Raisin Brioche Recipes

RAISIN BRIOCHE PASTRIES (PAINS AUX RAISINS)

Steps:

• Make brioche dough the day before making pastry and chill.
• Just before making pastry cream, soak raisins in boiling-hot water until softened, about 10 minutes. Drain, pressing out excess liquid, and cool to room temperature.
• Make pastry cream:
• Bring milk to a simmer in a 1 1/2-quart heavy saucepan. Whisk together yolks, sugar, and cornstarch in a bowl and gradually whisk in hot milk. Return mixture to pan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until mixture begins to boil. Simmer, stirring, until thickened and smooth, about 3 minutes.
• Transfer to a clean bowl and stir in vanilla and butter. Cover surface with plastic wrap and cool to room temperature.
• Make pastries:
• Roll out brioche dough on a well-floured surface into an 18- by 11-inch rectangle with a short side toward you. Spread pastry cream evenly over dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border at top edge. Sprinkle raisins evenly over cream. Roll up dough, starting from bottom, to make a log 11 inches long and about 3 1/2 inches in diameter. Moisten top edge with water and press to seal closed.
• Transfer to a cutting board or baking sheet and cover loosely with plastic wrap.
• Chill until firm, about 1 hour.
• Cut chilled log into 11 (1-inch-thick) rounds and arrange about 2 inches apart on 2 buttered baking sheets.
• Let pastries rise in a warm place, uncovered, 1 hour. (They will increase slightly in size and feel very tender to the touch.)
• While pastries are rising, preheat oven to 425°F.
• Bake in batches in middle of oven until tops are golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer pastries to a rack.
• Simmer preserves and water, stirring, 1 minute. Pour through a sieve into a bowl, pressing on solids. Brush glaze onto pastries.

MAKE-AHEAD RAISIN BRIOCHE

Steps:

• Mix yeast, water and 2 teaspoons sugar in small bowl; set aside. Place flour, 1/2 cup sugar, the cinnamon and salt in food processor; cover and process until mixed. Add butter; process until well blended.
• Beat milk and 3 eggs into yeast mixture with wire whisk; slowly add to flour mixture and process until well blended. Stir in raisins. (Dough will be sticky.)
• Place dough on well-floured surface; gently roll in flour to coat. Knead 1 minute until dough is smooth and springy, adding more flour if necessary. Place dough in greased large bowl, turning dough to grease all sides. Cover tightly and let rise in warm place 40 minutes.
• Grease 12 large muffin cups, 3x1 1/2 inches. Gently push fist into dough to deflate. Using about 1/4 cup dough each, make 12 balls; place in muffin cups. Using about 1 tablespoon dough each, make 12 smaller balls; place on top of each large ball. Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight.
• Remove rolls from refrigerator. Let rise covered in warm place 40 to 45 minutes or until almost double.
• Heat oven to 350°F. Brush rolls with beaten egg white. Bake 22 to 26 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove from pan. Serve warm, or cool on wire rack.

EASY BRIOCHE BREAD PUDDING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Tear bread into 1-inch pieces and place in an 8-inch square baking dish. Drizzle with melted butter and sprinkle with pecans and raisins.
• Whisk milk, sugar, eggs, cinnamon, and vanilla extract together in a medium bowl until combined and pour over bread mixture in the baking dish. Press gently on the bread until saturated. Let sit for a few minutes.
• Bake, uncovered, in the preheated oven until top is puffed but set, about 40 minutes. Pudding will settle back down as it cools.

BRIOCHE

Steps:

• In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
• In a large bowl, stir together the flour sugar and salt. Make a well in center of the bowl and mix in the eggs and yeast mixture. Beat well until the dough has pulled together, then turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and supple, about 8 minutes.
• Flatten the dough and spread it with one third of the butter. Knead this well. Repeat this twice to incorporate the remaining butter. Allow the dough to rest for a few minutes between additions of butter. This process may take 20 minutes or so. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
• Deflate the dough, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 6 hours or overnight. It needs time to chill in order to become more workable.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces, form into loaves and place into prepared pans. Cover with greased plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in volume, about 60 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease two 9x5-inch loaf pans (see Cook's Note to make rolls). Beat the egg yolk with 1 teaspoon of water to make a glaze.
• Brush the loaves or rolls with the egg wash. Bake in preheated oven until a deep golden brown. Start checking the loaves for doneness after 25 minutes, and rolls at 10 minutes. Let the loaves cool in the pans for 10 minutes before moving them to wire racks to cool completely.

RAISIN BREAKFAST BREAD (CRAMIQUE)

Steps:

• Place 1 1/2 cups flour in the bowl of your mixer.
• In a medium bowl, whisk togathere the yeast and th milk, then whisk in the egg yolks.
• Stir the egg mixture into the flour.
• Using the paddle, mix on the lowest speed for 2 minutes; stop the mixer and allow the dough to rest for tene minutes.
• Add the butter, sugar and salt to the bowl along with the remaining 1/2 cup of flour and mix on the lowest speed until combined; then mix on medium speed until the dough is smooth and elastic, about another 3 - 4 minutes.
• Beat in the raisins on the lowest speed (if necessary, plump the raisins in hot water to soften, drain, pat dry and add).
• Scrape the dough into a buttereed bowl and turn the dough over so that the top is buttered.
• Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise til doubled, about an hour.
• Meanwhile butter a loaf pan and line the bottom with parchment.
• After the dough is risen, scrape it onto a floured board.
• Press the dough into a rectangle brush off any excess flour; stretch th dough into a rectangle and then fold like a business letter about the length of your loaf pan.
• Tuck in the ends and lay the loaf in the pan, seam side down.
• Butter a piece of plastic wrap and cover the bread with it (buttered side down) and allow the loaf to rise til doubled, about an hour.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• When the loaf has completely risen, place on a rack in the middle of the oven and bake until the bread is a deep golden color and reaches an internal temperature of 200 degrees F., about 30 minutes.
• Unmold onto a rack and cool on its side.
• Eat it then or wrap and freeze.