Easter brioche with caramel and boiled eggs
Ingredients for a brioche of 22-24 cm:
400 g of flour and more to knead
3 eggs
150 g sugar
200 ml milk
½ teaspoon of natural vanilla extract
½ teaspoon of salt
160 g melted butter
Sunflower oil
25 g fresh baker’s yeast
100 g raw almonds
12 quail eggs, boiled (or more)
1 dose of vanilla
1/3 cup sugar
½ cup ground almonds
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon of butter
1 egg yolk and 1 tablespoon milk to brush
Caster sugar to sprinkle
Preparation:
Dissolve the yeast with the sugar, flour and milk (warm). Cover and let rise in a warm place.
In a deep bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar. Then stir in the vanilla, yeast, 80 g of the melted butter and the milk (200 ml, warm). Finally, gradually add the flour. Work the mixture with your hands making a soft dough. Keep kneading while adding 1 tablespoon of the remaining melted butter until the dough absorbs it completely. Do this until all the remaing butter is incorporated in the dough.
Cover the dough and let rest in a warm place for 1-2 hours. It is ready, when it doubles in volume.
Meanwhile, prepare the stuffing. Make a thick syrup from the sugar (1/3 cup), the same volume of water and vanilla, then dip in the boiled eggs. A minute later remove them with a slotted spoon and wrap in ground and slightly roasted almonds.
In another bowl, melt three tablespoons of sugar over low heat (without adding water and stirring). When it turns into caramel, add the melted butter. Whisk vigorously until a smooth caramel. Work on low heat all the time. Spread the caramel on a sheet of baking paper to a layer of 2-3 mm. Cool completely.
When the dough has risen, knead it again adding oil occasionally. Then divide the dough into three equal parts which you shape into long sausages. Roll them out slightly with a rolling pin to get 3 flat pastry sheets about 50-60 cm long. Garnish each with raw almonds, crushed caramel and 4 breaded quail eggs. Then shape the dough back into a “sausage” by pinching it lengthwise.
Finally, braid the three “sausages” and meet the ends to form a round brioche. Transfer it into a buttered cake pan. Brush with egg yolk (diluted with a little milk) and sprinkle with caster sugar. Let rise again.
Bake the Easter brioche at 180°C until golden and let cool on a wire rack before storing it for the holiday or serving it.
