brioche plait

This sunday brioche plait turns out perfect, just stick to the exact quantities of ingredients and cooking time. It was Lily, a good friend's daughter, at the time 10 years old, who disclosed her recipe to me. Thank you Lily!

Ingredients:

- 500g flour

- 80g butter

- 20g yeast (fresh one)

- 3dl whole milk

- 2 TS sugar / 2 TS salt

- 1 egg / 1 TS cream

Directions:

Heat the milk and add the butter, sugar and yeast. Be careful to heat it only luke warm, so you can easily put your finger in it without burning. If its too hot, it will kill the yeast. 

In a big bowl, add the flour and salt, mix with a fork, then add the milk-mix and wait for five minutes. Combine well and kned for about 10 minutes to get a very smooth dough. Form it into a ball and place it back into the bowl, then cover it with a wet cloth. Set aside at the warm place. 

After two hours, take it out and cut in half, then roll it with your hands to get two equal tubes, as shown in the movie below. I make shorter tubes though to get a thicker bread. Form the plait and place it on a baking tray, covered with baking paper. 

Mix the eggyolk with a TS of cream and brush it on the plait. Now let it rest for another 30 minutes. 

Brush again with the eggwash and bake at 200 degrees for 35 minutes. If it gets too dark after some time, just cover the top with some aluminium foil to prevent it from buring. 

Let it cool down on a grid.