My First Loaf

I've been quite daring of late, trying my hand at some of the more difficult - err, time consuming - items in the baking repository: first a cake, then puff pastry, and now...yeast. The unduly length of time required to make yeast breads kept me away, but once a Kitchen Aid 5-Quart Mixer found its way into my kitchen, the time had come to deal with the dough. I'd love to try making truly artisan (by hand) bread, with all of that "therapeutic" kneading, but I think that task is best left for a lazy summer day. For now, the Kitchen Aid shall do the drudgery.

Sherry Yard's The Secrets of Baking had been lying around the house for a few weeks - actually, I've probably racked up quite a late fee - so I decided to give it a once over in search of a suitable yeast recipe. Sherry chose to organize the book a little unconventionally, that is, by categorizing groups of sweets and desserts under a general "Master," or base, recipe. Under the section labeled "Brioche," her master recipe yielded two loaves, but flipping through the following pages revealed an appealing variation: Sticky Buns. I could make one loaf, and use the second half of the master dough to make 12 sumptuously sweet buns.

Reading through the recipe, I realized that there would be a lot of waiting, something I'm not very good at doing. Did you notice I make lots of cookies? First I would need to make the sponge: combine dry active yeast and milk, sugar, and a little flour; beat with mixer until yeast dissolves and then rest the "batter" for 30-45 minutes. I twiddled my thumbs, checked my e-mails, read a few NY Times articles...and then time for step two. To make the dough, the flour, all-purpose or bread is fine, must be added to the sponge. Next comes the graaaadual incorporation of the eggs, 4 of 'em, and the butter, 2 sticks chopped. I was getting tired just watching that mixer churn and jump around. It was cool to see the gluten develop and pull away from the mixer's paddle attachment - ooohhh food science.

Wait period numero 2 came after all the butter was incorporated: 2 hours. When the dough had doubled in volume, I began the "punching" phase to deflate it. This took about 6 minutes, then, the big chill: 4 hours to overnight in the refrigerator. I chose to sleep on this one.

Morning comes, and I'm up early so my family can enjoy some fresh sticky buns with morning coffee. Ok, so the buns didn't find their way into any mouths until lunch, but they were fresh!

Continuing with the recipe...At this step, the recipes' processes diverge. For the loaf: roll 1/2 the dough into a 9-x-10 inch rectangle (the latter number being the width). Roll up the dough like a jellyroll, starting from the 9 inch side. The dough is then placed into a greased 9-x-5 inch loaf pan, where it proceeds to sit another 1.5 to 2 hours, or until the dough fills the entire pan. This rest period varies depending on the coolness of your kitchen; mine was a cool 60, so wait more I did. Finally, the brioche dough is brushed with some egg wash and placed in a 400 degrees oven for 10 minutes. Following this bake, the temperature is lowered to 350 and given a good 30 minutes (or until the brioche has a nice dark surface, which, of course, occurred within the first 10 minutes of my second bake).

For the sticky buns: The other half of the dough is rolled into a rectangle, 12-x-16 inches, and coated with a little milk. A cinnamon, sugar, and raisins mixture is spread over the rectangle, leaving a one inch margin around the edges. Then, the dough is rolled in the same "jellyroll" fashion as the loaf was. A 10 minute freezing period ensues to make cutting the jellyroll a snap. The 12 cut sticky buns are placed in a muffin tin, with the bun's topping already resting in the bottom (the topping consists of sugar, butter, honey, and pecans). Guess what happens next, hmm? Waiting! 1.5 to 2 hours worth. I decided to cajole the stickies into rising a little quicker with some direct heat...just a little warmth can't hurt. The buns went into the oven at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, and then the temperature was dropped to 350 for a final 15-20 minute bake. My dark pans required me to drop the temperature down to around 330 degrees for the final 15.

Ok, so after all that waiting - let's say 12 1/2 hours worth - were the sticky buns worth the wait? An unconditional yes! In fact, these were the best versions I've ever had the pleasure to eat. Uhh...I just had a flashback...The topping had a predominately honey flavor (I used a mild clover honey, a good choice), and the filling was rich with cinnamon. The best part was definitely the brioche bun holding it all together. That's what separates these from the pack. Covering the bun with icing would have been a serious sacrilege.

Oh, the loaf was pretty good too. Do your self a favor. Pick up The Secrets of Baking, clear a day in your schedule (or two), and make the damn things. You will find yourself with some quick friends.

A similar brioche dough-based sticky bun recipe can be found here - Ollie's Bakery's Sticky Buns. Note: Try adding honey for the topping

Comments

[jane martin]

hi,

i'm from haddonfield, new jersey, now living in munich, germany and just stumbled on your blog and am drooling over it and completely homesick! thanks so much for the accidental dose of home.

jane

here's my blog - some food, some travel, some knitting, some nonsense....
http://henryskeeper.blogspot.com/