Brioche
I feel like I’ve been holding out on you. The past couple of months, I’ve been making a LOT of sourdough bread, using a recipe I haven’t posted here. It’s perfect and easy and we don’t buy bread anymore (except when I’m too busy to bake bread and we find our bread box empty mid week). But this will not be the week I share that recipe.
Instead, I’m sharing a different sourdough recipe from the same book – one for sourdough brioche.
This bread doesn’t taste sour or anything. Sourdough starter just serves as the leavening agent. It tastes like brioche, with a nice crisp crust and soft interior. Obviously I’ll need to make some French toast this week.
This is a two day project. Midday on the day before you want bread, start by whisking together the bread flour, salt and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer.
In a medium bowl, use a rubber spatula to mix together the starter, eggs and warm milk.
With the mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and set on low, slowly add in the wet ingredients to the dry, beating until a sticky dough forms.
Cover with a damp towel and let rest for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, put the dough hook on your mixer. With the mixer running on low, slowly add the cubes of butter, one at a time, waiting 10 seconds between additions.
Increase the speed to medium and beat for another 5 minutes, until the dough is shiny and smooth, but still not coming together into a ball.
With floured hands, transfer the dough into a large bowl bowl that you’ve buttered lightly. Cover with a damp towel and allow to rise in a warm place for 5 to 8 hours. I turn the oven on to start preheating to its lowest setting for 2 minutes then turn it off – this creates a good warm (but not hot) place to rise.
Once the dough has risen, cover with plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray and transfer to the fridge overnight.
In the morning, place the dough on a floured work surface and cut into four equal portions.
This was my first use of my new marble slab, which was very exciting. For each portion, gather the ends under the dough and roll into a ball. Place each ball, staggered, in a loaf pan coated lightly in butter.
Cover with a damp towel and let rise in a warm spot for about 2 hours.
it will puff up nicely. Beat the egg with a splash of water and generously brush over the surface.
Bake at 400°F for about 40 minutes, until nice and browned. Allow to cool 10 minutes in pan before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.
I’m very excited about this bread. It’s tasty, and I’ve convinced myself it’s bread and not a sweet, so I can have it during Lent. I refuse to entertain any arguments to the contrary.
We’ll keep ours in a breadbox, but this should be fine in a plastic bag for a couple of days.
Enjoy!
Brioche
Ingredients:
- 500 grams (4 cups + 2 tablespoons) bread flour
- 9 grams ( 1 1/2 teaspoons) salt
- 50 grams (1/4 cup) sugar
- 250 grams (1 1/2 cups) active starter
- 3 eggs, lightly beaten
- 120 grams (1/2 cup) warm 2% milk
- 1/2 cup butter, cold, cut into cubes
- 1 egg plus splash of water for egg wash
Directions:
- Midday before the day you want to bake, whisk together the flour, salt and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer.
- In a medium bowl, stir together the starter, eggs and warm milk.
- With the stand mixer running on low and fitted with the paddle attachment, slowly add in the liquid ingredients until a shaggy dough forms.
- Cover bowl with a damp towel and allow to rest for 30 minutes.
- Put the hook attachment on the stand mixer. Beat on low speed, adding the cubes of butter one at a time, and waiting 10 seconds between each addition. Increase speed to medium and beat for another 5 minutes until well incorporated, but dough does not come into a ball.
- With floured hands, transfer the dough to a lightly buttered bowl. Cover bowl with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place for 5 to 8 hours.
- Once dough has risen, cover with plastic wrap coated in cooking spray and transfer to the fridge overnight.
- In the morning, remove from the fridge and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Cut into 4 equal pieces.
- Gather the ends of each piece together and roll into a ball. Place the four balls in a buttered loaf pan, staggered, seam side down. Cover with a damp towel and allow to rise in a warm place for 2 hours.
- Once risen, brush the top with egg wash. Bake at 400°F for 40 minutes, until browned and shiny.
- Allow to cool 10 minutes in the pan before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
