These soft brioche with very little yeast are perfect for everyday breakfast: soft, fragrant, and light.
The recipe uses a poolish prepared with a minimal amount of brewer’s yeast, a simple but effective technique that allows you to achieve an elastic structure and a soft crumb even the next day.
The result is homemade brioche with chocolate chips, with chocolate chips well distributed and a balanced flavor, not overly sweet.
The gentle baking and careful dough handling make these brioche ideal for storing in a food bag for a few days.
A recipe designed for the Thermomix, repeatable and suitable even for those with little experience with yeasted doughs, but who want a refined and reliable result.
READ THE FAQs AND TIPS AT THE END OF THE RECIPE
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 2 Hours
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 15Pieces
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 1 g fresh brewer's yeast
- 150 g all-purpose flour (W260/280)
- 150 ml milk
- 350 g all-purpose flour (W260/280)
- 120 ml milk (cold)
- 1 egg
- 60 g sugar
- 10 g honey
- 50 g butter
- 8 g fine salt
- 120 g chocolate chips
- vanilla
- orange zest
- poolish (all)
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon milk
Tools
- Work Surface
- Thermometer
- Kitchen Scale
- Measuring Cup graduated
Steps
Preparation times depend on many factors and certainly the Thermomix speeds up a lot compared to using the stand mixer.
Dissolve the crumbled yeast in the graduated cup with slightly warm (or room temperature cold) milk, add the flour and a teaspoon of sugar from the total ingredients. Mix and let mature covered at 68-72°F (20-22°C) (find a cool spot in the house if your kitchen is too warm) for about 12-14 hours. It should slightly collapse as in the picture. Calculate the time based on when you want to start the dough in the morning.
The next day, pour the poolish + milk + sugar + honey + egg + vanilla + orange zest into the bowl. 30 sec./speed 4. Add the flour; 3 minutes/speed Kneading.
Add the soft butter through the hole with the Thermomix in Kneading mode for 2 minutes. Finally add the salt through the hole with the Thermomix in Kneading mode/1 min. Check the elasticity of the dough which will not be a true membrane because it is not a butter-rich dough, but serves to check that we have kneaded well and the dough has not heated up. If desired, you can check with the thermometer; the final temperature should be around 75°F (24°C).
Let the dough rise in a greased bowl for 2-3 hours at 78-82°F (26-28°C) covered. (A turned-off oven with the light on might help.) It should triple.
Turn the dough out onto a slightly greased work surface, gently roll out into a rectangle, and distribute the chocolate chips. Fold into a sausage, then into a coil.
Let rest for about twenty minutes and gently form a sausage from which to cut 2.5 oz (70 g) pieces of dough.
Form the balls with a light rounding technique.
Place the balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and, if desired, you can distribute some chocolate chips on the surface of the balls.
Cover with cling film or a tea towel and wait for it to double (about 1 hour).
Preheat the oven to 320°F (160°C) fan-forced with a small bowl of water inside to create steam, gently brush the risen balls, beating the yolk with the milk in a bowl, and bake for about 14 minutes. For static oven bake at 165/170°C (329/338°F) for 15′ (always depends on the oven). Outside the oven let cool completely and store in food bags or freeze.
Tips for a Perfect Result
Do not increase the yeast: the strength of these brioche lies precisely in the poolish, which guarantees softness and digestibility without the need for large quantities of yeast.
Gentle baking: better a light color than a dry brioche. Too aggressive a baking compromises softness over time.
Insert the chips after the first rise: the dough will have already developed its structure and the crumb will be more elastic. If kneading with a stand mixer, you can add them before the first rise as indicated below.
Complete cooling before sealing in the bag: it is essential to avoid condensation and maintain softness.
Stand Mixer Dough:
In the stand mixer bowl, add the poolish with half the milk; give a few turns with the beater, then add the flour, the other milk, the egg, the sugar, and the honey. Add the soft butter and flavors when the dough is nicely supported and not sticking to the sides; if needed, turn over. Salt only at the end. You can decide to add the chips by kneading for a few seconds with the hook and skip step 4 for insertion. Still form the sausage and then proceed with the portions.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
Do they stay soft even the next day?
Yes, if baked correctly and stored in a food bag once cooled, they remain soft for up to 48 hours.
Why are the chips added afterward with the Thermomix?
Because the kneading method is different from the stand mixer, I didn’t want to risk ruining the dough.
