Brioche/ panettone

[squeeeb]

this is because of LordEden's post about bread.

brioche is an amazingly wonderful super buttery bread. it's like a panettone, the italian sweet bread you get at christmas.

you can eat it straight up, or let it sit out a day and make crutons, or make the greatest fucking french toast you have ever had in your LIFE.

here is the recipe i use. it comes from the french laundry cookbook by thomas keller.

it looks long and a takes a long time, but it's easy and oh so worth it.

you need:

1/3 cup very warm water (110 - 115 degrees F)
one 1/4 ounce package active dry yeast (not quick-rising)
2 1/3 (10 1/2 ounces) cake flour
2 cups (10 ounces) all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
6 large eggs at room temperature
20 tablespoons (10 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into 1 inch cubes, plus some extra butter for the pans.


!!!START THIS THE DAY BEFORE YOU WANT TO MAKE IT, IT HAS TO REST OVERNIGHT!!!

combine water and yeast in a small bowl, let set for 10 minutes, then stir until yeast is completely dissolved, set aside.

sift together the flours, sugar, and alt into the bowl of a mixer fitted with a dough hook. add the eggs and beat for 1 minute at low speed, scraping down the sides as needed. slowly add dissolved yeast and continue beating at low speed for 5 minutes. stop the machine, scrape any dough off hook, and beat for another 5 minutes. add butter cubes, about one quarter of them at a time, beating for about 1 minute after each addition. once all the butter has been added, beat for 1- - 15 minutes more.

place dough in a large floured mixing bowl, cover with plastic, set aside in warm place until double, about 3 hours.

turn dough onto floured surface work air bubbles out by repeatedly folding the dough and lightly pressing on it. return to bowl, cover with plastic, refrigerate overnight.

generously butter two 8/12 - by 4 1/2- by 3 inch loaf pans. divide dough in half, shape into rectangles to fit pans, place in pans and let rise uncovered in warm place until aobut 1/2 inch above pans, about 3 hours.

preheat oven to 350F. bake until browned on top and sounds hollow when tapped on bottom, about 35- 40 minutes. turn out onto wire rack and cool 10 minutes before eating. if you are gonna save it for later, wrap the hot bread in aluminum foil and keep at room temperature until later.

if you want to freeze it, wrap in foil and freeze, it will last up to a month. when you want to eat it, put in a 250 oven, still frozen and in foil, for about 20-25 minutes.

[Charlatan]

You can also make this dough into rolls that make an excellent bun for hamburgers.