Tag: yeast

  • New Orleans beignets of my dreams

    New Orleans beignets of my dreams

    I might have never been to New Orleans, but every time I make these beignets, I almost inevitably feel like I’m right in the heart of the French Quarter – where the air hums with music, and the scent of chicory coffee drifts from the iron-lace balconies.

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    New Orleans beignets

    Beignets – French for doughnuts – are made much like brioche. Flour, milk, eggs, sugar, yeast, and salt. A smooth dough, easy to work with.
    I like to place my shaped ones, ready for their final proof, onto parchment-lined trays, lightly sprayed with oil. And just before frying, I cut the paper into squares, each holding a beignet or two, and lower them into the hot oil, paper and all.
    They puff and turn golden in moments, crisp at the edges, impossibly light within. Straight from the fryer, they’re tossed in icing sugar, which melts into a delicate, fudgy glaze. Best eaten warm, while the sugar still clings to your fingertips.
    Bon Mardi Gras!!

    Notes

    On timing
    These beignets are best eaten the same day – preferably hot, fresh from the oil, when they’re at their lightest and crispest. If you need to plan ahead, you have two options: you can proof the dough overnight in the fridge, then shape, do the final rise, and fry the next day, which deepens the flavour and fits neatly into a morning schedule. Or, for a longer make-ahead option, freeze the shaped dough on a silicone mat until firm, then transfer to freezer bags, pressing out as much air as possible. When ready to fry, place the frozen beignets onto lightly greased baking trays, cover with clingfilm, and proof until doubled – around 4 hours (to account for the thawing time as well) – before frying as usual.
    On coating
    The traditional way to coat beignets is to toss them into a brown paper bag filled with icing sugar and give it a good shake – quick, effortless, and wonderfully nostalgic. A large bowl works just as well, allowing for a more controlled dusting, but either way, the goal is the same: a generous flurry of sugar while they’re still warm.
    Author: Fanny Zanotti
    Prep Time1 hour
    Cook Time30 minutes
    Total Time3 hours
    Makes 24 beignets

    Ingredients

    • 250 g whole milk
    • 2 eggs
    • 510 g plain flour
    • 55 g caster sugar
    • 20 g fresh yeast or 7g instant yeast
    • 3 g fine sea salt
    • 90 g salted butter thinly sliced
    • neutral oil for frying
    • 400 g icing sugar to coat

    Instructions

    • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add the milk, eggs, flour, sugar, yeast, salt, and butter. Knead on medium speed until smooth and elastic. The dough should pass the windowpane test.
    • Lightly spray a baking dish with cooking spray – my favourite is a 23×30cm Pyrex glass dish. Transfer the dough to the dish, turning it to coat the surface. Flatten it to fill the dish evenly, and cover with clingfilm.
    • Leave to rise in a warm place until nearly doubled in size, approximately 1 hour.
    • In the meantime, prepare 2 baking trays lined with parchment paper; spray lightly with cooking spray.
    • Lightly flour your work surface. Pat the dough into a slightly larger rectangle – around 2cm thick – and dust with a little flour.
    • Using a long knife, cut the dough into 24 pieces. Place them onto the prepared trays, loosely cover with clingfilm or clean kitchen towels, and leave to rise again for around 30 minutes.
    • While the beignets are rising, heat a generous amount of neutral oil in a deep-fryer or a heavy-bottomed pot to 180°C.
    • Put the icing sugar into a brown paper bag or a large bowl.
    • Fry 4–6 beignets at a time, turning with a metal spider or tongs, until deep golden brown, around 1-1½ minutes per side.
    • Transfer the hot beignets straight into the bag of icing sugar, close tightly, and shake well to coat. Place on a cooling rack over a tray. Repeat with the remaining beignets, adding more icing sugar as needed.
  • A brioche study, part II: the ingredients

    A brioche study, part II: the ingredients

    It is February 2025. And yes, it’s been nine – NINE – years since I last wrote about this brioche study. And yet, it is one that I still think about often, perhaps because I never completed it, but also because I get emails, almost daily, requesting the parts that never were.

    Naturally, I thought I’d start where we left off. For those of you who wonder, here is the first part, describing the approach of this study. And you’ll find the control recipe here, along with notes and pictures on oven spring, crust and crumb texture.

    For an overview, click here: BRIOCHE STUDY OVERVIEW.

    CONTENT TABLE

    – Part I: the approach

    – Part II: the ingredients – this is where you are.

    – Part III: the process – method, techniques and tips

    – Recipe: brioche #1, the control

    – Recipe: brioche #2, the almost Chavot-brioche

    – Recipe: brioche #3, the pain au lait

    – Recipe: brioches #4 and #5

    – Part IV: impact of the egg-to-milk ratio in rich doughs

    – Ressources: Brioche in literature

    Explore the feature: A brioche study and follow our discoveries on instagram: #BRIOCHESTUDY.

    Today, we’ll go through the ingredients, starting with eggs and milk and working our way down. The one question we’ll try to answer is:

    How does each ingredient affect the rheological properties of brioche dough?

    Rheology is the science of of the deformation and flow of matter under applied forces. It is widely used in the scientific community to deepen the understanding of how dough will behave during the bread-making process.

    Dough has many rheological properties that can be studied using different methods, but we’re mostly going to focus on elasticity, extensibility, and strength. Other notable properties include resistance to deformation and viscosity.

    1. Elasticity, the ability of dough to stretch and return to its original shape after being deformed or stretched.
    2. Extensibility, the ability of dough to stretch without breaking. It is an essential property for shaping and forming the dough.
    3. Strength is a function of both elasticity and extensibility. The more extensible and elastic a dough is, the stronger it is considered to be.

    THE INGREDIENTS

    Eggs

    The eggs I use: Organic, weighing 50g each.

    Eggs contain a variety of molecules that can affect the rheological properties of a dough:

    – Proteins: egg whites and yolks contain different types of proteins, including ovalbumin, ovotransferrin, and ovomucin. These proteins can interact with gluten proteins in the dough, weakening the gluten network, leading to increased extensibility and decreased elasticity.

    What does it mean for a finished baked product to have higher extensibility and lower elasticity?

    Higher extensibility: a dough with higher extensibility is easier to stretch and shape. This is beneficial for certain types of bread, where a more extended shaping process is desired – for example baguettes, croissants, pizza…

    Lower elasticity: a dough with lower elasticity means that the finished product may have a softer , fluffier texture. The crumb structure might be more open and airy because the dough doesn’t resist rising as much during fermentation and baking.
    It can also mean that if not baked in a tin, the dough may spread more during baking rather than holding a tight, structured shape.

    FOLLOW-UP QUESTION

    Why is a dough that has just been mixed harder to shape than one that has rested?

    A dough that has been recently mixed is often difficult to shape because the gluten strands are still tight; during the resting period, the flour absorbs more liquid and the gluten strands relax, making the dough more pliable and easier to shape. The resting period also allows enzymes in the flour to break down starches into simple sugars, which can be fermented by the yeast and improve the flavor of the dough.

    At the same time, the egg proteins – especially albumin, the egg white proteins – provide additional strength and stability to the brioche´s crumb structure as they coagulate when the temperature reaches 80°C. In fact as the egg white protein set, they form a solid mass which gives additional structure to the bread, contributing to its overall volume.

    It is also worth noting that the egg proteins also have a role in the organoleptic qualities of brioche. They do indeed participate in the Maillard reaction, also called non-enzymatic browning that occurs when proteins and sugars react under heat. This reaction contributes to the crust colour and the flavour of the brioche.

    Organoleptic qualities

    Organoleptic qualities refer to the aspects of a substance, that create an individual experience via the senses. This includes taste, colour, odour, and feel. These qualities are often used in the evaluation of food products, but also in other fields.

    – Lipids: egg yolks are high in fat, which has a tenderising effect on the dough by interfering with its gluten development. By coating the gluten proteins and preventing them from forming a strong network, lipids make a dough less elastic and more extensible, leading to a more tender and delicate crumb in the final product.

    The lipids in egg yolks also provides a richness of flavour.

    – Emulsifiers: egg yolks contain natural emulsifiers, most notably lecithin, which helps stabilise the emulsion of fat and water in the dough. This contributes to a smoother, more uniform texture in the finished product.

    Milk

    The milk I use: 3% fat.

    Whole milk is a complex liquid that contains several components, each of which can influence the rheological and organoleptic properties of dough in different ways:

    – Water: the water in milk increases dough hydration, a fundamental point for both gluten development and starch gelatinization.

    – Proteins: milk proteins, particularly caseins and whey proteins, interact with the gluten network. They can lead to increased elasticity. The amino acids from these proteins also participate in Maillard reactions during baking, along with the milk sugars.

    What does an increased elasticity mean for the finished baked product?

    Increased elasticity in a dough can lead to:
    – a denser crumb: as the dough resists rising during fermentation and baking, the brioche will have smaller, more evenly distributed air pockets.
    – a structured shape: the dough is more likely to hold its shape during baking, even if not baked in a tin. This is because a dough with increased elasticity resists deformation and tends to spring back to its original shape.
    – a chewier texture: on a molecular level, highly elastic doughs often mean a more tighly-wound gluten matrix, which makes for a firmer, chewier texture.

    FLour

    The flour I use: Swedish plain flour, averaging at 10% protein content.

    Flour is the primary structural component of brioche dough. Although you could possibly make brioche from virtually any flour containing gluten-forming proteins, we will stick to plain wheat flour today.

    FOLLOW-UP QUESTION

    How is the best way to incorporate whole grain flours in brioche? And how far can you push the substitution?

    Whole grain flours are ground from whole, unprocessed wheat kernels, grains, or seeds. Unlike refined flours, such as plain flour, whole grain flours include the germ and bran, which are more absorbent (the bran is rich in pentosans, a family of polysaccharides that can absorb up to 15 times their weight). In practice, this means that the total dough hydration needs to be increased to allow for gluten development.

    In her fantastic newsletter, Nicola Lamb, writes that one can substitute around 30% of the total flour by weight. She also mentions a wonderful technique, which I’ve also been partial to, which consists in separating the bran, and soaking or cooking a porridge before re-incorporating it in the dough. This way, you get the wonderful nutty flavours of whole grain flour without it being detrimental to gluten development.

    Read more here: https://kitchenprojects.substack.com/p/kitchen-project-38-tart-tropezienne

    TO DO: test different brioche doughs made using whole grain flours.

    – Proteins: the most important proteins in flour – both for their function but also by their occurrence – are glutenin and gliadin. These two proteins are the building blocks of gluten – when water or a liquid containing water, like milk or eggs, is added to these proteins, they link together, forming gluten.

    Glutenin gives the dough extensibility, while gliadin contributes to its elasticity.

    The protein content in flour varies greatly depending on the type of flour. The one I used: kärnvetemjöl, has a protein percentage of 10% – the standard for Swedish plain flour, slightly lower that English or American all-purpose.

    Although, the protein content in flour is crucial, it can also be misleading – some flours can be rich in proteins but relatively poor in glutenin and gliadin. However, on paper, higher protein flours can absorb more water and form a stronger gluten network, resulting in a dough with greater elasticity and strength. This means the dough can stretch more without tearing, allowing it to trap the gases produced during fermentation and rise effectively.

    FOLLOW-UP QUESTION

    How does the protein content of flour affect the rheological and organoleptic properties of brioche – both dough and finished product?

    In order to answer this question concretely, we’ll need to conduct a new mixture-design experiment, with the protein content of flour as a variable.

    TO DO: test different brioche doughs made using flours with varying protein content.

    – Starch: forms around 70-75% of flour. It absorbs water and swells during baking. This process is called gelatinization. As gas bubbles in the dough expand and eventually burst to form a porous structure, the starch gel and coagulated gluten matrix surrounding these bubbles increase in viscosity, forming a firm structure, essential for setting crumb structure and texture.

    Sugar

    The sugar I use: plain caster sugar.

    Caster sugar is made of sucrose, a disaccharide that affect both the rheological and organoleptic properties of brioche.

    Sugar significantly influences the taste and colour of the finished product. It enhances the sweetness, and contributes to a golden-brown crust through the Maillard reaction that occurs during baking.

    Sugar also affects the crumb texture. In fact, the hygroscopic nature of sugar allows it to absorb moisture and retain it over time, resulting in a softer loaf.

    hygro·scop·ic
    adjective
    (of a substance) tending to absorb moisture from the air.

    Of course, sugar acts as food for the yeast in the fermentation process.

    FOLLOW-UP QUESTION

    How do different proportions of caster sugar in the dough affect the finished product?

    I feel like it would be a fun experiment to conduct a mixture-design using sugar as a variable.

    TO DO:
    – test different brioche doughs made using varying levels of caster sugar in the formula
    – read the following reasearch paper: Timmermans, E.(2022). Sugar Levels Determine Fermentation Dynamics during Yeast Pastry Making and Its Impact on Dough and Product Characteristics. Foods, 11(10), 13881

    Salt

    The salt I use: both flaky sea salt and fine salt.
    It’s worth noting that different salts have different volumes, making it difficult to substitute flaky salt for fine salt if using spoon-measures. By weight, I’ve found that there is virtually no difference between these two salts, however, certain salts, like Himalayan salt are much less salty.

    Salt strengthens the gluten network in the dough, which improves its elasticity and extensibility. This results in a dough that is easier to handle and shape.
    It also regulates the rate of yeast fermentation by slowing it down.

    And perhaps most importantly, salt enhances the flavour of the brioche.

    Yeast

    The yeast I use: fresh yeast.

    Substituting fresh yeast

    For 10g of fresh yeast, use either 5g of active dry yeast (approximately one teaspoon: 5mL) or 3g of instant yeast (a heaped half teaspoon: 2.5mL). Note that the active dry yeast should be rehydrated in warm water or milk (around 40°C) for 5 to 10 minutes; however, both fresh yeast and instant yeast can be weighed out along with the flour, and used as is in the recipe.

    Note: If making a very wet dough with over 80% hydration, I tend to crumble my fresh yeast to make sure it gets fully incorporated; otherwise, I just leave it into large chunks and let the kneading do the job.

    Fresh yeast is made of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells. In the right settings, yeast will convert sugar and starch into carbon dioxide and alcohol – this process is called fermentation.

    FOLLOW-UP QUESTION

    How does fermentation time affect the qualities of the finished product

    I would love to test one brioche dough and see how far we can push the fermentation.

    TO DO:
    – make a dough and test different fermentation times under constant settings like temperature and humidity

    FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS AND NOTES

    1. Tangzhong method

    How does adding a tangzhong (a cooked flour-water paste) alter the hydration and softness of brioche?

    – Experiment: Test a brioche with and without tangzhong and compare moisture retention over time.
    – Suggested reading:The Food Lab by J. Kenji López-Alt (discusses hydration techniques in bread baking).

    2. Pre-ferments

    How does using a pre-ferment (such as a poolish or sponge) change the flavor complexity and structure of brioche?

    – Experiment: Make three brioches: one with direct yeast addition, one with poolish, and one with a stiff biga.

    3. Impact of hydration on brioche crumb

    How does altering the hydration level affect the crumb structure and softness? How much can hydration be increased while maintaining dough integrity?

    4. Effects of the cold fermentation

    How does a long cold proof (12-48 hours) change the gluten structure and overall rise compared to a same-day bake? Is the ideal proofing time different for dough with pre-ferments?

    5. Butter incorporation methods

    Should butter be added in one stage, or would gradual emulsification affect texture positively?

    Experiment: Compare direct incorporation vs. gradual mixing at different butter %.

    6. Dough temperature before baking

    What is the optimal final dough temperature before baking?

  • Start a new sourdough starter with me

    Start a new sourdough starter with me

    There’s something special about new beginnings. A clean jar, a fresh bag of flour, the quiet anticipation of what’s to come.

    A sourdough – flour and water, mixed together and left to rest. At first, nothing much happens. Then, after a couple of days, tiny bubbles appear, a sign that wild yeasts and bacteria are waking up. The smell shifts – sweet and slightly tangy, reminiscent of yoghurt and apple cider vinegar.

    I’ve made many starters over the years. Some I’ve carried with me across kitchens, feeding them daily. Others I’ve left too long in the back of the fridge, until they turned greyish, then still. But now, in the quiet of winter, I feel like starting again.

    I’m doing as I always have – a 100% hydration starter, equal parts flour and water. It’s familiar, reliable, and the foundation of so many loaves I’ve loved. But I’ve been reading about stiff starters – not unlike a sourdough biga – and I’m curious. Perhaps next time! 

    For now, it’s just organic wheat flour, full of natural yeasts, and lukewarm water. 

    If you’ve never made a sourdough starter before, now is as good a time as any. The process is slow, but that’s part of the charm. Stir, wait, feed, repeat.

    Are you starting one too?

    There are as many ways to start a starter as there are bakers – really, you could talk to two hundred people and get two hundred different processes. I like to keep things simple, because it shouldn’t have to be complicated.

    I’ve written down my method, the one I follow loosely. Twenty-two hours instead of twenty-four? That IS okay. The “recipe” is in grams, though I’m mostly partial to my Swedish decilitermått [measuring cups that fit 1dl = 100ml]. And while I write 50g/50g on paper, in practice it’s usually a little over ½ dl water (about 60g) and 1dl flour (scooped and scraped, around 60–65g) – especially once the starter is established and I’m discarding or baking, and feeding daily.

    DAY ONE

    In a clean jar, mix 50g of lukewarm water (30°C and filtered if needed) and 50g ORGANIC plain flour. Stir well, cover with a lid, and place somewhere warm-ish – 22-24°C. You might want to write the time on your starter jar for future reference.

    Notes: When mixing water and flour, I ALWAYS start with the water to avoid pockets of flour at the bottom of my mixing container/bowl.

    DAY TWO

    Timeline: 24 hours after you first mixed the starter.

    Add 50g lukewarm water and 50g of flour. Mix well, cover with a lid, and leave to rest. The starter now weighs 200g.

    Our feeding ratio for day 2 is 2:1:1 (starter:flour:water) – the first couple of days is possibly the only time I would have more starter than water/flour.

    Notes: No discard on the second day!

    DAY THREE

    Timeline: 24 hours after the last feed. Keep in mind that depending on whether you started your starter in the morning or evening, your next feed will be 12 hours after this step.

    You might have started seeing some activity in your starter – totally normal for it to smell slightly cheesy at this stage. This comes from lactic acid bacteria, which are also found in yogurt and cheese.

    Stir your starter, then place onto scales and tare. Discard starter so that you get -125g on the scales – we’re saving 75g starter. Now, add 50g lukewarm water and 50g of flour. Mix well, cover with a lid, and leave to rest. The starter now weighs 175g.

    Our feeding ratio for day 3 is 3:2:2. Depending on whether you starter you starter in the morning or in the evening, you’re going to have to next feed it 12 hours after this step.

    Notes: I like to stir my sourdough starter before discarding and feeding. This ensures the wild yeasts and bacteria are evenly distributed, promoting consistent fermentation.

    DAY FOUR & FIVE

    Timeline: We’re going to do two feeds today – one 12 hours after the last feed and another one 12 hours later.
    I, of course, forgot to feed my starter after 12 hours last night, so it ended up being closer to 20. I couldn’t help myself and added some rye to the mix today. To keep things consistent, I usually mix 350g organic flour with 150g coarse rye flour, which I’ll use for feeding my starter from now on.

    On Day 4, you’ll follow the instructions for both the first and second feed. After that – Day 5 and so on – you’ll only perform the second feed but TWICE a day – discarding 100g of starter and feeding as follows.

    First feed:

    Stir your starter, then place onto scales and tare. Discard starter so that you get -150g on the scales – we’re saving 25g starter. Now, add 50g lukewarm water and 50g of rye flour mix (read note above). Mix well, cover with a lid, and leave to rest. The starter now weighs 125g.

    Second feed:

    Stir your starter, then place onto scales and tare. Discard starter so that you get -100g on the scales – we’re saving 25g starter. Now, add 50g lukewarm water and 50g of rye flour. Mix well, cover with a lid, and leave to rest. The starter weighs again 125g.

    Our feeding ratio for day 4 & 5 is 1:2:2.

     

    DAY SIX & more

    Is your starter ready to bake with?

    Look for consistent fermentation patterns: it should reliably double in size within 4–6 hours of feeding and have a pleasantly tangy smell. If not, keep repeating the process from Day 5 : discard 100g, feed with 50g lukewarm water and 50g flour mix, twice a day, until it gains strength

    If your starter is ready, you can now bake with it – simply mix a levain as written in your bread recipe. Keep in mind that a starter strengthens over time; it typically takes around one month to become fully developed.
    Now is also the time to transition to a maintenance feeding schedule: save 6g of starter and feed using 60g lukewarm water and 60g flour mix. 

     

    ON FEEDING RATIOS

    Feeding ratios are written as starter:flour:water. For example, 1:2:2 means 1 part starter, 2 parts flour, and 2 parts water, all measured by weight. Keeping a consistent ratio helps maintain a healthy, active starter.

    Adjusting the ratio changes how your starter ferments. Higher ratios (e.g. 1:5:5) provide more food, slowing fermentation and extending the time before it peaks. Lower ratios (e.g. 1:1:1) speed things up, making the starter ready sooner. The right ratio depends on your room temperature, how quickly you need your starter, and your baking schedule.

    Common feeding ratios:

    – 1:1:1  A quick feed. Good if you plan to bake within a few hours, as the starter becomes active in 4-5 hours at room temperature.

    – 1:2:2 or 1:3:3  A longer fermentation, ready in 8-12 hours.

    – 1:5:5 or 1:6:6  A slow, steady feed, great for strengthening your starter. I love using this for overnight feeds or even maintenance (10g starter:50–60g both water and flour), so that my starter is ready to bake with first thing in the morning. It’s also a great way to increase the total weight of your starter, especially if your recipe calls for 200–300g of starter or levain.

    – 1:10:10 The ultimate maintenance feed!

    More than a strict and unmovable rule to follow, adjusting the feeding ratio is a way to make sourdough work for you – fitting baking into your timeline rather than the other way around.

  • Simple focaccia

    Simple focaccia

    The Easter weekend arrived like a much-needed balm for our souls. A few days off with no plans; just the three of us enjoying sunny skies, walks through the snow, and, of course, good food.

    Our holiday began on skärtorsdag [Holy Thursday] with a dinner that I had had in mind for days. Nutty coppa, served alongside a creamy burrata, roasted Marcona almonds, and blanched white asparagus. The combination was wonderful, with the savory notes of the coppa balancing out the mild sweetness of the almonds and the delicate flavor of the asparagus. I couldn’t help but think something pickled would have made it even better – perhaps some tangy cornichons, capers, or pickled baby onions.

    On the side, a focaccia, which had no other choice than to be quick-to-make, as it was very much not planned.

    As with most thing bread, I turned to baker-extraordinaire Dan Lepard, of which I’ve already shared a fantastic focaccia recipe. And while it is everything I want and more, it unfortunately takes many hours to prepare. So I looked through my notebooks and found one of his recipes for a simple focaccia that happened to be gloriously pillowy, and the perfect complement to our dinner.

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    Quick and simple focaccia

    The recipe that is on its way to becoming my go-to!
    A little more hydration and yeast makes for a quick and simple focaccia- 2 hours-ish from the cupboard to the table.
    And by adding a bit of old dough or some sourdough discard, the flavour is just as wonderful!

    Notes

    – My favourite flour for focaccia comes from a Swedish mill. It is a high-protein organic flour made with a spring-wheat sort, called Quarna. A must try if you ever find your way to Sweden. You can order their flours and grains here.
    – I like to use a bit of old dough, or even some sourdough discard, when making bread that only relies on yeast as leavening agent. I find that it adds complexity to the bread, creating a unique flavor profile that is not possible with just yeast. The longer the old dough or sourdough discard has been fermenting, the more complex the flavour will be. I also think that it helps to improve the texture of the dough, making it more elastic. And of course, it is a wonderful way to use your discard and reduce waste in your kitchen.
    Author: Fanny Zanotti
    Prep Time30 minutes
    Cook Time30 minutes
    Total Time2 hours 30 minutes

    Ingredients

    • 500 g Italian 00 or strong white flour read note above
    • 400 mL warm water
    • 21 g fresh yeast or 7 g instant yeast
    • 2 tsp sea salt
    • 125 g old bread dough/starter discard optional, read note above
    • olive oil
    • flaky sea salt to sprinkle

    Instructions

    • In a large bowl, stir all the ingredients to a very soft dough. I like to add a bit of old bread dough from the restaurant for added sourness, but you could leave it out or use a sourdough starter/discard.
    • Give the dough a vigorous beating with your hand for 30 seconds. Cover and leave for 30 minutes.
    • Drizzle a few tablespoons of olive oil over the top of the dough and on top of your workbench, and rub liberally.Flip the dough on to it, using a scraper to gently pull the dough away from the bowl. Pull the dough into a 30cm or so rectangle, fold in by thirds and then a second time. Return to the bowl for 30 minutes.
    • Line a baking tray with nonstick paper and rub a little olive oil over it.
    • Heat the oven to 225°C/fan 200°C.
    • Place the dough at the centre of the prepared tray, and repeat the stretch and fold of the dough. With the tips of your fingers pointing straight down, dimple the dough about a dozen times, then leave for 30 minutes.
    • Stretch out the dough again to cover the tray. Sprinkle flaky sea salt over the top. reduce the oven temperature to 200°C/fan 180°C and bake for 25-35 minutes, until golden.
    • Allow to cool on a wire-rack.
  • Fullkornsskorpor

    Fullkornsskorpor

    [Wholewheat rusks, a Swedish twice-baked bread]

    Skorpor are a traditional twice-baked bread from Sweden. And although I haven’t had time to do much research, I can only imagine that, like many other rusks, they originated from the need to either use old loaves or to conserve bread over an extended period of time.

    Often made with white flour and cardamom, you can now find many different kinds of skorpor on the shelves at the supermarket. I’ve even seen people make them out of leftover kanelbullar; which is something I might try but we rarely have uneaten bullar and when we do, they almost always end up as a French toast.

    Here in Sweden, skorpor are eaten as a mellanmål [afternoon tea], with butter and cheese, perhaps a spoonful of orange marmalade. Sometimes even dipped in warm rosehip soup.

    I must admit I’m partial to butter and marmalade. And the slight nuttiness of wholewheat flour. Perhaps it was the breakfasts made of Krisprolls and thé au lait [milk tea] that I fondly remember from my childhood.
    And yet, it took me almost thirty years to make skorpor in my kitchen. I think I started a couple of years ago. It was the end of blood orange season.
    That day, I took out the old Swedish baking books I had collected and went through every skorpa recipe I could find. I made blood orange marmalade too.

    I wrote weights down and calculated bakers’ percentages. I compared, and tasted, and made notes. And from them came the recipe that now sits in my notebook, the one I’m sharing with you today.
    I didn’t really consider doing so. But then, the other morning, a week or so ago, as I kneaded butter into the dough of my monthly batch, I thought that perhaps you’d like to make your own too.

    Notes

    – If graham flour isn’t available where you live, you can use 300 g wholewheat flour and 60 g wheatgerm.

    – All the recipes I’ve found use around 60 g of fresh yeast for each kilogram of flour; and while it may seem like a lot, it does reduce proofing times tremendously.
    You could get away with using half the yeast and allowing a longer proof. I have however decided to stay true to the recipes I’ve used to develop this formula and the amount of yeast did not cause any noticeable shortcomings.

    – I think it is fundamental to use a fork to make deep indents in each bread around its entire perimeter before breaking it in half; and I wouldn’t recommend slicing with a knife, no matter how much faster it would be.
    It is precisely the rugged surface created by the fork that makes for an interesting texture and flavour, due to the uneven browning.

    Fullkornsskorpor

    Makes around 80 pieces.

    485 g milk
    420 g plain flour
    360 g graham flour
    40 g fresh yeast
    14 g salt
    100 g butter, thinly sliced

    Place all the ingredients aside from the butter in the bowl of a stand-mixer fitted with the dough hook.

    Mix on medium speed for 10 minutes, or until medium gluten development. Add the butter, one slice at a time and knead for a further 10 minutes or so until the dough is smooth and elastic.

    Cover with clingfilm, and leave to proof at room temperature until doubled in size, around 30 minutes.

    Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.

    Place the dough onto a lightly floured work bench. Press to get rid of the gases, and divide in 40 pieces, at approximately 35g each.
    Ball each piece and place onto the prepared baking trays. Flatten each ball to 5-6cm in diameter using the palm of your hand.

    Cover with clingfilm and proof until doubled in size, around 45-60 minutes.
    While the bread if proofing, preheat the oven to 250°C/fan 230°C.

    When ready to bake, reduce the oven temperature to 225°C/fan 200°C. And bake, one tray at a time for 14 minutes, rotating halfway through baking if needed.

    Allow to cool down slightly, and using a fork, make deep indents in each bread around its entire perimeter; then break in half.

    Arrange the halves on the baking trays, and return to the oven for 8 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 120°C/fan 100°C and bake for a further hour, or until fully dried.

    The skorpor will keep beautifully in an airtight jar for well over a month.


  • Glad Lucia, a lussekatter history (and recipe)

    Glad Lucia, a lussekatter history (and recipe)

    Traditionally eaten for Santa Lucia on the thirteenth of December, lussekatter – also called lussebullar – have a nebulous history. One that’s laced with Christianity and paganism, German and viking heritage.

    In fact, even the origin of the Lucia celebrations is quite elusive.

    Lussi, an evil figure roamed the land along with her lussiferda, a horde of trolls and goblins.

    Lussinatta once coincided with the Winter solstice back in the 1300s when Europe still used the Julian calendar. During that night, the longest of the year, it was said that animals could talk and supernatural events could occur; Lussi, an evil figure (that holds many similarities with the german Perchta or the italian Befana) roamed the land along with her lussiferda, a horde of trolls and goblins, punishing naughty children and casting dark magic. People, forced to remain secluded, would eat and drink in an attempt to fight the darkness.

    And as the years went by in the pre-Christian Norden, farmers started to celebrate the return of the light and the tradition of a goddess of lights took roots in the pagan folklore.
    It was also the start of festivities of some kind – not to say Christmas, although it is believed that both Christian and heathen traditions started to blend from the 1100s . In fact the very origins of the word jul [Christmas] are blurry, with one occurrence dating back to Harald Hårfager who might have said: “Dricka jul!” [drink Christmas!].
    During these celebrations, pig would get slaughtered, both for the gods and for the feast.

    The tradition of a feast and offerings is documented in Erland Hofsten’s unpublished manuscript Beskrifning öfwer Wermeland, dating from the early 1700s. And although no further narrative is given, Hofsten believed in a pagan provenance.

    The first printed description comes a few decades later in 1773 through Erik Fernows’ Beskrifning öfwer Wärmeland: “Man skall den dagen wara uppe at äta bittida om ottan, hos somlige tör ock et litet rus slinka med på köpet. Sedan lägger man sig at sofwa, och därpå ätes ny frukost. Hos Bönderne kallas detta ‘äta Lussebete’, men hos de förnämare ‘fira Luciäottan’.” And now if you please excuse my poor translation/paraphrase (Swedish is hard enough without having to deal with old Swedish): On that day, we should be up early (otta is an old Swedish word akin to night, but really means the time of the day when the night becomes the morning, around 4-5am) to eat, and for some, a shot of snaps would go down. Then we’d lay on the sofa and would later eat another breakfast. Amongst the farmers this would be known as to “eat Lussi’s bait”, but for the more affluents it was called a “Lucia morning celebration”.

    One that spread from Värmland to Västergotland where C. Fr. Nyman encountered the custom for the first time, as described in his unpublished 1764 manuscript: “Rätt som jag låg i min bästa sömn, hördes en Vocalmusique utan för min dörr, hvaraf jag väcktes. Strax derpå inträdde först ett hvit-klädt fruntimmer med gördel om lifvet, liksom en vinge på hvardera axeln, stora itända ljus i hwar sin stora silfversljusstake, som sattes på bordet, och strax derpå kom en annan med ett litet dukadt bord, försedt med allehanda kräseliga, äteliga och våtvaror, som nedsattes mitt för sängarna… det är Lussebete .” That morning he was awaken by songs coming from outside his door. He then proceeded to meet a white-clad lady wearing wings and holding a large silver candlestick, which she placed on the table. And soon after another lady came in carrying a small table lined with cloth and full of food and drinks, which she laid in between the beds. In his story, C. Fr. Nyman, calls it Lussi’s bait, reinforcing not only the heathen terms of the celebration, but also hinting about the origin of the lussekatter.

    It is noted in Nordisk familjebok 1912 that it was common to bake a peculiar bread shaped as a L and called “dövelskatt” [the devil’s tax] in south-western Sweden: “I sydvästra Sverige bakas till L. ett särskildt kultbröd, kalladt ‘dövelskatt’”.
    And with different spellings like the Dutch duyvelskat, or the more common Lussebette, it’s hard not to think how the word we all thought meant Lucia’s cats was actually intended to be an offering to Lussi in exchange for her mercy. Or as it’s described in this interview of Anna Freij that the buns were tinted bright yellow with saffron to scare the devil away.

    With the introduction of the Gregorian calendar in the 16th century, Lucia no longer coincided with the winter solstice, but the customs of December 13th being the longest night of the year remained strong in the farming community throughout the centuries and up to the 1700s.
    And it’s suspected that as Christianity grew in the north, the church tried to associate the pagan tradition with Santa Lucia, mostly based on phonetics and etymology (latin lux: light).

    And just like that, the customs of eating saffron bread, something that was once reserved to the higher classes of southern Sweden, started to spread amongst rural Sweden, where wheat buns would be brushed with a saffron-infused syrup; with each province having their own distinctive shaped bun.

    I hope that what was intended to be “just a recipe” five or so hours ago, brought some insight into this wonderful tradition, which like many others is a complex maze of cultural and historical layers tangled into each-other like morning hair.

    Here are the sources I’ve used to this little research:
    http://runeberg.org/svetym/0512.html
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harald_Fairhair
    http://www.firajul.nu/julenstraditioner/ordet-jul
    http://www.bageri.se/aktuellt/nyheter/varfor-ater-vi-saffransbrod-till-jul/
    http://malinryke.blogspot.se/2014/12/lussekattens-historia.html

    PRINT

    Lussekatter

    Come early November, every supermarket launches their annual production of lussekatter, which I suspect are loved by many.
    As soon as you step in, the sweet scent of saffron gives away the trolleyful of golden buns waiting to be wrapped in small plastic bags. I have never tasted one from the shop, but from what I'm told they tend to be on the dry side.
    My lussekatter, although certainly not authentic as their supermarket counterpart, are a dream to work with, to eat warm from the oven, or toasted the next day, to soak in an egg whisked with a dash of cream, milk, and sugar, and then pan-fried until golden, not unlike a French Swedish-toast.
    The recipe itself is a simple enriched dough that some would be tempted to call a pain au lait [milk bread]. As with any rich dough, I recommend using a stand-mixer, althought it's definitely possible to make them by hand, simply follow the instructions given on that post.

    Notes

    A note on the saffron:
    If you don’t have any ground saffron, simply bring the milk to the boil and soak/infuse the saffron threads in it for at least 30 minutes. You will have to wait for the milk to be completely cooled down before using in the recipe.
    Edit 13/12/2018: Nowadays, I always tend to dissolve the saffron in a tablespoon or so of rum. I find it brings out the flavour even more!
    Author: Fanny Zanotti
    Prep Time1 hour
    Cook Time12 minutes
    Makes 20 buns

    Ingredients

    For the raisins

    • a handful of raisins
    • boiling water

    For the dough

    • 250 g unsalted butter
    • 600 g strong flour
    • 75 g caster sugar
    • 18 g fresh yeast
    • 0.5 g one envelope ground saffron (read note above)
    • 7.5 g sea salt
    • 375 g whole milk

    Instructions

    • Soak the raisins in boiling water and set aside to cool down. This can be done up to three days ahead, in which case, keep the soaked raisins in the fridge.
    • Slice the butter into thin 2-3mm thick slices. Set aside until needed.
    • In the bowl of a stand-mixer fitted with the dough-hook, place the flour, sugar, yeast, saffron and salt. Add the milk and mix on medium speed for around 10 minutes or until the dough detaches from the sides of the bowl and feels smooth, elastic and barely tacky. If you take a small piece of dough, you should be able to stretch it into a very thin membrane.
    • Add the butter, one small piece at a time continuously until all the butter is in – and knead it in for a further 10 minutes.
    • Place the dough in a large bowl, and clingfilm to the touch. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to 12.
    • Line three baking trays with paper and set aside.
    • Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide in 50-55g pieces and cover loosely with clingfilm.
    • Take one piece and roll into a thin snake, approximately 30cm long, then form an S shape, curling both ends into a spiral. Place onto the prepared baking trays, making sure to give the buns plenty of space. And repeat with the remaining dough.
    • Cover with clingfilm and leave to proof until doubled in size, around 2-3 hours.
    • Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan 180°C.
    • Brush the top of the buns with the egg wash and press two raisins into each bun.
    • Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden-brown. Allow to cool down slightly.
  • PS. Time to start baking with saffron

    PS. Time to start baking with saffron

    “Saffran, pepparkakor, lingon och mandel.”

    If you sat on the windowsill, here with me – yes, right now – you’d see many things around us. The stars and advent candles, fluttering in every house. The snow, covering roofs till the horizon and further.

    In my kitchen – and I suspect many others – saffran, pepparkakor, lingon och mandel [saffron, gingerbread, lingon berries and almonds] pervade the air in the way only they can. And we’d watch bullar rise under the yellow glow of the oven lamp, spitting butter and oozing with marzipan just so.

    Yes, it’s time to start baking with saffron, although I might have possibly started a couple of weeks ago.
    And if you’d ever ask me, I’d possibly urge you to start too; most likely with my absolute favourite buns: saffransbullar med mandelmassa.

    My saffron recipes

    Saffranskladdkaka

    [Swedish saffron blondies] Snipp, snapp, snut – så var julen slut. Christmas has come and gone, and I never got …
    Read More

    Birgittas saffranskaka

    [Birgitta´s saffron cake] If you follow me on instagram, you’ll recognise this cake. One that I make year after year, …
    Read More

    Saffransmazariner

    [Saffron mazariner] Twelve weeks ago, almost to the second, Sienna was put on my chest; pink as a candy, eyes …
    Read More

    Glad Lucia, a lussekatter history (and recipe)

    Traditionally eaten for Santa Lucia on the thirteenth of December, lussekatter – also called lussebullar – have a nebulous history …
    Read More

    PS. Time to start baking with saffron

    “Saffran, pepparkakor, lingon och mandel.” If you sat on the windowsill, here with me – yes, right now – you’d …
    Read More

    Saffransbullar med mandelmassa

    [Swedish saffron and almond buns] Sunrise: 9:33 AM Sunset: 1:28 PM Temperature: -11.8°C The Swedish saffron and almond buns you …
    Read More
  • Recipe studies: Brioche

    Recipe studies: Brioche

    In which we explore different aspects of the science behind brioche; from the study of the impact of the egg to milk ratio in the dough, to techniques and further questions.

    Follow the study here or on instagram: #BRIOCHESTUDY.

    Analysing the impact of the egg-to-milk ratio in brioche formulas

    CONTENT TABLE

    – Part I: the approach

    – Part II: the ingredients

    – Part III: the process – method, techniques and tips – TO COME

    – Recipe: brioche #1, the control

    – Recipe: brioche #2, the almost Chavot-brioche – TO COME

    – Recipe: brioche #3, the pain au lait – TO COME

    – Recipe: brioches #4 and #5 – TO COME

    – Part IV: impact of the egg-to-milk ratio in rich doughs – TO COME

    – Ressources: Brioche in literature – TO COME

    Other themes may include: research on flour protein variations, how to knead brioche by hand…

  • A brioche study, recipe: the “generic” brioche (control)

    A brioche study, recipe: the “generic” brioche (control)

    Analysing the impact of the egg-to-milk ratio in brioche formulas

    The formula

    The recipe shown below will make two 500g loaves. I chose, however, to make half a batch, yielding to a single loaf, which is something I’ll carry on doing over the next experiments, as the kneading time of a half-recipe takes longer when done in a stand-mixer; more on that to come in part two: the method (ingredient list, pastry chef tips and techniques on brioche).

    Brioche #1: Control formula

    quantityingredientBAKERS %
    500gflour100%
    70gcaster sugar14%
    15gyeast3%
    8gsalt2%
    180gmilk36%
    180gegg36%
    150gbutter30%
    1103gtotal weight

    Notes

    I haven’t finished writing about the method and techniques associated with rich doughs, so in the meantime, please refer to this article for detailed instructions on how to make brioche.

    I ended up making the control brioche twice: after I baked brioche 2, I was amazed by the differences in between the two batches. So much in fact, that I thought something had gone wrong with the control brioche (I mostly suspected slow yeast or underproofing). So I went ahead and made the control brioche again, only to find out the differences were the result of the formula substitutions; and in no way related to the other ingredients or the method.

    The difference in crumb colour on the pictures above is due to lighting (natural versus halogen) as I’ve just gotten an industrial halogen lamp so I would be able to take pictures at night – also known as 2pm here, hehe – and I’m still trying to figure it out.

    Results

    The oven-spring isn’t tremendous.

    The crust is very thin and soft. As the loaf cools down, it wrinkles.

    The crumb is light and soft, with a slight moistness to it. It’s has a beautiful texture and a lovely chew, almost reminiscent of a doughnut.

    This “generic” brioche turned out amazing. I fell in love with its crumb and soft crust. The loaf stayed beautifully soft on the second day too; as we topped it with a thick layer of hjortronsylt [cloudberry jam].
    I’ll definitely be making it again and again.

    READ MORE ABOUT THE BRIOCHE STUDY

    – Part I: the approach

    – Part II: the ingredients

    – Part III: the process – method, techniques and tips

    – Recipe: brioche #1, the control – this is where you are.

    – Recipe: brioche #2, the almost Chavot-brioche

    – Recipe: brioche #3, the pain au lait

    – Recipe: brioches #4 and #5

    – Part IV: impact of the egg-to-milk ratio in rich doughs

    – Ressources: Brioche in literature

    Explore the feature: A brioche study and follow our discoveries on instagram: #BRIOCHESTUDY.

    FROM THE 2016 ARCHIVES

  • A brioche study, part I: the approach

    A brioche study, part I: the approach

    Analysing the impact of the egg-to-milk ratio in brioche formulas

    In the first part of my forever-unfinished feature How to be a pastry chef? – the checklist, I asked you some questions about brioche with the aim to develop your curiosity and drive you to research important techniques. It went along the following lines:

    Do you know brioche dough is an emulsion? Do you treat it as such? Can you knead it by hand or in a mixer without over-heating it? And which temperature should the butter be?

    But although these points are fundamental in a technical approach, I’ve since had been absorbed by some other questions that belong to the food science realm.

    How do the milk and eggs respectively affect the texture of a brioche? Which kind of flour yield to the softest crumb? And how much butter is too much?

    As with any mixture experiment, we have to study each of these variables – liquids ratio, flour properties, butter quantity – separately in order to develop an understanding on how they each have an impact on the finished product.
    And for no other reason than it has obsessed me for years, I’ve chosen to start by examining the effect of the egg-to-milk ratio in rich doughs.

    Eggs or milk?

    If you ask Eric Chavot, a true brioche – or as he would say, une vraie brioche – is made using eggs as the only source of hydration.
    And while I’m certain many would agree, the subject of brioche – from its etymology to its formula – has always been a controversial one.

    In my kitchen, I tend to use a combination of both eggs and milk; with more or less of each depending on the texture I want to achieve. A knowledge that’s really more empirical than anything; and perhaps, relies a bit too much on wishful thinking.
    So today, we will stop counting shooting stars and start analysing percentages. It will take five different loaves. Over two kilograms of flour and perhaps a litre or two of milk. A box of eggs. Most likely two. And hopefully, a few worthy notes that will improve my understanding of rich doughs.

    The approach

    1. Develop a control formula that will act as a reference point during the experiment.
    2. Define the range into which the variables will fluctuate.
    3. Establish the method: ingredients (on both quantitative and qualitative – brand, temperature – points of view), process (order of incorporation, kneading time/speed, proofing time/temperature, shaping, baking time/temperature)
    4. Make successive batches of brioches, each with a different ratio of egg to milk. All other variables (see method above) remain unchanged.
    5. Record the organoleptic properties of each batch:
    – texture (our main focus point): thickness/hardness of the crust, crumb appearance and mouthfeel.
    – colour: darkness of the crust, tint of the crumb.
    – flavour and smell.
    I haven’t decided yet on whether or not to include objective qualities – such as: crust thickness in mm, loaf size, or even weight of the baked brioche – to measure the response. Yes, even though this is a matter of mixture design, I mostly want to document the results in a comprehensive yet accessible and home-practicable way.
    6. Analyse the results.

    Developing the control formula

    I could have used my favourite stand-alone brioche recipe, the one pictured above and which I told you about in Paris Pastry Club and the one I made tropéziennes with.
    But out of all my rich dough recipes, it stands out by its high hydration and high fat quantity.

    I thus wanted to create a generic rich dough recipe. To do this, I analysed my favourite recipes, ranging from brioche to burger buns, from challah to kanelbullar.
    On the table below, you can see the ones that I consider the more relevant, with BRIOCHE 2 being my usual, the one I just mentioned.

    Brioches: bakers percentage

    bullarbrioche 1brioche 2brioche 3burger bunsbrioche 4
    flour100%100%100%100%100%100%
    hydration64%58%65%60%64%60%
    eggs38%19%55%
    		60%13%20%
    milk26%38%11%0%51%40%
    fat28%15%58%40%19%16%
    sugar13%19%11%12%6%20%

    Note: the hydration values, although inaccurate since milk and eggs don’t hydrate the dough fully (respectively at 88% and 76.15%), could have also been labelled “liquids”. I did however choose to go with “hydration” for ease of understanding and recipe development.

    I then went ahead and calculated an average formula as seen on the table below. And by multiplying the bakers percentages, I got the recipe for two brioche loaves.
    As you can notice, some of the measurements would be quite difficult to put into practice, so I used this “average recipe” as a guideline.

    Brioches: average

    BAKERS %for two 500g loaves
    flour100%500 g
    hydration62%
    fat29%147g
    sugar14%68g
    eggs34%171g
    milk28%138g

    Brioche #1: Control formula

    quantityingredientBAKERS %
    500gflour100%
    70gcaster sugar14%
    15gyeast3%
    8gsalt2%
    180gmilk36%
    180gegg36%
    150gbutter30%
    1103gtotal weight

    The percentages I chose to keep are as such:
    – flour 100%
    – caster sugar 14%
    – milk 36%
    – egg 36%
    – butter 30%

    As you can see, I’ve increased the total liquids (milk+eggs) as when I first baked the control brioche, I realised that with only 62% liquids the dough was way too dry so I had to add 60g of liquids (30g egg and 30g milk), bringing the total hydration to 72% instead.
    This can be due to 2 factors:
    – I calculated the average formula using recipes from my French/English recipe notebooks, and thus missed to take into account the Swedish flour’s high absorption capacity
    – when making such a small batch of dough (I halved the recipe) the kneading can take twice as long as when making a larger batch, and the dough has more surface to loose moisture from

    I then added 3% of yeast and 2% of salt, and our control formula was done.

    This control formula is a perfect starting point as its egg-to-milk ratio is 50%-50%, which will allow us to really analyse its impact on the dough and on the finished brioche.

    The mixture design

    I have in mind to make 5 different “brioche” recipes. Yes, “brioche” in quotes, as our experiment will range from actual brioche to pain au lait [literally, milk bread].

    1: controlbrioche 2brioche 3brioche 4brioche 5
    milk50%0%100%33%67%
    egg50%100%0%67%33%

    Here are the different formulas, each associated with a number, which is used as both a name and a rank. We will start with the control brioche 1, move onto brioche 2, and so on.
    As you can see above, we’re starting with the most extreme formulas as we might be able to stop our experiment after brioche 3, in the eventuality that the results will have given us enough information about the impact of the egg-to-milk ratio in the dough.
    I will, however, most likely still decide to conduct brioche 4 and 5, with my personal recipe collection in mind.

    Ressources

    – A clear explanation of mixture design.
    – A few notes on brioche.
    – A five-minute brioche?

    TO COME

    – Part I: the approach – this is where you are.

    – Part II: the ingredients

    – Part III: the process – method, techniques and tips

    – Recipe: brioche #1, the control

    – Recipe: brioche #2, the almost Chavot-brioche

    – Recipe: brioche #3, the pain au lait

    – Recipe: brioches #4 and #5

    – Part IV: impact of the egg-to-milk ratio in rich doughs

    – Ressources: Brioche in literature

    I hope you’ll like this experiment as much as I do, even the most boring parts. Follow #briochestudy on Instagram for real-time science 🙂

    And, of course, I wish you all the happiest new year! To 2016 and brioches. X