Description
Rich and buttery homemade brioche bread with just a touch of sweetness! Serve warm with butter and jam for the best breakfast.
Ingredients
Brioche
- 3/4 cup water (170 grams)
- 1/2 Tbsp instant yeast
- 1/2 Tbsp salt
- 1/4 cup honey (85 grams)
- 4 large eggs, lightly beaten, at room temperature (228 grams)
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled (170 grams)
- 3 3/4 cups flour (530 grams)
Egg Wash
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 Tbsp water
- Turbinado sugar, for topping
Instructions
- Make brioche dough: Heat water in a microwave-safe measuring cup for 45 seconds to 1 minute, until very warm (120-130°F). Combine warm water, yeast, salt and honey in a large mixer bowl; mix on low speed until incorporated. Add eggs and melted butter; mix until combined. Gradually mix in flour, just until combined.
- Rest dough: Cover mixer bowl loosely with plastic and let rest at room temperature for 2 hours.
- Chill dough: After 2 hours, place the covered dough in the refrigerator to chill for at least 3 hours, or up to 5 days (Dough can also be frozen in 1-pound portions up to two weeks and thawed for 24 hours in the refrigerator before using). When ready to bake, spray an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray and flour board or counter well.
- Shape dough: Dust surface of dough with flour and use a floured bench scraper or kitchen shears to cut off a 1 1/2-pound piece of dough (keep remaining dough in the refrigerator up to 5 days). Dust the piece with more flour and use floured hands to quickly shape into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating dough as you go. Cut dough into three equal pieces; gently roll each piece into a 12-inch rope.
- Braid dough: To make a three-strand braid, start at one end and pinch the ends of the rope together. Bring the right outside rope over the center rope; that rope now becomes the center. Bring the left outside rope over the new center rope; that rope now becomes the center. Continue braiding until you reach the end; pinch ropes together to seal (visual guide here).
- Carefully transfer braid to prepared pan. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature for 90 minutes. In the last 20 minutes, preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk egg yolk and water together in a small bowl; use a pastry brush to gently glaze the top of the loaf; sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
- Bake brioche for 45 to 50 minutes, until brioche is deep golden and set. Cool in pan on wire rack for 15 minutes; turn out of pan to cool completely before slicing with a serrated bread knife.
Notes
I used a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment to mix the dough.
For accuracy, I highly encourage use of weighted measures (included below) and a digital scale.
I’ve scaled down the original recipe to make a single loaf. You’ll have leftover dough which can be chilled up to 5 days; I’ll share another recipe next week that works well with the remaining dough.
Adapted from The New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day, with permission