This week we conclude our foray into the wacky world of yeast and bread by a discussing all things Brioche-related. We covered yeast, flour and gluten in detail in previous weeks, so this week we didn’t have a ton of new material to cover, but there are a few things that make brioche unique when compared to other breads. Brioche is the richest of all the bread doughs, evidenced by the amount of eggs and butter in the basic brioche ratio of 4 1/2 cups flour to 6 eggs to 1 1/2 cups butter. The final brioche product will have a very fine crust, a fine and even inner crumb structure, and will taste of (in Chef D’s own words) ‘butter and richness’. After an initial rising period, brioche dough will be ‘punched down’ and then should be refrigerated overnight before shaping and/or filling and proofing. This overnight rest will slow down the action of yeast and will help to slow down the stretching process of the dough which will ultimately lead to a better texture, flavor, and crumb structure in the final product.
There is also one more thing that makes brioche-making unique and different than other breads. When beginning a brioche, as we’ve done in weeks past it is a good idea to first ‘prove’ your yeast to make sure it will give rise to your dough. After proving, the mixture of yeast/water/sugar is added to eggs/salt and mixed together, along with some of the flour. A bit more flour is added and the dough is mixed in a bowl just until it begins to come together…it will be very sticky, gooey, and quite wet. At this point, the dough is scooped out of the bowl and placed onto a floured work surface and softened butter is ‘crashed’ into the dough, 1 tbsp at a time, until it has all been incorporated. Classically speaking, this technique is performed by hand and it is very messy, loud and serves as a really great way to release any pent up aggression. When you ‘crash’ the dough, you literally pick up a glob of the dough and smash it back down onto your work surface; the force of this action repeated over and over again is what incorporates the butter into the dough and also serves as the mechanical action required to develop gluten. It is a very messy process since the dough is still very sticky and gooey and it flies all over the place, sticking to things in the kitchen that aren’t always easy to reach for cleaning purposes. Once all of the butter has been incorporated, the rest of the flour is added until the dough really begins to look like, well, dough. The flour is added in installments (some before ‘crashing’, some after) in order to make it easier to ‘crash’ in the butter. When the dough is ready, it will have come together and formed a greasy ball…it won’t be anywhere as sticky as it was before. If it’s still sticky, that’s a good sign that the dough needs more flour. Then the dough is ready for its first rise. After it doubles in size, it should be punched down and refrigerated overnight before use.
Careful readers will notice I mentioned crashing when making criossants. The crashing there was not as integral to the overall dough making process as it is here. I’m not really sure who developed this method for dough making or even why it works. Maybe back in the day since the servants, apprentices and lackeys were the ones making the bread, they needed a way to reduce stress in a way that didn’t invlove punching their superiors in the face, so they devised this technique. I do know that nowadays it is possible to skip the manual labor and make brioche dough entirely in a stand-mixer, but where’s the fun in that?
Because the brioche dough doesn’t contain a lot of sugar (just the sugar added to help activate the yeast), it can be used for both sweet and savory preparations. I saw that our stack of daily recipes included Pecan Sticky Buns, so I jumped all over that:
I love sticky buns and have always wondered how to prepare them. Now I know. Unfortunately, as you can probably see below, these sticky buns were almost totally devoid of stickiness:
They tasted good and the brioche dough was certainly rich, but there was something missing. These buns are cooked top-side down in a baking dish that should be liberally covered with butter and brown sugar. After baking, the buns are immediately inverted onto a serving dish so that the bottom of the bun sitting in the pool of butter and brown sugar becomes the top. Even though it looked like I used plenty, in reality I didn’t put nearly enough brown sugar and butter on the bottom of my baking dish. Thankfully, all is not lost; I took some of these home and plan to correct the problem by applying a liberal coat of buttery brown sugar goodness to the top of each bun. Sticky bun crisis averted.
On to the savory brioche dishes. The first of two kinds of pizza; this one topped with an olive tapenade and feta cheese:
This one topped with tomatoes and cheddar:
A large brioche filled with something resembling a hearty/creamy chicken stew:
Brioche filled with bratwurst (upscale “Pigs in a Blanket”):
And the rest of the sweet preparations, including something I’m not really sure how to describe. The recipe called it a Brioche Tart and it was served with a caramel flavored sabayon:
Apple, Apricot and Dried Cranberry Strudel:
Because the process of making brioche dough spans over more than one day, to make these recipes we all sourced our dough from a big batch that Chef D prepared on Friday. In class, we each got to practice the ‘crashing’ technique but since our doughs wouldn’t be ready to use until the next day, we each were allowed to take our dough home. I put mine in the freezer, where according to Chef D, it should be good for up to a month (it is wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, then wrapped in aluminum foil). When it comes time to use it, I’ll simply need to let it defrost, shape it and/or fill it however I like, proof it, and just like that, we’ll have freshly baked brioche.
