- Dough Recipe Baker: Rich Payne / Dough & Behold
- IG: @dough_and_behold
- Makes: 1 x Brioche ring in 10” cast iron pan
- Prep time: 20 hrs - including proving.
- Bake time: 15mins @190ºc in home oven
- Flours used: Cotswold Belle Pure - Patisserie Flour
Festive Brioche Ring Method
- Add a sachet of dried yeast to your lukewarm milk, mix in and leave it a few mins for it to bubble (if it doesn’t bubble after 10 mins your yeast is dead and you’ll need to try a new sachet!)
- Add all your flour, sugar and salt to the mixer and turn on to a slow speed.
- Add all your milk & yeast to the mixer along with your eggs.
- Once the eggs are mixed in and your dough is looking sticky add your butter which should be chopped into small chunks. Add gradually until it is all incorporated. This takes around 10-15 mins. I normally increase the mixer speed a little to speed this process up!
- I like to stop mixing when the dough begins to look smooth and let it rest for 5 mins, then I give it one more final mix for a few minutes until you have a smooth pumpkin shaped dough (like the one in my Instagram reel)
- Do the windowpane test on your dough to see if its ready. Just grab a lump of dough from the mixer and stretch it as far as you can without tearing it. If it stretches a long way and you can almost see through it, then its ready for its next prove.
- I transfer my dough at this point to an airtight container and leave it in the fridge overnight. If you don't want to do this then just leave your bowl out at room temp and wait for it to double in size (about 2-3 hours)
- Next morning I remove my dough from the container and slice it into thin sections that I will use to cut out around 17, 30g bits of dough that I roll into small dough balls. 17 is the amount it takes to place around the full circumference of my 10inch cast iron pan, if your pan is larger or smaller then you will need a few more more…or less!
- I line my cast iron pan with a circular piece of grease proof paper and add a little olive oil. Next, I grab 80-90grams of my brioche dough, shape it into a ball and roll it out to a flat 10-11inch circle and lay it flat in my cast iron pan. With a pizza cutter I trim the edges, so it fits into the base of the pan perfectly and none of it goes up the sides.
- Preheat your oven to 190ºC (375ºF).
- Next, place your 30g doughballs all around the side of the pan. I then cover my pan with a large plate and leave it to rest for another hour. After an hour your dough balls will have proved and expanded a little more.
- Make an egg wash with one whisked egg and a tablespoon of water and brush liberally all over your doughballs around the edge of the pan.
- Once you are happy with the egg wash, add a sprinkle of Maldon Smoked Sea Salt all around the edges of your brioche then place directly into your pre-heated oven for 15-20minutes. You may need to turn your pan halfway through baking if you have a fan oven and want an even bake.
- Once your brioche ring is looking all golden, brown and delicious, remove from the oven and place your pan on a heat proof mat.
- I use a carton of delicious Madagascan Vanilla fresh custard (You can find it in all the big supermarkets) for the next step. Using a piping bag (or you can just use a spoon!) add your custard to the centre of your brioche ring. Fill it right up here, you want it to be full of custard to dip those brioche balls into!
- Once the custard is applied, I then warm a jar of Nutella in a bowl of hot water so it becomes all nice and runny. I then drizzle this on top of the custard in nice thin stripes.
- Using icing sugar, gently dust the edges of the brioche so it has a nice even covering.
- Using a spatula transfer the brioche ring from the pan to a serving plate, slice and share with friends!
