I often say that I don’t do bread. With all the flour and space that is needed for proper bread baking, there simply isn’t the capacity for it at Violet. This is true, but it is also true that I don’t think I have ever really hit my stride with bread.
But over the past year, I have been trying to better understand it. In one of his books, my Californian friend Chad Robertson of Tartine Bakery claims that “dough is dough” – if you can make one loaf, then you can make another. Surely the same applies to all baking? Whether you’re making a delicate cake or a chewy loaf, it’s essentially the same alchemy taking place. Which leaves me out of excuses.
Brioche is yeasted bread enriched with eggs and plenty of butter. (It is not dissimilar to the doughnut dough I shared with you last week, and could absolutely be fried if you were so inclined.) I suppose it is the cake-maker’s bread and a good place to start my journey.
Brioche
There are many things that can be done with day-old bread, which is why the recipe below makes two loaves: one for eating fresh, and one to leave to go stale for use in the pudding that follows.
Makes 2 loaves
200g unsalted butter
550g whole milk
24g dried yeast
150g caster sugar
1kg strong flour
2 tsp salt
3 large eggs
2 egg yolks, for the wash
4 tbsp double cream
1 Cut 150g of the butter into 1cm cubes, then leave to soften to room temperature. Use the remaining 50g of butter to generously butter a large mixing bowl, as well as two 18cm x 11.5cm x 7cm loaf tins.
2 Warm the milk in a small saucepan over a medium heat until lukewarm. Stir the yeast and caster sugar into the milk, and let the yeast bloom.
3 In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, weigh the flour and salt. Add your yeast mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until a dough forms (about 5 minutes). Now add your eggs, one by one, mixing fully after each addition. Mix on a medium speed for 5-10 minutes, until the dough comes away from the sides and is starting to get elastic.
4 At this point you can start adding the soft butter, one piece at a time. Continue until all of it has been fully incorporated into the dough. It will feel slightly sticky. Turn into the butter-lined bowl, loosely cover with clingfilm, and leave to double in volume (about 2 hours).
5 Knock back the dough, and cover tightly with clingfilm. Chill for at least 6 hours, or overnight. This makes the butter in the dough firmer, which allows you to shape it.
6 Take your chilled dough from the fridge and divide into six pieces. Shape each piece into a ball, seam-side down. Neatly tuck three balls snugly into each buttered loaf tin. Leave to rise for 45 minutes.
7 Whisk together the yolks and cream, then brush over the loaves. Heat your oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until you can tap the loaves and they sound hollow.
Strawberry brioche bread pudding
Serves 4-6
500g stale brioche, sliced into 15-20mm slices
100g currants
100g unsalted butter
1 large egg
3 egg yolks
200g milk
500g sour cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
Zest of 1 orange
50g caster sugar
¼ tsp salt
50g flaked almonds
2 tbsp demerara sugar
500g strawberries
½ vanilla pod
150g golden caster sugar
Double cream, to serve
1 Butter a large loaf tin and have ready a roasting dish large enough to place the loaf tin inside it. Also line another small roasting tin with baking paper, for the strawberries.
2 Arrange the brioche slices in the tin snugly, in an upright position. Sprinkle over the currants. Slice off bits of butter and press them between the layers of bread. No need to spread them as they will melt in the baking.
3 In a bowl, whisk together the egg, egg yolks, sour cream, milk, vanilla and orange zest. Stir in the sugar and salt, then pour over the bread. Prod with a fork and soak for 45 minutes. Use the back of a fork to press any unsoaked bits of bread down under the custard, being careful not to let it overflow.
4 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Sprinkle the mix with the flaked almonds and demerara sugar and put the tin in the roasting dish. Pour water into the roasting dish so that it comes at least 2cm up the side of the loaf tin. Put in the oven to bake for 40-45 minutes, or until set.
5 Meanwhile, hull and quarter your strawberries. Put them in your paper-lined roasting tin, add the scraped vanilla pod and sprinkle with sugar. Roast for 25 minutes. When the pudding is ready to serve, cover with the strawberries and all their juices and put great big scoops into serving bowls with plenty of cold double cream.
- Claire Ptak is an author and food stylist and owns Violet Bakery in London. She is the author of the Violet Bakery Cookbook (Square Peg); @violetcakeslondon
