Gibassier
French sweet bread pastry!
Servings Prep Time
4loaves 3hours
Cook Time Passive Time
15minutes 3.5hours
Servings Prep Time
4loaves 3hours
Cook Time Passive Time
15minutes 3.5hours
Ingredients
Preferment
Final Dough
Garnish
Additional accessories
Instructions
Preferment
  1. 8:00 pm – Day 1 In a small bowl soak instant yeast in milk for 5 minutes and then add flour and egg. Knead with fingers until fully combined, cover with plastic film and leave at room temperature for 12-16 hours.
Final Dough
  1. 12:00 pm – Day 2 Add flour, salt, instant yeast, preferment, water, orange blossom water, olive oil, half of the egg mixture to a large mixing bowl. Mix and knead by hand for 5-10 minutes working out the dough.
  2. In small increments keep adding the rest of the egg (3-4 increments) making sure each time that the egg is fully absorbed by the dough before new is added.
  3. In small increments (2-3 tbsp per increment) knead in the sugar. Again don’t add new sugar until the dough absorbed the previous addition and is smooth and not sticky.
  4. In small increments (1-2 tbsp per increment) knead in softened butter. After each addition make sure the butter is fully absorbed by the dough.
  5. Add candied orange peel and anise seed, knead until evenly distributed throughout the dough.
  6. Shape the dough into a ball, put into a buttered bowl, cover with plastic film and let it rest for 1 hour at room temperature.
  7. Transfer the dough onto lightly floured counter. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces using a bench scraper. Shape each piece into a ball, lightly sprinkle with flour and cover with plastic film. Let it rest for 30 minutes.
  8. Prepare large plastic bag (my was 34″x 28″ (85 cm x 70 cm)) that can receive two 11″ x 17″ (28 cm x 43 cm) baking pan and medium size bowl with warm water. This is where you will proof the dough before baking.
  9. Flatten the dough ball with palm of your hand and make 6″- 7″ (15 cm – 17.5 cm)diameter disk, about 3/4″ (19 mm) thick. Use a rectangular plastic tool pieces to cut a cross pattern on the dough. Do not use knife, it has to be a tool with straight edge that will cut straight down, guillotine style.
  10. Place the disk on parchment paper lined baking pan.
  11. Repeat the same with other 3 dough balls, placing 2 disks per baking sheet.
  12. Put both baking sheets in the large plastic bag with bowl of warm water, seal, and let proof for 1.5 – 2 hrs. Replace warm water as it cools off. The dough is proofed when it passes “touch test” (see instructions bellow).
  13. Pre-warm the oven to 375ºF (190ºC) (convection oven) or 400ºF (205ºF) (conventional oven). Place one rack at the bottom and one at upper third of the oven.
  14. Place both baking pans in the oven, spray the side walls and the back of the oven, quickly close the door. This will create a sufficient steam necessary for initial phase of baking.
  15. Bake for 8 minutes, open the door briefly to vent off the steam. Close the door and bake for another 6-8 minutes until golden brown.
  16. Brush the warm bread with clarified butter and either sprinkle with sugar or drag it through the sugar lined pan.
  17. Tap off excess sugar and let cool of at the cooling rack.
  18. Store at room temperature in a sealed plastic bag.
Recipe Notes

– plastic cutting tool for cross marks can be cut from the lid of old container (cheese, sour cream, yogurt etc.
– “touch test” – lightly touch and press the proofing dough with floured or wet finger. If finger imprint comes bask about 50% the dough is ready for the oven. If it comes back 100% it is under proofed, give it some more time. If it does not spring back at all it is over proofed and you will end up with pastry without any oven spring.