Homespun Things...Gluten Free Brioche...

 

Chefs Table...do you watch it? Does it inspire you?

 

I watch very little television, and I'm choosy about what I do watch.

 

We subscribed to Netflix about a year ago, mainly for the movies. 

 

But one series that absolutely captured my imagination was Chefs Table.

 

Watching Chefs Table, for me, is like being plunged into sensory overload...without the sensory overload if you get my drift. The vision is overload enough. Goodness knows, if we had Smell-a-Vision, or Taste-a-Vision, I might never leave the couch!

 

The most recent series focuses on desserts and pastries. Most of the dishes are beyond my wildest dreams of my own capabilities. But there were half a dozen things that so fired up my imagination, that I will not rest until I've tried recreating them all.

 

The first one was the Sicilian breakfast of Granita and Brioche.

 

Chef Corrado Assenza, whose family have run the Café Sicilia in Noto, Sicily for four generations, purportedly make the best Granita in the world. It's served as breakfast there due to the sweltering Summer temperatures, and apparently the locals only disagree on one thing. Whether the Almond or the Lemon, is the more superior. Almond fans never order the Lemon, and Lemon fans scorn the Almond version. As Sicily is famous for their Almonds and Lemons, it's not difficult to imagine that both would be amazing.

 

Now it needs to be said that whilst I'm not necessarily an ice cream fan, I do adore Granita and it's such a simple thing to make. Brioche is something I've always loved, but it's never really been on my radar to make my own until I found this recipe...

 

Gluten free Brioche Recipe

 

So with an afternoon to spare yesterday, I was on a mission.

 

As instructed in the recipe, I mixed the ingredients into a pliable dough, added slices of butter and huge organic free range eggs, and waited for the magic to happen.

 

After the required two hours, it seemed like NOTHING was happening.

 

So, I did a bit of an internet search, and discovered that due to the egg and butter content, Brioche (especially gluten-free Brioche), can be slow to rise.

 

I let it sit for a further two hours and was rewarded with a gluten free dough, at least double in size of the original.

Before rising

 

After rising

 I piled it into my loaf pan...

 

...smoothed the top...

 

...and let it rise for a further 45 minutes.

 

I know. It's sounding like a long drawn out process isn't it? But yeast cookery is always like that, and meanwhile my home was scented with butter and vanilla and yeast, and I pottered about planting herbs and things while the yeast worked it's magic.

 

Finally the egg wash was applied, and my baby was put to bed in the oven...

And a short 30 minutes later...look!

 

Glorious, glossy, golden, egg-enriched, yeasty Brioche!

 

A thing of beauty!

 

The final test...to cut it and do a taste test...

 

...yep....looks right...

...tastes sublime!

 

Success!

 

We ate it for dessert with Home Made Almond Raspberry Granita...

 

 

Imagine the warm buttery, egg-y, richly scented soft and warm Brioche, paired with the icy, crunchy, delicately flavoured Granita.

 

It's a new kind of heaven, I tell you.

 

I'll share the recipe for the Granita tomorrow.

 

Meanwhile...get your own Brioche happening. It's worth every single moment!

 

Go on. You can do it.

 

....Mimi...