With this lovely Spring sunshine and longer days, I was feeling creative and inspired to bake for fun. It's rare for us to bake for ourselves these days. But when we do, it's quite rewarding!
We used our leftover @anisa_chocolate Bean to Bar chocolate ganache for the filling. So let's just say these were extra special indeed...
Here's the recipe for our Chocolate Brioche Bun...
Ingredients:
For the brioche, (makes 20 buns)
Ingredient | Quantity |
Warm milk | 92ml |
Active dry yeast | 7g |
Honey | 8g |
Eggs | 3 whole + 1 yolk |
Vanilla extract | 7ml |
Caster sugar | 46g |
Strong bread flour | 383g |
Sea salt | 1g |
Unsalted butter, very soft | 191g |
Toppings:
It can be anything from chocolate ganache, chocolate chips, ground cinnamon, or jam. The possibilities are endless!
Instructions:
Activate yeast with warm milk and honey. Set aside for 10 mins to allow yeast to bubble. When activating dry yeast yeast, the ideal temperature is 37C - 43C.
Add the eggs and yolk and mix gently.
Add the vanilla, sugar, flour and salt. Mix to form a rough dough. I like to mix my salt into the flour as it could the yeast when it's in direct contact.
Knead the dough on low speed for about 3-5 minutes with the hook attachment.
Add the butter a few cubes at a time. Make sure the dough is thoroughly kneaded in between each additions (roughly 2 minutes each).
Scrape down the sides of the bowl and knead for a further 5-15 minutes at a high speed. You can tell that the dough has been kneaded enough when it can be lifted off from the hook. I also like to do the windowpane test.
Flour surface and hands. Fold inwards across all sides then carefully flip over and form a tight ball with the heel of your palms.
Place the dough back in the bowl and allow to rise until doubled, for about 1 hour.
Deflate dough and turn out on the surface. Fold the sides and tighten the bowl again. Transfer back into the bowl, cover and chill in the fridge overnight.
The following day, knock back dough. Roll into a thin rectangle and spread your topping of choice. We used our leftover Bean to Bar chocolate ganache.
Fold the top 1/3 into the centre, followed by the bottom 1/3 (like folding a letter). Fold again in half and gently flatten with a rolling pin.
Cut into 1 inch strips.
Slice each strip into 3, but not fully all the way through, leaving a little bit at the top to hold everything together. Braid each strip tightly and when you can get to the end, pinch the dough together and roll into a bowl. Once rolled, gently press down to securely tighten.
Proof for the final time until doubled in size, roughly 45 mins to 1 hour and a half, depending on how warm your kitchen is. Preheat oven to 180C.
Brush the buns with egg wash. Bake in the preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.
In the meantime, make the simple stock syrup. Once the brioche is baked, brush with the syrup. You can leave this out, but I prefer the lovely shiny sheen that it provides.
Commentaires