Brioche Bread
Freshly made pasta, creamy delicious sauces and nice warm bread all have the same common denominator… they are my ultimate weaknesses! Even if I’m not hungry, something in my brain goes off and that’s it, I want some!
When it comes to bread, homemade is the best! There’s nothing better than a nice loaf baking in the oven… the aroma floating through the air is incredible! After it comes out all puffy and warm, it takes all my willpower to not start slicing half of the loaf and spreading some butter on it. Although it’s mentally challenging (in a delicious way), I love making bread from scratch like Baguettes, Roti, Hot Dog Buns, Bannock, Focaccia, Pita, Bagels, Pandoro, Dinner Rolls, etc.
There’s a Jewish bread that I’ve been making for years called Challah as well as its French counterpart which is Brioche Bread! The taste of it is absolutely amazing! With a nice buttery flavor, this rich bread is incredible! Surprisingly, making this bread is easier than you think – if I can do it so can you!
What’s the difference between Brioche Bread and Challah? They are both sweet but the French one is made with butter and lots of it (are you shocked?) while the other is made with oil. They are both perfect for French Toast, sandwiches, buns for burgers or simply to serve along with your meal. They are great to make for the Holidays as well as during Easter.
Made with butter and eggs but mostly butter just like a flaky croissant, it’s important that your ingredients are at room temperature especially the butter. When I filmed the video in the middle of winter, I should’ve left it out a little longer on the counter. If your butter is still a little too hard like mine, simply put the bowl in the microwave for a few seconds (10 seconds) to soften it but make sure to not overdo it as we want some texture from it.
When the dough is made and we form a ball with it (the texture will feel like a slinky toy in “dough form”), we’ll be transferring it to a bowl “lightly” greased. There’s enough butter in it to not stick but by precaution, a little flavorless oil like grapeseed to coat the bowl won’t hurt.
After the rise, punching it and forming a ball with it, I cover and transfer the dough to the fridge for 8 to 24 hours. Many let it chill for 2 hours. I find it works better when the dough is left in the fridge longer. When taking it out, it will be hard and that’s okay, just let it get to room temperature until it softens. Now if you want to form balls or braid it like I showed you for the Challah, weigh it while it’s still hard… it makes the task easier.
There will also be a thin crust on it. I did the test by covering the dough with plastic wrap and then a clean dish towel as well as no cling film and only a dish towel. There’s no drastic difference between the two.
The proofing time is usually a couple hours or until it doubles in size. In the video, I totally forgot about my bread because I was doing other things and I let it proof longer (it tripled in size), ending up with a very big loaf… actually a humongous Brioche Bread! Visually it was a little deformed but it tasted lovely!
Enriched with butter and eggs, this Brioche Bread is so tasty! Unless you know a boulangerie who makes them like the way it should be, you’ll be amazed how delicious it actually is! Save some money and enjoy this lovely buttery bread at home.
Bon Appétit!
Here are more delicious bread recipes for you to try…
– Cheesy Breadsticks
– Arepas with Beef Brisket
– Mediterranean Olive Bread
– Mexican Cornbread
– Popovers
– Cheddar Biscuits
and for even more bread recipes, click on this link… Recipe Category • Bread
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Brioche Bread
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Ingredients
- 1 tbsp. active dry yeast
- 3/4 cup 2% warm milk (between 105-110ºF)
- 1 tbsp. honey tips & tricks
- 3 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (3/4 cup reserved), plus more for work surface
- 1/2 tsp. ground Himalayan sea salt
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, soften and cut into pieces
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar tips & tricks
- 3 large room temperature free-run eggs, beaten
- 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- egg wash (1 egg yolk with 1 tbsp. milk)
Directions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, add active dry yeast, milk and honey. Stir well and allow the yeast to activate, about 15 minutes.
- In a large bowl, combine 3 cups flour and salt; whisk well and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, add butter and powdered sugar; stir until evenly combined and set aside.
- Add beaten eggs and vanilla to the yeast. Process until the ingredients are mixed using the dough hook attachment. Add flour mixture and process on low speed for 2 minutes.
- Add a third of the butter mixture, increase the speed to 3 and continue mixing until nicely combined before adding another third, scraping the sides of the bowl.
- When the butter is all in, start using the reserved ¾ cup of flour by adding a tablespoon at a time until the dough clings around the hook – add more if needed.
- Increase the speed to 4 and knead for 6 minutes.
- With floured hands, form a ball and place it in a large bowl lightly greased. Cover with a clean dish towel and place it in a warm place such as the oven, seam side down. Let it rise until it doubles in size, about 1 ½ hours.
- Punch the dough to deflate and form a ball once again. Place it back in the bowl, cover and transfer to the fridge for 12 to 24 hours.
- The next day, butter and flour a loaf pan (make rolls or loaf); set aside.
- Drop the chilled hard dough onto a floured work surface and weigh it if braiding (refer to challah recipe), making buns (refer to hamburger buns recipe) or forming rolls.
- If making rolls, form 8 equal balls and place them in the prepared pan. Cover and let it proof for 2 hours or until it doubles in size.
- Preheat oven to 350ºF/180ºC
- In a small bowl, combine egg yolk and milk; whisk well.
- When the proofing time is done, brush the egg wash on top and transfer to the preheated oven. Bake for 20 minutes before rotating the pan; bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until nice and brown.
- Remove from the heat and let it cool for 5 minutes in the pan. Carefully flip the loaf and let it cool off completely on a wire rack.
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