Swirl brioche

Name: Swirl brioche
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: for a brioche of about 800 g
Ingredients: Flour : about 4 to 4¼ cups; Milk : between scant ½ cup and ⅔ cup; Egg : 3; Cane sugar : ½ cup; Butter : 9 tbsp; Baker's yeast : 1 packet; Salt : 1 tsp

Another recipe from Cécile Decaux’s book “L’Atelier Pain”, a lovely discovery. If you enjoy bread-making, don’t hesitate to ask for it or treat yourself — it’s not dear at all, under €13.

Preparation 30 min

Cooking 30 min

Servings for a brioche of about 800 g

Difficulty Accessible

Seasons & months

All seasons

Healthy Light

Ingredient list

For this recipe

People

800

Flour about 4 to 4¼ cups

Milk between scant ½ cup and ⅔ cup

Egg 3

Cane sugar ½ cup

Butter 9 tbsp

Baker's yeast 1 packet

Salt 1 tsp

Preparation

Which flour to use?

An organic T45 flour, bought in 5 kg bags if you want to make your brioche every Sunday.

The recipe said 500 g of flour, but with 520 g the dough seemed much easier to work… Start with 500 g and add a tablespoon more if needed.

Step 1

Break the 3 eggs into the bowl of your mixer and top up with lukewarm milk to reach a weight of 290 g.

Add the flour, the yeast, the salt and 70 g of sugar for 5 minutes. Be careful not to let the salt and the yeast touch.

After the 5 minutes, add 90 g of cold butter in small pieces and knead for another 10 minutes.

If you used the dough function of your stand mixer, finish kneading the dough by hand for two minutes to give it some bounce (as the book’s author puts it).
Step 2

Leave the dough to rise somewhere warm for about 3 hours, doing a fold after 1 hr 30.

For the fold, put the dough on a floured worktop. Knock it back by pressing on it, fold it in two, and flatten it again 3 or 4 times in a row. You’ll end up with a nice springy dough.

Leave it to rise again for 1 hr 30.
Step 3

On the floured worktop, knock it back and fold it into 3 to give it an elongated shape (to do this, fold the two ends towards the centre of the brioche).

Roll it into a 70 cm rope, which you’ll brush with melted butter (some of the remaining 40 g — you’ll use the rest in a moment).

Lay it in the mould in a snail/spiral shape, starting from the centre.
Step 4

Leave the dough to rise for another 1 hr 30 to 2 hrs somewhere warm.

Melt the remaining butter with 40 g of sugar and spread it over the brioche (there’s nothing to stop you adding a little more… the more you add, the more it will visually remind you of a kouign-amann).

Bake at 160°C for 30 minutes.