Cocoa brioche, very soft and indulgent thanks to the cocoa and the presence of plenty of dark and white chocolate chips. The preparation is a bit long because of the rising times, but the result will repay you for the wait. They will delight adults and children 😋
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Inexpensive
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
COCOA BRIOCHE
- 4 cups Manitoba flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3/4 cup milk (about 200 ml)
- 4 tsp fresh yeast
- 1 egg (medium size)
- 3 1/2 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp salt
- orange zest
- to taste white chocolate chips
- to taste dark chocolate chips
Steps
To prepare these delicious cocoa brioches, first take the butter out of the refrigerator about an hour beforehand so it can soften.
Dissolve the yeast in the milk.
In a large bowl pour the flour, sugar, cocoa, the egg, the honey, the salt and the orange zest. Start mixing with a fork to combine the liquids with the dry ingredients, then transfer the dough to a work surface and continue kneading by hand. When the dough is free of lumps, incorporate the softened butter little by little. Kneading by hand or with a stand mixer will take a few minutes; add the butter gradually so the dough becomes smooth and well developed.
Spread the resulting dough on the work surface and add the white and dark chocolate chips. Fold each corner of the dough toward the center and add more chips as soon as you notice any piece of dough without them.
Form a ball and let it rise covered with plastic wrap until doubled in volume in a switched-off oven with the oven light on.
Once risen, divide the dough into more or less equal portions of about 3 oz (around 80 g) each.
Roll out each piece into a rectangle, then roll it up and finally shape it into a ball. These three steps will give the dough structure so it will rise upward.
Place the brioches to proof in a baking pan previously buttered and floured, or lined with parchment paper.Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled.
After the second rise, bake at 320°F for about 30–40 minutes using convection (fan) mode on the middle rack of the oven.
Once you remove the cocoa brioche from the oven you can brush the still-warm surface with milk or melted butter. Then, when cooled, dust with powdered sugar.
