High hopes. (Back to Basics).

Perhaps the perfect comfort food is fresh bread, warm and pliable, filled with airy pockets and yeasty incense, and as satisfying to make as it is to consume. Its greatest asset is its diversity. Taking on the customs of the baker and the economics of the times, the personalities of bread are dictated largely by their makers. Once a product made for the masses, bread evolved during the Middle Ages into a regional specialty. As a result, many different classes of bread were born including "soft" or "Queen's" bread, a luxurious loaf fortified with milk and egg yolks. In 1404 the word brioche first appeared in print. It is argued by some that this enriched bread was created in Brie, France, and that the original recipe included the addition of Brie cheese. However, contemporaries now subscribe to the notion that the term brioche is a derivative of the Norman word for pound, broyer. Not surprisingly, it is the Norman regions of Gournay and Gisors that are reputed for their superlative brioches. Perhaps this has less to do with the Normans' baking skills and more to do with their superior butter-the secret ingredient to any great brioche.

Regardless of its origin, brioche-based dough is a universal confection. Panettone, pandoro, stollen, fouaces, pompes, pastis, koeckbotteram, cramiques, and couques; no matter the language, the result is the same: cake-like breads made for holidays and yearly celebrations. Biagio Settepani, Owner of Bruno Bakery in Brooklyn, believes Italian pandoro is related to brioche. The Italian confection relies on a sourdough starter referred to as la madre, which was at one time the only leavener available in Italy (Glezer 161). The starter is developed in a time-consuming process during which subsequent additions of sugar and egg create a leisurely fermentation. The final result is a strong mass with a rather high sugar content, enhancing the overall sweetness of the bread. Settepani's pandoro takes thirty-three hours to make from start to finish. The recipe calls for the preparation of three separate doughs. The first is a firm starter of lukewarm water and high-gluten flour. The second dough is a mixture of the fir m starter, yeast, hot water, high-gluten flour, egg, and sugar. The third and final dough combines the second dough with whipped, hard cocoa butter and unsalted butter, additional high-gluten flour, salt, honey, eggs, vanilla extract, and sugar (Glezer 166). Like brioche, the prolonged resting-rising time allows flavors, especially sugars, in the dough to develop.

Like pandoro, stollen, or koeckbotteram, brioche is often referred to as a "rich yeast bread" because the dough is enriched with a generous amount of butter and eggs. The ratio of flour to butter is equal in some recipes. As a result, butter must be of the best quality and exceptionally fresh or off-flavors will permeate the entire batch. Fresh sweet butter, the highest quality of which contains as much as 85% milk fat, is responsible for producing the cake-y crumb and buttery flavor of a primo loaf. Equal care must also be taken when kneading the dough to properly incorporate each addition of egg and butter. Because the fat and moisture content is high, the dough is excessively heavy; therefore, the yeast content is also higher. Patience is required, too. Brioche should rise gradually in a cool environment to prevent the cornerstone ingredient--butter, from melting and separating from the dough. Because brioche dough is very dense and wet, it requires a rather labor intensive and time-consuming mixing proces s. However, the dough can be made in advance and frozen whole. It will require about 4-5 hours to thaw at room temperature before it can be shaped for baking (Collister and Blake 181). No doubt, as you will discover, the result is worth the wait. As with any bread, the power of the final product is in the ingredients.

bread flour

Bread flour has a high proportion of protein to starch, which makes for a lighter bread. As the baker kneads the dough, protein develops into gluten, which gives bread its rising power. Bread flour is best stored in an airtight container at 70 degrees for up to six months. Wheat bread flour should be stored in the freezer for no more than three months, as its high oil content may cause it to turn rancid quickly (Collister and Blake 21).

butter

Fresh, unsalted butter is key--not only for the quality and flavor, but for the stature of the finished product. Lining a brioche or bread mold with butter and or buttered parchment paper allows the dense dough to rise evenly during its oven time. In the recipe, the milk fat in butter enhances the tenderness, moisture, and flavor of the final product. Butter adds to the downy, mouth feel. Using unsalted butter is important as excessive salt can impede the activity of yeast. Butter also coats strands of gluten to prevent the loss of moisture to sugar and salt, thus protecting the ideal of a tender bread.

salt

The right amount of salt lends not only flavor to a baked product but it helps to strengthen the gluten, which develops during the kneading process. Stronger gluten strands means more elasticity, allowing the brioche to rise to its full potential.

sugar

Sugar adds flavor, which makes us want to devour brioche. Proper amounts also feed the yeast, allowing it to activate and expand, giving off valuable gasses as the dough rests, causing it to rise. Sugar also enhances the color of the finished product. Fine grain sugars are best because they dissolve easily and are distributed evenly, during the mixing and kneading process, evenly browning the dough in the oven. This is not to say that the super-fine grain of confectioners' sugar is desirable when baking. Powdery confectioners' sugar contains a small amount of starch (3%), which is desirable in some products like icings and pastry creams but not desirable in brioche.

mixing

Brioche employs the use of a sponge: a combination of warm water, yeast, and flour. This sticky paste creates a volatile foamy base to which the remaining ingredients are added. The use of sponge starters requires slow, multiple-rising steps resulting in a smaller, lighter crumb. Care must be taken not to over-mix the dough as highly developed gluten strands will diminish the desired supple texture.

rising

A rich yeast dough must rise. This is not a fast process. Brioche must rise in three separate stages to achieve its signature cake-y quality. Famed French Pastry Chef and Three Star Michelin Chef, Michel Roux of The Waterside Inn in London, allows his freshly formed dough rounds to rise at room temperature for two hours. The dough is then punched down, reshaped, and transferred to a bowl, covered with a damp towel, and set aside in the refrigerator for several hours (24 hours at most). The dough is punched down once more, shaped, and transferred to prepared brioche pans. Roux brushes the top with egg wash, covers it with a damp cloth, and allows the dough to rest at room temperature for two hours or until doubled in size. He brushes the dough with a second coat of egg wash and bakes it in a 425 degree oven for 40 minutes (Collister and Blake 181). When the bread is golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped, it is done. Not all brioche recipes employ a prolonged fermentation. Sarabeth Levine of Sarabeth's all ows her brioche dough to rise for three hours, a fraction of the 24 hours Geoff Gardner of Sel de la Terre prefers. Levine's final result is an airy and mild loaf, while Gardner's loaves are more golden, dense, and butter-rich in flavor.

shaping

There are many brioche shapes: large, small, stout, tall. Whether it is the towering panettone and pandoro of Italy, the fruit-studded crown of French kugelhopf or the oblong stollens of Germany, it is the shape that distinguishes the bread as celebratory and regional. Brioche a tete is a traditional Parisian brioche in which two dough rounds are stacked in the same mold. Brioche Nanterre is baked in the traditional hexagon mold and scored on the top with two scissor marks to create a star-like crown. Brioche Mousseline is a tall cylindrical bread, formed by lining a round baking dish with a tall piece of aluminum foil. Brioche rings are often used in making a brioche coulante, or any of the sweet fruit and nut studded varieties, If small brioche or shapes are being made, it is easier if the dough is chilled overnight to prevent the sticky dough from becoming overworked (Cordon Bleu 111).

egg wash

Brushing the dough with an egg wash before baking is important to produce the proper color and sheen. The top of the dough should be lightly brushed with egg wash, but care should be taken to prevent the egg wash from running down the sides of the pan and preventing the dough from rising properly in the oven. Two light coats of egg wash or milk and oil glaze are better than one heavy coat. The following is a list of egg and dairy washes and the effect each has on the final crust (Collister and Blake 23).

Egg Wash                                                   Crust

Egg white with a pinch of salt         matte, golden brown crust
Egg yolk with a pinch of salt         glossy, golden brown crust
Whole milk                                   matte, golden crust
Half and half                                matte, golden crust
Heavy cream                          matte, cracked golden crust
Olive oil                       slight gloss, golden brown crust

RELATED ARTICLE: Basic Brioche

Basic Brioche

(6 small brioche)

2 ounces milk, scalded and warm

1/2 ounce fresh yeast

10 ounces bread flour

5 ounces eggs

1/2 ounce sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

7 ounces plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

Egg wash

For the brioche, liberally coat the inside of six 4x2-inch fluted brioche molds with two tablespoons butter and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the milk and yeast and stir gently to dissolve. Add two ounces of bread flour, stir gently to combine, and set aside at room temperature until foamy and doubled in volume, about 45 minutes. Add the eggs, remaining flour, sugar, and salt in several stages, making sure to incorporate between each addition. Add the butter in several stages, making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl between each addition. Mix until well combined and smooth. Remove the bowl from the mixer, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside at room temperature until doubled in volume, about two hours. Punch down the dough and turn out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead the dough until smooth. Return to the bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside in the refrigerator overnight. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Punch down the dough and turn out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead the dough until smooth. Divide the dough into six large pieces and six small pieces. Transfer the large pieces to the prepared brioche pans and, using a paring knife, score the top. Roll the small pieces to form a pear shape and insert, small side down, in the top of each brioche. Brush lightly with egg wash, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside until doubled in volume, about 30 minutes. Brush lightly with egg wash and place in the oven until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, turn out onto flat work surface, and set aside on a metal rack to cool.