Ingredients
- 510 g all-purpose flour
- 1 lightly heaped teaspoon of salt
- 40 g white sugar sugar
- 150 ml milk (at room temperature)
- 20 g fresh yeast (10 g fresh yeast = 1 teaspoon active dry yeast)
- 3 eggs (roughly 150g – slightly beaten)
- 50 g butter (unsalted, at room temperature)
- 1 whole egg (for the egg wash)
- 300 g butter
- 100 g pearl sugar (can be found online in the US - I brought mine back from France)
- For the syrup (to prepare ahead : Bring sugar and water to a boil until the sugar is dissolved. Keep at room temperature)
- 50 g sugar
- 50 g water
Preparation
Step 1
1. Mix the milk with the yeast.
2. Add all the dry ingredients (flour, salt and sugar) to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment.
3. Mix the dry ingredients well before adding the milk and yeast. Next add the eggs and the 50 g butter.
4. Mix at low speed for 3 minutes, then at medium for 8. Stop the machine when the dough is smooth and homogenous.
5. Place the ball of dough into a clean bowl and cover tightly. Leave at ambient temperature for 30 to 60 minutes or until it has doubled in size.
6. Remove the dough and lightly knock down. Place onto a tray lined with parchment paper, wrap and place in the freezer for another 30 minutes (to delay the fermentation).
7. Beat the 300g butter between two sheets of parchment paper until pliable (a rolling pin works well). Roll into a rectangle 20cm x 25cm x 1cm-thick, then leave at room temperature for 1 hour.
8. Roll the chilled dough into a rectangle 45cm x 25cm. Wrap again and rest in the freezer for 30 minutes.
9. Place the softened butter in the centre of the rectangle of dough. Fold each edge towards the middle of the butter (do not overlap at any point). Roll the dough into a band of approximately 70cm in length.
10. Letter-fold the dough, rotate, then roll again to 70cm. Repeat this step one more time.
11. Wrap the folded dough and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
12. Repeat step 10 once more, then rest in the fridge for 1 hour.
13. Roll the dough into a band of 35cm x 45 cm x 5mm-thick. Sprinkle with pearl sugar by purposely avoiding a 5 cm strip at the bottom. Using a rolling pin push the sugar pearls in the dough.
14. Brush the bottom strip (without pearl sugar) with the syrup and then roll it tightly (lenghtwise starting from the top). Glue the bottom strip to the rest of the dough using the syrup making sure this “welding” stays facing down. Store in the fridge for 20 min.
15. Cut the long roll into 12 smaller rolls (approx 4.5 cm) and place them into individual molds (muffin pans works well) or all together into a loaf cake pan.
16. Cover with plastic film and let it rest at room temperature for 2 hours so that they rise before being baked.
17. Brush the brioches with the egg wash, sprinkle with more pearl sugar and bake them at 340⁰F (170⁰C) for 25-30 minutes until golden.