Brioche

[Cerise]

Fouace - bah, dry disgusting and usually offered at all fete type things here without a drink.  Particularly dire if you are hot and thirsty, been dancing, running or other strenuous activity.  Usually made by one of the ladies on the committee and, when you refuse the second bit whilst furtively looking for a your handbag, a pot plant or stray dog in which to conceal slice number one, she will say plaintively "Il n'est pa bon mon fouace?"

[Miki]

[quote user="Mister Fluffy"]Didn't you get the bean, then, old bean?

[/quote]

Nope, a hundred of the things have I been present for and no Fève to date. Mmm, perhaps that is why I don't like them  [:)]

[RumziGal]

[quote user="Missy"][

I mean like the gingercake as in Tate&Lyle Jamaican ginger(bread?)cake not the flat gingerbread man biscuit thing....  [8-)]

[/quote]

This is the sort of thing I mean by gingerbread http://www.bbc.co.uk/shropshire/food/2003/05/gingerbread_recipe.shtml   It is a cake baked in the oven, I've just never heard it called ginger cake, that's all, and thought ginger cake might be something different.

A gingerbread man may be called a gingerbread man, but he isn't actually made of gingerbread.   He's really a gingerbiscuit man.   Just a little vagary of English.

Run, run, as fast as you can

You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man! 

[Patf]

I looked up the recipe for fouace and the ingredients are the same as for brioche ie basic bread plus milk eggs and sugar. Nice enough, but not for a dessert on its own. Pat.

[ChezTinns]

I too am glad that I am not alone in disliking Brioche, but it does make a very good Bread and Butter pud!

[Teamedup]

I don't like that fleur d'oranger that is put in some things. My friend from Valence has given me lots of things over the years with it in and it isn't to my taste at all. I prefer just the taste of plain old orange.

[RumziGal]

People tell me that you simply MUST put fleur d'oranger in your crêpe mixture.   I find that it doesn't make the slightest bit of difference. but I realise that French palates are much more sensitive than mine, and where I would put a load of, say, cumin seeds in something, they will detect the cumin if you just waved a single grain above the pan while you're cooking.

 

[Cassis]

Jude makes a super delicious apricot brioche tart.  Definitely a 10/10 recipe from Mary Berry.  Delicious day 1, unbelievably good day 2-3.

[Loiseau]

[quote user="Jon"]...went back to making it by hand or buying from our village baker who really knows what he is doing. As with so many things, if it is made properly from the right things (fresh eggs and good butter) it is a fine and wonderful thing, but made from cheap substitutes (palm oil, soya protein, emulsifiers and pasturised eggs), it is vile.

As far as stale brioche is concerned, however, it can form the base for a bread & butter pudding ne plus ultra.

[/quote]

 

But you and I, Jon, know *Vendée* brioche, which is another animal entirely from what these poor deprived souls are talking about!

A quick surf has turned up a not very good pic here http://aubergedelices.canalblog.com/archives/2006/11/11/2949129.html
It's light, fluffy, rises impossibly high, is usually plaited, with a shiny top, and is flavoured with rum or orange-flower water. It's an integral part of any Vendee gathering - especially weddings, where it is hideously impolite for guests to leave until the coffee and brioche at midnight.

Every Vendean boulanger worth his salt has his own version of it.  Mmmm, the one in Aizenay is my favourite!
I can fully imagine that a version made in a bread machine would be disgusting!

I suspect the rest of you are having to put up with something that resembles a dry Victoria sponge?  When I lived in Paris, that was the only brioche I had ever come across.  But now I know better.

And it does make excellent bread-and-butter pud when stale - in the unlikely event of any being left over...

Angela 

[samdebretagne]

I admit that I haven't read through all three pages of posts, but I make a fairly decent bread machine brioche 2-3 times a month, and MOH (who's French) eats it right up.  Granted, it's not as heavy as a regular brioche, but it is quite nice fresh, or even toasted with a bit of butter and jam.

[Mistral]

I've never tried bread machine brioche. I quite like brioche from time to time actually (about twice a year) But I like it sliced, toasted and buttered. I've sometimes had it for goûter at other people's houses and then you get a big chunk with no butter. I agree with TU, it's not fun to eat that way.

Down in Provence the traditional "galette" des rois is the brioche ring with fruits confits in. The brioche itself is generally quite dry and I'm not too keen on big chunks of fruit confit. I like the proper frangipane galette when it's got proper frangipane in it and not a sort of ground nut mix.

A brief comment on Christmas pudding. My grandfather ate it with gravy. Apparently a Suffolk tradition.

[RumziGal]

I agree, Mistral, that Provencal ring-shaped galette is like eating cardboard.  

And what exactly is that fruits confits?   It's too sweet for me, and the colours are really quite alarming.  Most definitely not natural!

But I love the frangipane ones, although the ones you buy in the shops can be pretty dire.   I made one here in Englandshire last Saturday for a bunch of people, and it went down EXTREMELY well!   

 

[Clair]

Despite the comments made in previous posts, I'll stick my neck out and post the Brioche in bread machine recipe I use...! Do try it...[:D]

• 1 sachet of fast acting yeast (Briochin in France, not traditional, not de boulanger)
• 500g T45 flour (that's cake making flour, not bread flour)
• 75g castor sugar (sucre cristallisé)
• 1 sachet vanilla sugar (sucre vanillé) or ¼ tsp vanilla extract (not essence, yuk [+o(])
• 60g diced butter
• 1tsp salt (keep away from sugar and yeast in the mixing bowl)
• 2 large eggs / 3 medium, beaten in a measuring jug
• 1tbsp orange flower water (eau de fleur d'oranger) (can be replaced with same of rhum) mixed with the beaten eggs
• enough cold milk to bring top the egg mix in the jug to 340ml

The liquid must not exceed 340ml in total.

Bake as a basic white loaf, light crust (as the sugar will brown the top), XLG size. The brioche will rise a lot.

Delicious on day 1, very nice on day 2, toast, if any left, on day 3...[:P]

[ali-cat]

I bought my first ring shaped, Brioche looking thing just before Xmas.  Had one bite & tossed it in the bin!!  Auchan do a beautiful fruit ring - which even Mark loves (& he hasn't got a sweet tooth in his head!!)

Now, Cognac cake - I could eat it all day!!  [:D]

[Suze01]

Thanks for that - will try that, I do like brioche.

[Mistral]

[quote user="RumziGal"]

And what exactly is that fruits confits?   It's too sweet for me, and the colours are really quite alarming.  Most definitely not natural!

[/quote]

Yes, then people go on about the unnatural colours of jelly, telling you the french would never do anything  like that

[samdebretagne]

I admit I didn't read through this whole thread (there's something about reading through three pages of posts on brioche that doesn't appeal to me...*S*), but here's my recipe for bread machine brioche:

1/3 c milk

3 eggs

1/4 c butter, cut into pieces

3 1/3 c flour

3 T sugar

3/4 tsp salt

1 pkg yeast

Put all of it in in the order suggested by your bread machine.  Once the machine has gone through the rising processes, and starts baking, mix together 1 beaten egg and 1 T sugar and brush gently over the top of the loaf.