Brioche

Category: Cakes and Bakes

These are delicious with jam for breakfast or served with fresh fruit as a dessert. Hollow out the centre and fill with savoury like chicken and mushrooms in a cream sauce, to make an interesting dinner party dish. You need to plan ahead to make them as there is a lot of standing time between stages but they are simple to make and well worth the effort.

Servings

Serves 12

Ingredients

525g/1lb 3oz strong white flour pinch of salt 25g/1oz caster sugar 2tsp instant dried yeast 250g/9oz butter 5 medium eggs, beaten and one more egg for glazing 75ml/2½ floz milk

Method

Sift together the flour, salt, sugar and add the yeast. Rub in the butter (use a grater to break down the butter into small pieces and then rub it into the flour etc until it resembles fine breadcrumbs). Combine the eggs and milk and stir into the flour to make a soft dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and no longer sticky. Put the dough in a clean bowl, cover with lightly oiled cling film and leave to rise in a warm, draught free place for 1-1 ½ hours until doubled in size. Knock back the risen dough (push it with your fist to knock the air out of it). Grease 12 brioche tins (7cm/3in) or twelve large muffin tins. Divide the dough into 12 even pieces. Then with each piece break off 1/3, use the larger piece to make a doughnut shaped piece of dough and place in the tin, roll the remaining piece into a ball and place it in the hole of the 'doughnut'. Beat the remaining egg and glaze the tops of each brioche. Cover with lightly oiled cling film and leave to rise until light and puffy- about 1½ hours Bake in a preheated oven 220c, Gas Mark 8 for about 18-20 minutes until golden. Cool on a wire rack. PER SERVING 348 Kcal, fat 20.2g, saturated fat 11.7g, salt 0.4g, carbohydrate 35.6g, sugar 3.2g, fibre 1.4g