood memories tie this period tightly to family gatherings, good food and all the wonderful smells and tastes. I want my children to experience the same.

Nothing evokes pleasant past memories better than a smell of a fresh bake. This time that role was destined to Brioche. This recipe is a “no knead” variety. Translated that means that majority of time is used passively, waiting and very little doing actual work. Pretty easy to execute.

The Brioche turned out perfect, fluffy and tender just the way it should be. It is has a distinct buttery aroma and flavor, reminiscent of a croissant. We tried it both just plain and with strawberry jam. Either way it has a wonderful taste and it is hard to stop yourself from eating it all at once.

The recipe has been adapted from “weekendbakery” food blog.

Print Recipe

Brioche

Fluffy and tender classic French pastry.

Course

Bake, Dessert

Cuisine

French

Prep Time

15 minutes

Cook Time

30 minutes

Passive Time

51 hours

Servings

servings

Ingredients

• 200 g all purpose non bleached flour
• 100 g unsalted butter melted
• 70 g water at room temperature
• 110 g eggs
• 50 g honey
• 5 g sea salt
• 3 g dry active yeast
• 1 egg yolk for brushing

Course Bake, Dessert Cuisine French Prep Time 15 minutes Cook Time 30 minutes Passive Time 51 hours Servings servings Ingredients 200 g all purpose non bleached flour 100 g unsalted butter melted 70 g water at room temperature 110 g eggs 50 g honey 5 g sea salt 3 g dry active yeast 1 egg yolk for brushing

Instructions

1. In a medium size bowl dissolve honey in water.
2. Add eggs, salt, melted butter and briefly whisk until uniform.
3. Sift in flour and yeast that are mixed together, mix with wooden spoon until fully hydrated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature for 2 hours.
4. Turn the dough on a lightly floured counter and perform few stretch and folds. Stop when you notice that the dough is not elastic anymore and is starting to resist. I did two stretch and fold cycles.
5. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and leave in the refrigerator for a minimum 24 hours. I did it for 48 hours.
6. Butter well a baking mold of your choice. You can use a simple bread loaf mold, traditional Brioche mold or any other that you have.
7. Take the dough out from the fridge and divide into 2-6 pieces, depending on mold size and number of molds you use. I divided mine in two pieces.
8. Shape each piece quickly into a ball and place into the mold. Cover the molds and leave to proof for the next 2-3 hours. The dough proofing temperature should be about 29 ºC (85 ºF), see recipe notes.

   
9. Preheat the oven to 190 ºC (375 ºF).
10. Brush the Brioche with egg wash and bake for 10 minutes at 190 ºC (375 ºF).
11. Reduce the temperature to 160 ºC (320 ºF) and bake for additional 20 minutes.
12. Let Brioche cool off for a few minutes before unmolding and cooling off completely on a wire rack.

    

Recipe Notes

• Brioche proofing temperature is critical for success. Initially I tried to proof the dough at room temperature but after 3 hours the dough had almost no rise. I followed up by putting it in a warm oven, covered, for another 2 hours. That turned out to work perfectly. Ideal temperature for dry yeast growth is around 29 ºC (85 ºF) and my room temperature was 21 ºC (70 ºF).

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