Monday Mix 5/15/23
Brioche breakdown
Happy Mondays, everyone. I hope you all had a nice weekend.
I spent part of mine wrestling with this brioche formula for my cookbook. It is fair to say that I have been struggling to make the brioche of my dreams for years now, without consistent success. This one is very close, if only I could avoid that champagne-cork shape, the result of cave-in during cooling. The texture of the crumb is perfect: It is buttery and rich (while not being too rich) and as light and tender as clouds. Which is also the problem: All that lightness and richness means that it is also somewhat lacking structurally, which means it cannot quite support itself upon cooling (as a loaf of bread cools, the hot gases on the inside contract, and without enough structure, the sides will cave in like this). Despite the countless pounds of butter and eggs I’ve sacrificed to this quest, I remain resolute, and have yet another batch of dough underway this morning.
How was everyone else’s weekend? Feel free to share your bakes (or other pretty pictures) in this chat thread:
—Andrew
Made the challah loaves again with consistent results. We are now a house divided; Team Shokupan and Team Challah. I call it a close tie for deliciousness, but if one loaf is produced, there are complaints as to why the other loaf was not made. Brioche will be the next point of contention in the bread wars when the recipe launches. I like them all, but I am still a devotee of a light grain sourdough.
What if you hung it upside down like a panettone while it cools down?