Dried Cherry Brioche!

Earlier this month, Dave and I made a trek to Columbus to see our daughter and son-in-law.....AND for the annual "Village Valuables" sale that happens every May in German Village. My daughter and I love poking around all the sales, seeing what kind of goodies we can find. My husband thinks we're a little slow, so he takes off on his own. And my daughter's husband....well, he's not a garage sale guy, so he usually just goes along for the walk for a while then heads home. One of the best parts of the morning is stopping in at Pistacia Vera, the  French bakery in German Village (I know.....it's "German" Village.....) for breakfast. It is sooooooo hard to decide which amazing pastry (or pastries - LOL!) we're taking with us for our journey. The chocolate croissants are heavenly, but this time I ordered the orange brioche. I was not sorry!! So tasty, so soft and tender.....I didn't want it to end! But....."sigh"......it did! What's a girl to do? In my case.....come home and make my own!

 

Brioche is a bread dough that has a high fat content and is not super-sweet.....we're talking lots of milk, butter, eggs, etc.....which gives the bread a delightfully fine, soft crumb and a golden crust. The shape I've suggested making this brioche in is the classic "a tete" (or "head/crown"). You certainly don't have to form it in this manner.........it's delicious in any shape!!!  

 

Dried Cherry Brioche

Dough:

 

3 Tbsp. warm water

1 pkg/Tbsp. Red Star Platinum yeast

¼ Cup warm milk

1/3 Cup butter, softened

2 egg yolks

2 Cups unbleached bread flour

1/3 Cup sugar

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

½ tsp. salt

1 Cup dried cherries, or any preferred dried fruit

For finishing:

1 egg, beaten

Sugar crystals, if desired

Place warm water and yeast in EZ DOH bucket and stir to dissolve yeast. Let rest 1 minute. Add one cup of flour, then additional dough ingredients. EZ DOH-it for 2-3 minutes, or until dough is smooth and soft and all ingredients are incorporated. Remove dough from bucket, spray bucket with cooking spray, “smooth” dough and replace in bucket. Cover and let rest 10 minutes. 

Grease 12 large muffin cups. Divide the dough into 16 equal pieces and shape each into a ball. Set aside 4 of the balls and divide each of them into three equal pieces – roll each of those smaller pieces into small balls. Place the 12 larger balls into the muffin tins. With your finger or thumb, make an indentation in the center of each ball. Place one of the smaller balls in each indentation. Cover and let refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight. Remove from the frig and let rise covered in a warm place 40-45 minutes until doubled. 

Brush the beaten egg over the rolls. Sprinkle with the sparkling sugar if desired. Bake at 375 for 18-25 minutes, or until golden. Remove from the pan immediately. Best served warm J

                                                                               Adapted from a recipe in Betty Crocker's Best Bread Machine Cookbook

Dried Cherry Brioche!