Brioche -- A rich no knead bread

Brioche is a very rich and delectable bread. In fact, this particular recipe utilizes a 70 percent butter-to-flour ratio so it would definitely be considered a "rich man's brioche". In France, they make two types: rich man's and poor man's brioche -- the difference being the amount of butter.

I made Brioche this past Easter and my oldest son loved it. He said "Mom, I wouldn't mind if you made this bread again". That's a teenager's way of saying he likes it. I took the hint and made it again.

Shaping Brioche: Brioche can be made into many shapes and forms. It is often made as a petite brioche à tête, a small roll with a topknot; it can be baked in loaf pans and sliced like any other bread; or it may be shaped into torpedo rolls and eaten on the side with foie gras or other rich delights. It also makes wonderful French toast and bread pudding.

Using a Master Formula for Brioche: This particular formula utilizes a sponge that is really a type of poolish, made with milk. It is thicker than other types of poolish. The poolish has enough yeast so that no additional yeast is required.


Making Brioche

The master formula for this brioche is found in Peter Reinhart's Crust and Crumb.

Yield: 3 loaves, or up to 4 dozen small rolls. I’m using a smaller fluted pan to mold the brioche so it will make about 3 brioches.

Ingredients (Sponge):

• 1 teaspoon Instant Yeast
• 1/2 cup (4 ounces) lukewarm milk (90°F)
• 1 cup (4.5 ounces) unbleached bread flour

Ingredients (Dough):

• 3 1/2 cups (16 ounces) unbleached bread flour
• 2 tablespoons (1 ounce) sugar
• 1 teaspoon (0.25 ounce) salt
• 5 large eggs (8 ounces), cold, plus 1 large egg for egg wash
• 1 1/2 cups sponge (from above; use all 8.6 ounces)
• 1 3/4 cups (14 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
• Vegetable oil cooking spray (optional)
• Melted butter and flour for the molds (Tip: to coat the pan melt 3 parts butter and stir in 1 part flour (by measure, not by weight). Brush this on pans whenever you need a buttery pan release. The flour keeps the butter from burning.

Directions:

To make the sponge, stir the yeast into the milk in a mixing bowl. Add the flour and stir until smooth. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and allow the sponge to ferment at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours. It will become very bubbly.

In a mixing bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, salt, 5 eggs, and sponge.



Note: If you have a heavy-duty mixer, now is the time to use it. Mixing this dough by hand is quite a workout.


Mixing the dough by machine:
Mix it on low speed for about 2 minutes, till a smooth dough is formed. Cut the butter into 3 pieces and beat in 1 piece at a time at medium-low speed till each is absorbed. Continue beating at the same speed till the dough is smooth, about 6 minutes. It will be very soft and sticky.


Mixing the dough by hand:
Gradually combine all the ingredients and beat vigorously with a wooden or metal spoon for about 10 minutes, to make a smooth, wet dough




Mist the top of the dough with cooking spray, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and place the bowl in the refrigerator overnight (or for a minimum of 5 hours). The dough will firm up considerably as it retards.


Remove the dough from the refrigerator and shape it, while it is still cold, into loaves, rolls, or molded petites brioches à tête.

Grease the molds well with cooking spray or with melted butter and flour. Mist the top of the dough with cooking spray, cover it with plastic wrap or enclose it in a plastic bag, and let rise at room temperature for about 2 hours, or till nearly doubled in size.

Brioche dough doubled in size after 2 hours

Position on oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375°F for a large, full-size brioche, 400°F for smaller loaves. Beat the remaining egg till smooth and brush it on the tops of the brioche, taking care not to let it drip down the sides of the molds.





Bake 35 to 45 minutes for loaves, 20 to 25 minutes for small rolls, until a rich, deep gold. If using molds, remove the rolls 1 or 2 minutes after they come out of the oven, taking care not to tear them (use a small knife to loosen them from the side walls). Cool the brioche on a rack for 20 to 40 minutes, depending on size, before eating.


Happy Baking!
Cathy

If you'd like to try a different Brioche Recipe, check out these No Knead Breads.

Batter Corn Bread

Batter Cornbread is brown and golden and similar in texture to a quick corn bread. However, it’s different from regular cornbread because it uses yeast as the leavening. The batter is beaten, not kneaded and it rises once in the pan before baking.

This easy bread takes about 2 hours from start to finish. It is a good bread to make Sunday afternoon for dinner with the family. You don't even need any special baking equipment, just 2 medium (8" x 4") loaf pans, greased, Teflon or even glass loaf pans. You don't really need a mixer but you can certainly use one if you prefer.

Batter Corn Bread
From Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads

Ingredients:

• 2 packages dry yeast
• 3 1/2 cups bread or all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cups yellow cornmeal
• 1/3 cup cup nonfat dry milk
• 1 1/2 cups hot water (120°F - 130°F)
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, margarine, or other shortening
• 6 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
• 1 tablespoon each milk and cornmeal

Directions:

In a large mixing or mixer bowl, stir together the yeast, flour, cornmeal, and dry milk. In another bowl, pour the hot water over the shortening, sugar, salt, and eggs. Combine. Add to dry mixture. Beat until well blended, about 50 strokes, or 1 minute with a mixer flat beater. The batter will be stiff.





Turn the batter into the loaf pans and push into the corners with a rubber scraper.  Cover the loaf pans with wax paper and put aside to rise at room temperature until the batter has doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.




Preheat the oven to 375°F 20 minutes before baking. I reduced the heat to 350°F since I was using glass baking pans.

Before putting the loaves in the oven, carefully brush the tops with the milk and sprinkle lightly with cornmeal.

Bake in the oven until golden and brown, about 35 minutes. The loaves will be done when the bottom crust makes a hard, hollow sound when thumped, and a wooden toothpick inserted in the middle comes out dry and clean.

Remove the bread from the oven and turn the loaves out onto cooling racks.



This bread is especially good warm. I’m serving it with some homemade chili. The first batch of the season.

This bread freezes pretty well. You can eat one loaf now and save one for later. That's what I'm going to do. I made a big batch of chili and I'm freezing some of that as well. One cold winter night, I can take the chili and the corn bread out of the freezer and have an easy meal that my family will love. I can't wait!

 
Happy Baking!
Cathy

White Velvet Batter Bread

This savory batter bread requires no kneading. It fills the kitchen with a wonderful aroma while its baking. It is a unique bread that was developed for baking in coffee cans to create a special mushroom shape.

 

 

It is an easy yeast bread which is suitable for a beginning baker. However, it's fun to make regardless of your baking level.

I like this bread because it is quick to make. It can be prepared in 2 hours from mixing to table. If you don't have time to prepare a kneaded bread, this is a good alternative because it rises once, then bakes.

 

Batter breads require no kneading so the process is quicker than for regular bread doughs and it is easier to clean up -- a definite plus. For more information, check out this section on no knead breads.

White Velvet Batter Bread

From Beth Hensperger's Bread Made Easy: A Baker's First Bread Book
 
Special equipment needed:Two 13-ounce coffee cans or two 4 1/2-inch diameter ovenproof glass baking canisters.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon (1 package) active dry yeast
• 3 tablespoons firmly packed light brown sugar (I didn't have light brown sugar so I substituted dark)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 cup warm water (105°F to 115°F)
• 1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk, regular, fat-free, or goat's milk, undiluted, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons walnut oil or unsalted butter, melted
• 4 1/4 cups (exact measure) unbleached all-purpose flour

Directions:

Step 1: Mixing the Batter
In a small bowl, sprinkle the yeast, a pinch of the brown sugar, and the ginger over the warm water. Stir to dissolve and let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes.

For this recipe I’m providing the instructions for making the batter by hand. I got a good workout because you have to beat the batter vigorously. If you prefer, you can let your mixer do the work for you.

Combine the milk, the remaining sugar, salt, oil or butter, and 1 1/2 cups of the flour in a large bowl. Beat vigorously with a balloon whisk or dough whisk, at least 40 strokes by hand, until thick and sticky. Add the yeast mixture and beat vigorously for 1 minute more.

Continue to add the remaining flour gradually, 1/2 cup at a time, then beat vigorously another 100 strokes, about 2 minutes. By this time, I had switched to using the Danish dough whisk because the batter was too thick to use the balloon whisk. The batter will stay sticky. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

Step 2: Panning and Rising
Generously grease the bottom and sides of the coffee cans or glass baking canisters. Divide the batter evenly between the 2 molds, filling one-half to two-thirds full.

Use a spatula to push the batter into the corners and smooth the top with flour-dusted fingers. Cover loosely with plastic wrap lightly greased with vegetable oil cooking spray.

Let rise at room temperature until double in bulk, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. The batter should be even with the rim of the pan and slightly lift up the plastic wrap. Do not let the dough rise more than double (over risen loaves collapse during baking).

Tip: If the batter over rises, scrape it into a bowl, beat vigorously about 20 strokes, then return it to the pan and begin the rising process again.



Step 3: Baking, Cooling, and Storage

About 20 minutes before baking, place the oven rack in the lower part of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F (325°F) if using glass molds). Bake until the top is crusty and dark brown, the bread sounds hollow when tapped, and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes.

An instant-read thermometer should read 200°F. The crown will dome about 3 to 4 inches above the rim of the mold. Cool in the molds for 5 minutes.

Finished batter breads
As you can see the crowns domed very nicely

Turn mold on its side and slide the loaves out onto a rack to cool on their sides for at least 2 hours. Serve slightly warm, sliced into thick rounds or cut into long wedges, with lots of butter.

There wasn't that easy! Don't wait too long to eat the bread after it cools, it is really good!


Storing the bread: Store wrapped in a plastic food storage bag (or bread bag) at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

Happy Baking!

Cathy