This Honey and Walnut Brioche Bread is worth all the effort. Especially for that super soft, buttery, honey and walnut packed deliciousness. I cannot get enough of the swirly honey, and walnut hidden in every bite. This brioche bread is great to have on its own, smeared with some more liquid honey, with a warm cup of tea or a strong coffee.
The Buttery Brioche
Making bread can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be! Take it from someone who used to be terrified of working with dough. However, with a little patience and by following the directions (super important!), it’s not so bad.
It’s an extra bonus if you have a stand mixer, all the ingredients go into one bowl, the butter comes last and just let the mixer do its thing. This brioche recipe is just enough for one loaf. It tastes so amazing when it is warm and fresh out of the oven.
Let it rest
A big part of this Honey and Walnut Brioche Bread making process is the waiting time for the dough to rise. The first rise takes an hour and a half, then you need a little time to roll it out, spread the honey, sprinkle the walnuts, roll it up and let it rise one last time for another hour. Before baking, the bread should be glazed with one egg.
The process may seem loooong, but all you need to do is let the dough do its thing. The result is delicious bread, filled with hidden surprises of honey and walnut. What is not to love!
Sweet, Sweet Honey
Not your typical brioche bread combination. You will be surprised with how well the rich, buttery brioche goes with smeared honey and grounded walnuts sprinkled all over. I have searched all over, and I have not yet come across this combination.
However – while eating this sweet goodness, I had a sense that these flavours were so familiar to me. In the end, I figured it out. The taste is so much like our Serbian Walnut Strudel. But this brioche is in a world of its own. So soft to bite into with the best sweet flavour from the honey.
Indulge
Is your mouth watering yet? This can be your weekend bake. I know we all encourage “quick” and “easy” recipes, but I really looove a recipe where you can take your time and just be in the moment! Personally, I am loving this bread recipe so much that I may even make French toast with it. Why not make it richer and more indulgent.
If you make this Honey and Walnut Brioche Bread, be sure to leave a comment. Let me know how you like this recipe and leave a rating. You can also tag me over on Instagram with a picture of your brioche, I would love to see and hear from you!
Honey and Walnut Brioche Bread
Ingredients
Directions
the brioche dough
In a small pot, warm up the milk on low heat, until it is lukewarm but not hot. Remove from the heat, add the yeast and 5 g of sugar. Set aside for 5 minutes until the mixture becomes foamy.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, sea salt, and sugar. Then make a well in the middle.
In a separate bowl, briefly whisk the four eggs and add into the well of the flour mixture, followed by the yeast mixture.
With a dough hook, mix the dough on low speed for 1 minute until a shaggy dough starts to form. Continue to mix on medium speed for a further 5 minutes, scraping the dough from the hook a couple of times.
Continue to mix until the dough becomes softer and begins to pull from the sides of the bowl.
Gently work in the butter by adding one cube at a time. Allow each piece of butter to incorporate into the dough before adding the next cube.
At this point, you can add one tablespoon of flour if the dough is overly sticky.
Keep mixing the dough for a further 10 minutes until all the butter has been incorporated and you have a soft dough.
On a clean surface, spread some flour, pour the dough out and shape into a ball (If your dough is a little sticky this is okay! it should not be overly dry).
Place the dough into a bowl, cover and let rest for an hour and a half.shaping the brioche
Generously butter the pan of a loaf tin / or lightly butter the pan and place baking paper, and set aside.
Once the dough is ready, punch the dough down slightly to let out any excess gas.
Scrape the dough onto a floured surface and roll it out into a triangle (roughly 45 cm by 35 cm).
Using a butter knife, spread the liquid honey over the dough, covering the surface. Then, equally sprinkle the grounded walnuts.
Roll the dough on itself lengthwise to form a roll or log, then place it in front of you and with a sharp knife cut the center lengthwise.
Braid the two edges and try to keep the dough with the honey and walnut spread on top. Tuck in each end of the dough and carefully transfer into the loaf tin.
Cover and let the dough rest for one hour.baking the brioche
Pre-heat the oven to 150°C
Once the bread is ready, brush the surface of the dough with one whole egg.
Place in the oven and bake for 30 - 35 minutes, or until the brioche turns a deep golden brown colour.
Remove from the oven and let the brioche rest for 15 minutes, then remove from the loaf tin and let cool.
Serve the Honey and Walnut Brioche when warm, or completely cool.
Recipe notes
Avoid resting the dough in an overly warm area, as the butter may ooze out.
The butter must be at room temperature, otherwise it will not incorporate into the dough easily.
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