The Best French Brioche Recipe: It’s been over two decades since love at first (brioche) bite struck, and now I’m blissing out on French brioche by making my own … It really is a matter of vive la différence tasting home-baked brioche fresh from the oven.

The Best French Brioche: Home Baked

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Despite being a self-declared French bakery trollop, it took me a while to even have a stab at making it. It’s just so easy to pop into a French bakery and buy brioche. But easy, as you know, isn’t necessarily best.

Admittedly, on my first attempt, I was a bit of a cheat. At my friend’s house, I found a kind of ready-made mix, with such a romantic name – Ma Brioche Maison.

A Shortcut Method?

No, not really. Actually, it’s just flour, a bit of gluten and some ascorbic acid for conservation. The latter under the rather dubious name of ‘agent de traitement de la farine‘, which sounds like an undercover spy let loose in the kitchen.

So, with my Francine (‘On Se Trouve en Cuisine‘ cutesy jingle), I opt for the “A la main” method. There are no bread machines in sight. Besides, I love to get my hands deep in the dough and knead away.

The results … see for yourself. I have to say, they way exceed my expectations. My newborn brioche is delicious, golden, light and fluffy. Like a cloud about to float off … into culinary space. Or rather, down my gullet. It’s just so satisfying in every sense.

My wonder brioche – wrapped in a tea towel then a plastic bag – lingered around for several days. I also froze half of it, pre-cut into thick slices. Some French sources say brioche maison keeps two weeks in an airtight container. There is no way it would ever hang around that long with me! But I love having those frozen slices to whip out of the freezer the night before when the whim takes me. Then just pop it in the toaster the next morning and toast lightly.

Ma Brioche Maison

A few weeks later, I take the plunge and adapt that packet mix lesson into a more pure form. Frankly, the difference in ingredients is minimal. Again, the results are sensational. Even better, because it’s from scratch. Though improvising just a little … mixing Francine with Tamara in the cuisine.

Voilà the Best French Brioche Recipe

• Preparation: 15 minutes
• Rising: 90 minutes
• Cooking 20-25 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 cups plain flour (350g)
• 3/4 cup warm milk (175ml)
• 1tsp salt (not a salt fan, I reduced this to 1/2 tsp)
• 3 tbsp castor sugar (40g)
• 5 tbsp softened butter chopped in small pieces (75g)
• 3 eggs
• 2 sachets of yeast (14g)
• Dash of extra milk or whisked egg for brushing
• Optional addition: Sultanas

Method

• Combine the flour, sugar and salt.
• Make a well. Add the yeast, then warm milk, beaten egg and softened butter. I prepare my yeast in some tepid water with a pinch of sugar for a few minutes.
• Knead with spoon and hands, or food processor, to obtain a smooth dough. This is the point at which I kneaded in some sultanas. 1/2 cup.
• Cover and let stand for 15 minutes in a warm place.
• On a floured surface, shape the dough. I just plonked it into a silicon bread loaf tin.
• Cover with a cloth and let rise for an hour in a warm place. Mine grew seriously big!
• 15 minutes before the end of the proofing time, preheat oven to 180°C/356°F
• Brush with milk or beaten egg.
• Bake for about 20 minutes on lower rack until brioche is golden brown (I covered with foil for the last 10).
• EAT! ENJOY!

I’ll be back at my brioche making soon. Meanwhile, bon appetit!

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Like a good French tart? Then this post on 5 of the best French pâtisserie faves to impress guests with is particularly drool-worthy.