Brioche is already a very rich buttery bread. Its somewhat similar to challah. Some cinnamon rolls and burger buns are made out of brioche. It makes great French toast. At this point, it’s already pretty great. But what could make it better? Oh, I think you know based on the title of this blog post. Brown butter. It’s like liquid gold.. just you know, brown. Voila, brown butter brioche!
I didn’t just use browned butter, I also used brown sugar in lieu of granulated sugar. Friends, I’m swapping to brown sugar if I can (which is almost always). It’s just the superior sugar. #isaidwhatisaid
This dough cold ferments for over 12 hours so you know the flavor is fantastic. Time equals flavor when it comes to bread. When you put dough in a cold environment it severely slows down the process, which allows the dough to rise for much longer without running out of steam and needing to be baked. These overnight proofed breads tend to have deeper more complex flavors. You can usually do it with a lot of doughs: pizza dough, cinnamon rolls, focaccia, pretty much any yeast or sourdough based dough.
Now, after you make this, you’ll see upon first bite that it’s glorious just as is. You can taste the slight sweetness and the brown buttery goodness. I love that you can see the flecks of brown butter throughout the slices. However, my favorite way to enjoy this so far is toasted with butter, cinnamon and.. you guessed it. More brown sugar. My mom used to let us have waffles with butter and brown sugar as a kid, I think that’s where my love of granulated sugar’s darker sibling came from.
Brown Butter Brioche Key Ingredients
- Brown Butter – Brown butter feels luxurious and tastes divine. It’s going to add a nutty caramel toasty flavor to the bread that regular butter just can’t. You will see the tiny flecks of the toasted milk fats throughout the bread.
- Eggs – Eggs are crucial to brioche. Brioche requires a lot, but all the fat adds to and helps create that beautiful soft, tender, flavorful crumb, as well as contributing to the color of the bread.
- Brown sugar – Brown sugar will add sweetness and moisture, but the flavors pair perfectly with brown butter, enhancing the caramel notes.
If you bake this, be sure and let me know in the comments the best way you enjoyed it! Or if you’re looking for more brown butter bakes I’d try:
Ingredients
- 220 g Bread flour
- ¾ tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Instant yeast
- 35 g Dark brown sugar
- 4 large Eggs
- ¼ cup Lukewarm water
- ½ cup Unsalted butter
Instructions
- Cut the butter into tablespoon slices and place in a saucepan on medium heat. Once melted, stir or whisk or stir until butter is browned. Butter is ready when it smells nutty and the milk fats are a golden to rich brown. Remove from heat immediately, as butter can burn quickly. Pour into a bowl to let cool slightly.
- Mix flour and salt together in large bowl and add yeast to bowl. In a separate bowl whisk together 3 eggs, sugar and water until sugar has incorporated into mixture. Add in browned butter to the egg mixture and mix until combined. Add liquid ingredients to dry, and mix until fully combined. Cover bowl and let rest for 15 minutes. Dough will be very sticky.
- Using a flexible bowl scraper or damp fingers, lift edge of dough, folding it over into the center of the dough. Turn bowl a quarter turn and repeat 7 times, until you have folded over dough twice on each side. Cover bowl again, and let rest for 30minutes.
- Repeat the folding process, let dough rest for an hour, and then repeat once more. (Three rounds of stretch and folds). Cover the dough and chill in the refrigerator for 18-24 hours.
- When dough is ready, remove dough from bowl onto a floured work surface and divide into four pieces. Using a scale will help insure the pieces are uniform but it will also work if they are roughly equal.Gently press down on each piece of dough and then fold the sides in to create a ball shape. Cover and wait 5-10 minutes.
- Flip the dough balls over and using your hands or a rolling pin, flatten the dough and shape into a small rectangle shape that is no wider than the short side of your loaf pan (about 4 inches). Roll the dough on the short side into a log.
- Grease or line an 8 ½” x 4 ½” loaf pan with parchment, and place the four pieces of dough next to each other filling the pan. Cover the pan and let rise in a warm spot for 90-120 minutes. The dough will be just reaching the top edge of the load pan (doubling in size) when ready.
- After about 80 minutes, preheat your oven to 350°F. Beat the remaining egg with a pinch of salt.
- Once dough is ready, lightly brush the top with egg wash, and bake for about 35 minutes. Top of loaf will be deep golden brown and interior temp will read 190°F. Leave loaf in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer out of pan to cooling rack and let cool completely (2-3 hours).
- Store in an airtight container for 2-4 days, but bread is best enjoyed fresh.
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