Brioche: Mellow Bakers

I waited until the last minute to make this brioche, but let me tell you, it was worth the wait.  I only had time to make two of the breads for the Mellow Bakers this month. I’m so glad I opted to make this one. It is the best brioche I’ve ever tasted.

Brioche is a very rich delicacy.  It’s not quite bread and not quite pastry, but it is all delicious!  It is made with a lot butter and eggs and is very versatile.  It can be shaped into the traditional tête and grande tête shapes; it can be fashioned into loaves or freestanding braids; it can be used as the base for a variety of coffee cakes; and it makes wonderful French toast.

I’ve made Rich Man’s Brioche and Poor Man’s Brioche from the Bread Bakers’ Apprentice book.  This version would be considered the Middle Class Brioche.  Guess that’s why I like it so much!

Brioche

Source: Bread: A Baker’s Book of Techniques and Recipes by Jeffrey Hamelman.

Ingredients:

• Bread Flour 4 1/4 cups
• High-gluten Flour 1 1/4 cups
• Water, cold 1/4 cup
• Eggs, cold 6
• Salt 1 Tablespoons
• Sugar 6 Tablespoons
• Yeast 1 1/2 Tablespoons
• Butter, cold 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks)

 

Directions:

Day 1:

Make sure everything is cold.  I thought this was a rather interesting step, but I mixed all the dry ingredients together (except the yeast) and put it in the refrigerator anyway.  I only meant to keep it there for a few hours, but it took a couple of days before I actually got around to making the dough.  I keep my yeast in the refrigerator anyway so I didn’t need to cool it off.

Mixing the Dough:

Mix all of the ingredients except the cold butter in a mixer until the ingredients are incorporated.  Mix the dough until it is strong and tough.  This usually takes 5 to 7  minutes in a spiral mixer.  My mixer had a hard time with this so I had to use my hands to make sure everything was incorporated.

In the meantime, take the cold butter and beat it with a rolling pin until it is pliable.  This part is a little bit tricky so it’s best to do this between sheets of plastic or wax paper.  I used wax paper and the butter kept wanting to slide out from under the paper. I didn’t take a photo of this process because I was having too much fun and forgot. 

Once the butter is pliable and the dough is strong, start adding the butter a little bit at a time until it is completely incorporated into the dough and the dough is smooth and satiny.  This will take awhile, probably about 8 to 10 minutes.  All that butter was giving my mixer fits so I finished mixing this part by hand as well. It was fun squishing the butter between my fingers.  You ought to try it sometime!

When the butter has been incorporated into the dough, put it into a lightly floured bucket or bowl, cover and let it rest at room temperature for an hour.

Chill the Dough Overnight:

After an hour, fold the yummy dough, put it back in the container and refrigerate overnight.  Degas the dough 2 or 3 times over the next several hours.  If you remember that is.  I put mine in the refrigerator overnight so I forgot this part. However, I did degas it when I took it out of the refrigerator to shape it.

Day 3:

Shaping the Loaves:

I used about 14 ounces and shaped one loaf into a round ball and placed it in my brioche pan.  Then I made the topknot.  I filled the mold to about 50 percent capacity so that it would have room to rise a bit. 

I took some more dough and shaped it into a loaf, then placed it in a glass loaf pan.

I had just enough dough left for this cute little bun.

Proofing the dough:

When the dough is fully proofed, it is suppose to fill the mold or pan to 85 percent.  This dough was so cold, it took a while to warm up to room temperature.

But it finally did reach about 85 percent capacity. Well, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Baking the Loaves:

Once the loaves are proofed, brush them with an egg wash and bake at 350 degrees.  It took a while to bake the loaves.  I had to tent them with aluminum foil partway through because they were starting to burn on top but the inside of the loaves were still gooey.

The finished loaves should have a rich and deeply golden crust and a wonderful aroma.  Both of the loaves cracked a bit when they were baked and the topknot ended up sort of lopsided on this one, but they’re so good, it doesn’t really matter. 

My boyfriend and I (and his dog) enjoyed eating the bun.  Boy was it good!  Melt in your mouth kind of goodness.  So, of course we had to slice one of the loaves and have another piece.  It smelled and tasted heavenly!

This bread has been YeastSpotted. Please visit Wild Yeast to view all of the lovely breads in the roundup.

 

 

Mellow Bakers was started by Paul at Yumarama.
We’re baking breads from Bread: A Baker’s Book of Techniques and Recipes by Jeffrey Hamelman.

 

 

Thanks for joining us in the Bread Experience bread-baking blog.  We hope you’ll join us again soon.

Happy Baking!
Cathy

Valentine Bread with Cherries and Almonds

February is the month for love and lovers. Did you know that in many parts of Europe, there is an ancient tradition of giving Lover's Bread?

These gingerbreads were heart-shaped and extravagantly decorated with colored spun-sugar flowers. As the tradition goes, once the gingerbreads were given, the heart was bespoken and the young man who ate them with the woman who represented his heart's desire was committed for life.  This sort of gift disappeared from France around the time of the First World War but in other European countries, the tradition still exists.

Source: The History of Bread by Bernard Dupaigne

For Valentine’s Day, I decided to recreate this old tradition and give the gift of bread to my Sweetie.  Rather than trying to make an elaborate gingerbread heart, I chose this beautiful Lacy Valentine Bread Heart. It’s made with enriched dough, filled with chopped cherries and slivered almonds and glazed with a delicious almond glaze.

 

Lacy Valentine Coffee Cake

Printer friendly version

Source: Recipe Courtesy © 2010 ACH Foods. All Rights Reserved.

Makes: 2 coffee cakes

 

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup warm water (100 to 110^oF)
• 2 envelopes Active Dry Yeast
• 1/2 cup warm milk (100 to 110^oF)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon butter or margarine, softened
• 2 large eggs
• 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
• 4-1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup chopped maraschino cherries, drained
• 1/2 cup chopped slivered almonds, toasted

Almond Glaze: In small bowl, combine 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted; 1/2 teaspoon almond extract; and 2 to 3 tablespoons milk. Stir until smooth.

 

Directions

Place warm water in large warm bowl. Sprinkle in yeast; stir until dissolved. Add warm milk, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup butter, eggs, salt, and 1-1/2 cups flour; blend well. Stir in enough remaining flour to make soft dough.

Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 4 to 6 minutes. Place in greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover; let rise in warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Pat maraschino cherries between paper towels to remove excess moisture. In medium bowl, combine maraschino cherries, almonds, and 1/4 cup sugar; set aside.

Punch dough down. Remove dough to lightly floured surface; divide in half.  Roll 1 half to 24 x 7-inch oval. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter; brush half over dough to within 1/2 inch of edges.

Sprinkle half of cherry mixture over dough.

Beginning at long end, roll up tightly as for jelly roll.

Pinch seam to seal;

gently roll back and forth to stretch to 26-inch rope. Place, seam side down, on greased baking sheet.

Form into ring; pinch ends together to seal. Shape into heart.

 
With sharp knife (I did this with scissors), cut slits, starting at outside edge of heart, two-thirds of the way through dough at 3/4-inch intervals. Turn each section on its side to show filling. Cover with plastic wrap.

Let rise in warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Bake at 350^oF for 20 to 25 minutes or until done, switching positions of sheets halfway through baking time for even browning. Remove from sheets; let cool on wire racks.

Frost with Almond Glaze. 

Then decorate and give the bread to your Sweetheart and watch him or her smile.  I added some candied hearts because I like them.  :o)

 

Instead of making two heart coffee cakes, I used the rest of the dough to make sweet rolls (buns actually) for my other two sweeties (aka my sons).  The buns were really good, but I didn’t get a photo.

 

This bread has been YeastSpotted.  Please visit Wild Yeast to view all of the lovely breads in the roundup.

Thanks for joining me today in the bread-baking blog.  I hope you enjoyed your bread experience.

Happy Baking!
Cathy

Chocolate Cinnamon Babka: BBD #26

This month's Bread Baking Day is hosted by Jamie at Life's a Feast and we're baking special breads for her birthday party.  I decided that Chocolate Cinnamon Babka would be the perfect bread to bring to her virtual birthday party.  It's a festive and delicious bread filled with chocolate and cinnamon.

I thought I had gotten enriched breads out of my system during the Holidays, but when I saw this babka on another blog (sorry, I don't remember which one), it reminded me that I hadn't made any breads yet from Peter Reinhart's new book Artisan Breads Every Day.

So you know what that meant ... I had to make this bread and this was the perfect occasion.

 

Babka is a rich, yeasted cross between bread and coffee cake.  The name is derived from the Russian baba, which means grandmother.  The American version is usually formed as a twisted loaf, but I decided to try the Israeli version, known as kranz cake, because I thought it looked really cool.

 

Chocolate Cinnamon Babka (Kranz style)

Makes: 1 Large (make that huge) loaf

This bread is from Peter Reinhart’s Artisan Breads Every Day.

Ingredients:

Dough:

• 2 T (19g) instant yeast
• 3/4 cup (170g) lukewarm milk (any kind; at about 95 degrees F.)
• 6 T (85g) unsalted butter, melted or at room temperature
• 6 T (85g) sugar
• 1 tsp (7g) vanilla extract
• 4 egg yolks (85g)
• 3 1/3 cups (425g) unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp (7g) salt, or 1 1/2 tsp coarse kosher salt

Filling:

• 1 1/2 cups (255g) frozen semisweet dark chocolate chips or chunks
• 1 tsp (7g) ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup (56.5g) cold unsalted butter

 

Directions:

Whisk together the yeast and lukewarm milk until dissolved, then set it aside for about 5 minutes before mixing it into the dough. Cream the butter and sugar together until smooth.

 

Add the vanilla to the egg yolks and whisk lightly to break up the yolks. I used homemade vanilla extract made with vanilla beans and rum. The mixture needed to sit in a dark cabinet for a couple of months before it was ready to use. It wasn't quite ready in time for Holiday baking but now I'll have a never ending supply of vanilla extract.  I'll just need to add more rum as the supply diminishes and a new vanilla bean every once in a while. I got the idea from The Hungry Mouse.

Then add the yolks and mix until the mixture is fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Stop mixing and add the flour and salt

Then pour in the milk/yeast mixture.  Begin mixing again at low speed, for 2 to 3 minutes to make a soft, supple, tacky dough.

Transfer the dough to a floured work surface and knead it by hand for about 2 minutes, adding more flour as necessary to make the dough pliable.  I had to add a good bit more flour.  The dough will be a beautiful golden color and will feel soft and supple.  Like butter.  Yummy!

 

Form the dough into a ball.  Place the dough in a clean, lightly oiled bowl

 

Cover it tightly with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature for about 2 1/2 hours. It will rise somewhat but won't double in size.

While the dough is rising, prepare the filling.  Grind frozen chocolate morsels in a food processor until nearly powdered. Then add cinnamon and pulse a couple of times to incorporate.  I just got a bunch of cinnamon sticks at a very good price from the farmer's market so I added a cinnamon stick instead of cinnamon powder.

Cut the butter into 8 to 10 pieces, add it to the food processor, and pulse until the butter is evenly dispersed into the chocolate mixture.

 

Once the dough has risen, roll it into a 15 by 15-inch square on a lightly floured surface.  You may need to lift the dough frequently (using a metal pastry scraper) and add more flour underneath to prevent it from sticking to the counter. 

 

Sprinkle the chocolate mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 1/4-inch border.

 

 

Roll up the dough like a jelly roll and place it seam side down on the counter. 

 

With gentle but firm hands, rock the log back and forth to extend its length to about 18 to 24 inches long.

 

To make the Kranz shape, use a metal pastry blade to cut the log down the middle lengthwise.

 

 

Cross one piece over the other, then continue to criss-cross the pieces in both directions to form a braid.

 

 

Place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray.  The loaf was so big, it barely fit on the baking sheet.  Cover the loaf loosely with plastic wrap and let it rise at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours, until it has increased to about 1 1/2 times its original size.

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Bake the loaf for 20 to 25 minutes, then rotate the pan for even baking.  Bake until the top is a rich dark brown, the sides are a rich golden brown, and the loaf sounds hollow when thumped on the bottom.  Total baking time is about 50 to 60 minutes.

Cool for at least 90 minutes before serving.  It is best served at room temperature once the chocolate has had time to set.

The loaf was too big to fit on my cooling rack so I had to put it on the Dining room table across two racks. 

I hope Jamie enjoys this virtual Chocolate Cinnamon Babka.  My family (well mostly me) has been enjoying the real version.  It’s delicious!  I started going to the track again so maybe that will offset the extra calories.

 

I baked this bread for Bread Baking Day #26.  Check out all of the fabulous breads in the BBD #26 Roundup.

Learn more about BBD #26

 

This Chocolate Cinnamon Babka has also been Yeastspotted!  Go on over to Wild Yeast to view all of the lovely breads in the roundup. You’ll be glad you did.

 

Happy Baking!
Cathy