Sometimes called ‘Italian brioche’, it’s the perfect match for almond granita! You can enjoy a Sicilian Brioche for snack or breakfast — same as how Sicilians prefer it!
As promised on my last post (Almond Granita), today I am sharing a recipe for Sicilian Brioche. It does not matter which part of Sicily you ask for a glass of almond granita, they always serve it with this bread – and rightly so.
The Sicilian Brioche is not as buttery as the French one, and it’s slightly sweeter because of the honey added to the dough. But the best part is that there is no need to rest the dough overnight, so you do not need to plan too much in advance to enjoy it. This Sicilian bread recipe is one of the easiest, no-fuss recipe that I have tried. 🙂
If you’re worried that the combination of the Sicilian brioche with the granita is TOO sweet, it is NOT. Since the almond granita is ice cold, the level of sweetness in it is lessened – hence, the slight sweetness coming from the warm brioche puts it back to the right spot. Go ahead, give this combo a try! 😀
- 3/4 cup milk (+2 tbsp for egg wash)
- 2 & 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
- 3 to 4 cups bread flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 5 tbsp sugar
- 2 eggs (+1 for egg wash)
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1/3 cup butter, melted
- icing sugar for serving (optional)
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Warm up the ¾ cup milk and combine with yeast. Set aside until foamy and ready.
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Combine 3 ½ cups of flour, salt and sugar in a mixing bowl. Mix.
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Add yeast mixture, eggs, melted butter and honey into the flour. Mix until the dough becomes smooth, but slightly sticky. If the dough is too wet, slowly add the remaining ½ cup of flour.
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Place ball of dough in a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside until it doubles in size. This normally takes 1 ½ to 2 hours for me.
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Divide dough into 12 pieces and form each piece into a brioche by taking a smaller piece of dough, form it into a ball and place it on top of each bigger ball of dough.
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Place each dough of brioche in a baking pan lined with baking paper. Cover with clean kitchen cloth and set aside for 2 to 3 hours.
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Once the brioche has slightly puffed up, heat up the oven – 180 degrees C (375 degrees F).
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Combine 1 beaten egg with 2 tbsp milk for egg wash and brush each piece of brioche with it.
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Place baking pan in the lower half of the oven for the first 12 minutes and move baking pan in the center for the remaining 7 to 8 minutes.
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Set aside for around 10 minutes to cool. Serve (with sprinkled icing sugar on top, if desired).
Is there a substitute for the honey? I’m allergic to honey… Ordinarily I substitute in molasses, but that seems too heavy for brioche…