Brioche

🛒Ingredients (Grocery List)

• 6 Eggs (at room temperature)

• 1 cup Unsalted Butter (2 sticks)

• 4 3/4 cups All-purpose Flour

• 1 tbsp active Dry Yeast

• 1/4 cup + 2 tsp Sugar

• 1 1/2 tsp Salt

• 1/2 cup warm Water

🍴Serves: 2 Loaves

⏰Prep Time: 3 hours

⏱️Cook Time: 40 min

💤Resting Time: Overnight

🥣Instructions

1. Take out 6 Eggs and 1 cup Butter a few hours before you begin to bring them to room temperature. Prepare all other ingredients before starting.

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together 1 cup of Flour,1 tablespoon active Dry Yeast, 1/4 cup of Sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons of Salt, before adding 1/2 cup of warm Water at about 120 degrees. Turn the mixer on at medium speed for a couple of minutes until well-combined.

3. Now add in 1 Egg at a time. Only add the next Egg when the previous Egg is well incorporated.

4. Set the mixer to low. Add in 2 cups of Flour, a 1/4 cup at a time, and let the mixer go until the dough is well combined.

5. Turn the mixer off and cut the 2 sticks of softened butter into small cubes. With the mixer on medium, add the Butter in 6 separate batches, waiting until the Butter is well incorporated after each batch before adding more.

6. Set the mixer on low. Now add in 1 3/4 cups of Flour, a 1/4 cup at a time until the dough is well-combined. This dough will be very sticky (closer to a very thick batter) when it’s done.

7. Use a rubber spatula to clean the dough off the mixing paddle and scrape the sides of the mixing bowl. Cover the dough with a plate or plastic wrap and let it proof at room temperature (about 70 degrees) for 3 hours, until doubles in size.

8. After 3 hours have elapsed, punch and deflate the dough completely with a rubber spatula. Cover the dough with a plate again and refrigerate it overnight until 3 hours before you are ready to bake the next day.

9. The next day, remove the dough from the refrigerator. Divide it into two equal pieces. Shape them on a lightly floured clean surface, and place each into its own loaf pan (loaf pan size of 9X5). The chilled dough is a bit stiffer to work with, so you can use a rolling pin to help shape it into the desired width and length. If you do this, make sure to roll the dough lengthwise like a cigar when you are done to ensure a rounded top to your loaf. Whatever you do, the dough should fit snugly in the loaf pan.

10. Now you can create plain loaves as I have described above, or you could create a braid or individual buns, it’s totally up to you.

11. Cover each loaf pan lightly with a clear plastic wrap and let proof at room temperature for about 2 1/2 to 3 hours, until doubled in size.

12. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees while the dough is proofing. Bake for 37 to 40 minutes in the center of the oven. Tent the loaves with foil if the crust is getting too dark. While it’s baking, prepare the Sugar water by mixing 2 teaspoons of Sugar with 1 tablespoon of Water until the Sugar is completely dissolved. When the bread is done, remove it from the oven, and immediately brush the top of the Brioche with the Sugar Water to give it that shiny finish.

13. Let the Brioche sit in the loaf pan for 5 minutes to cool before transferring the loaves from the pans to a cooling rack. This cooling step is important, so the Brioche does not fall apart.

14. Once the Brioche has cooled completely, you can store it in a tight sealed container or zip-lock bag to keep it fresh. This Brioche is also heavenly when served slightly warm with softened Butter.

💡Tips

• When you lift and pull the dough it should stretch like chewing gum without breaking.

• Dough that has risen for the second time can be frozen in the loaf pan. The day before baking, transfer the pan to the refrigerator several hours ahead of time to bring it slowly to the right temperature.

• Very important: All the ingredients, especially the Butter, must be at room temperature.