Blueberry & Lemon Brioche

Following the success of the previous batch of brioche baked at the weekend, it was time to start experimenting.  My daughter, Maya, is totally obsessed with brioche of any sort and I thought this would be a tasty alternative to the chocolate variety she loves!  And... they were a great hit, both mummy and Maya very pleased with the result of these tasty lemon and blueberry treats.  I think the filling of the blueberries would work equally as well in the Swirly Chocolate Buns which I made earlier in the year.

A touch of lemon drizzle was added to half of these but some I left with just the dusting of icing sugar.  So pretty. 

In the action!

Ingredients

750g plain flour

140g butter at room temperature

7g pack yeast

40ml warm water

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

330g light brown sugar (divided into 2 batches)

250ml warm milk 

3 eggs

3 tablespoons golden or maple syrup

1 teaspoon salt

250g fresh blueberries

zest of 2 lemons

a few drops of sunflower oil

(Optional Lemon drizzle)

Icing sugar 50g

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Icing sugar for dusting (optional)

1) Using a large bowl, add the yeast, granulated sugar and warm water.  Leave for 10-15 minutes until dissolved.

2) Add half of the brown sugar, desired syrup, eggs and the milk.  Mix well.

3)  Add the flour and salt to the mixture.

4) Knead until smooth.  Lightly grease a bowl with the sunflower oil and add the ball of dough.  Wrap clingfilm over the bowl and leave to rise for 1-2 hours, until doubled in size.

5) Roll out the dough into a large rectangle (30x40cm approx)

6) Sprinkle with lemon zest, sugar and blueberries and very tightly roll.

7)  Cut into approximately 12-16 slices and insert into the muffin pan.  These will expand so don't overfill them!  Leave to rest for 30 minutes

8) Preheat the oven to 175C.

9) Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden brown and well risen.

10) Leave to cool

11) Mix icing sugar with fresh lemon juice and drizzle over the top of the brioche or dust with icing sugar.