Bake for 15-30 minutes (depending on loaf size) until light golden brown in colour. Place into a preheated oven set to 190-200☌. Cover with plastic wrap and leave for 30-45minutes in a warm place to rise. Take care to stretch the edges under to create a nice rounded top. The next day, remove the dough from the refrigerator and shape as required (for linked recipes) or, divide mixture into two and place into two greased loaf tins (or divide and make mini loaves). This allows the dough to be workable and easier to work into the final shape. Place into the refrigerator overnight (12 hours).

Remove the plastic wrap and tip the dough onto the bench and gently deflate the gassed dough by folding in onto itself 3-4 times, return to the lightly oiled bowl or container and cover with plastic wrap. Place the dough into a lightly oiled large bowl or shallow container, cover with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place for 60 minutes, the dough should have almost doubled in size. This process will be sticky at the start but after about 10-15minutes of kneading (taking a rest period of 30 seconds, every 3-4minutes) the dough will be very smooth, elastic, soft and shiny in feel. This develops the protein network and the dough starts to become strong, elastic and smooth.Īt this stage begin to add the softened butter over 6-8 additions whilst kneading. Then tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for approximately 5-8 minutes. I personally thought the chocolate was a nice addition, but I’m hoping to bake a ‘plain’ brioche without any additions to decipher which version I prefer.Place the flour, salt, sugar and yeast into a large mixing bowl and mix all the ingredients together.Īdd the water and the eggs, and using a wooden spoon combine the ingredients together until a dough mass has formed. I enjoyed eating one here and there, but I wouldn’t eat them on a regular basis. While the cupcakes cool, make the Old-Fashioned Frosting. Cool the cupcakes in the tin for for 15 minutes and then transfer to a baking rack. As you can see below, the edges and the bottom are golden.

If the toothpick comes out wet, give it a minute or two and check again. I thought they tasted nice… and I am happy I baked them, but I don’t think I will bake them any time soon for myself. Tip: If the toothpick comes out clean, it’s baked. I was (and still am!) beyond pleased with how they looked. Before baking, the buns were covered in an egg wash which creates a beautiful golden colour when baked. I decided to use a dark chocolate to create a bitter-sweet taste. Turns out, my kneading skills just need some work and it took me at least quadruple the amount of time the instructions suggest! Once all the butter was incorporated and the dough was left to rise I added the chocolate chips. It was a very messy experience and it felt like the dough was never going to reach the desired consistency of being ‘glossy, smooth and elastic’. At this stage, the softened butter was added. Once the dough was made, I began kneading it by ‘stretching and tearing’ to help develop the gluten. Making the brioche was a new challenge for me as I had never worked with an enriched dough before. And it can be found in a variety of forms, such as loaves, braids and rolls. Many versions exist, with common additions being dried fruits and chocolate chips. This creates a somewhat flaky texture – some say it is a mix between a bread and pastry. It is classified as an enriched dough, due to it containing egg and butter. Like many brioche recipes, the dough I made contained strong white bread flour, eggs, yeast, caster sugar, salt and unsalted butter. Despite my dislike for brioche, I was desperate to bake try baking them! What is brioche?Ī brioche is a delicious bread that originates in France, as far back as 1404. Their version is a brioche bun with chocolate chips. But, at the end of March one of the Instagram live-streams from “ Bread Ahead Bakery” was an ‘Easter Brioche’. On the days we would have brioche I would usually just take fruit because I wasn’t ‘too keen’ on it. To be truthfully honest, it was never anything I ate. I grew up and did most of my education in Switzerland where brioche made a common appearance at snack time at school.

Baking brioche in cupcake baker