Buongiorno amici! I am so excited to share this classic Italian braided brioche recipe with you today! This sweet, fluffy, and delicious breakfast staple is also known as "la treccia," which literally translates to "the braid." For the past two months, I've been baking every day at my local Neapolitan bakery with Luciana, the owner. She has kindly allowed me to share her family's recipes with you! Today is lesson two: La treccia, braided brioche bread.
Psst.. check out Amby's Baking Club! I will be hosting an online class so that you can bring la dolce vita to your kitchen, no matter where you are in the world <3
The origins of this braided brioche recipe:
We are learning from the best! This recipe for la treccia comes from Panificio Maio Salvatore, a historical bread bakery that was opened in the 1930s! Read about how I befriended the owner.
Panificio: pa·ni·fi·chee·oh- an Italian bakery that specializes in bread.
This bakery is located in Posillipo, the affluent hilltop district of Naples, Italy. The original location was opened by Luciana's grandfather near Parco Virgiliano, a beautiful park that actually used to be a part of the Formula 1 Racing track!
After, Luciana's father moved the bakery to where it is today, in a cute little alley about 10 minutes from the original location.
Why have I chosen braided brioche as lesson no. 2?
La treccia is one of the first things that I bought from the forno (another way we call a panificio.) It is also the first thing that Luciana taught me how to bake! This braided brioche recipe is fluffy, sweet, and relatively easy to make.
Making braided brioche from scratch isn't hard, but it does require a little love and patience. This is a great recipe to do on a weekend, when you can be at home and have several free hours.
Before you start making braided brioche:
Recipe for Braided Brioche, La Treccia:
Ingredients:
Flour (A little bit for your surface and hands)
Brioche Dough
Egg wash (1 egg mixed with a splash of water or milk)
Sugar (for sprinkling on top of the braided bread)
Directions:
Ensure that your brioche dough has risen until it is at least double the size. If not, stick it in the oven with a damp towel over the bowl, and turn the oven light on so that the oven can get slightly warm and humid to encourage the yeast to activate and the dough to rise. Make sure that your towel is not too close to the light and does not get hot, we don't want any fires!
Prepare your surface and hands with a bit of flour to prevent the brioche dough from sticking.
Knead the dough with your hands, and then separate the dough into equal parts. Form each part into a little dough ball about 2" in diameter.
Take one dough ball, and roll it into a caterpillar-like shape, about 5" long. Repeat this with two more dough balls, so that you have three caterpillar-like pieces of dough.
Take your three pieces, line them up so that they are vertical and parallel next to each other. Then, place the top ends on top of each other with the bottom ends pointing away from each other, like a fan. Give the top end a little pinch so that the pieces stay attached and don't separate from each other during the braiding process.
Proceed to braid the bread as you would one's hair, starting with the outside piece and moving into center. When you reach the bottom, pinch the ends of the pieces together as you did the top.
Placing your hands on the top and bottom ends of the braided brioche, gently pat the ends, so that the braided brioche is a tiny bit shorter and fatter.
Place the braided brioche on a metal baking sheet, lined with parchment paper. Repeat this process until you have used all of your dough, or use half your dough for this and the other half of your dough for another recipe. Make sure to leave enough space between each treccia on the sheet, as the bread will grow to at least double the size.
directions continued below
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Directions continued:
Place the sheet(s) with the braided brioche in a warm, humid, and draft-free place, such as the oven with the light on. Let the bread rise for 1-2 hours, until is has at least doubled in size. You will know that your bread is fluffy enough and ready to bake when you gently press your finger into the dough, and the imprint of your finger remains in the dough, even after having removed your finger.
If the brioche is ready, remove it from inside your oven, or wherever it was, and place the sheets back on a working surface (counter, stovetop, etc.)
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius, about 356 degrees Farenheit.
Prepare your egg wash. Whisk one egg in a bowl, and add a splash of water or milk. Whisk until combined.
Right before placing the braided brioche into the oven, paint each treccia with egg wash, making sure to cover the whole surface of each piece. Sprinkle each treccia with a bit of sugar, and then place the sheet on the middle rack of the oven.
Bake for about 20 minutes. Oven temperatures can vary, so I recommend checking your braided brioche about 15 minutes in, to see how it's doing. We want our treccia to be nice and golden on the outside, but fluffy and airy on the inside.
Serve warm, and enjoy!
I made braided brioche, now what?
Click below to sign up for Amby's Baking Club! You will be notified when I publish the next recipe, and I'll also be hosting a free live baking class where we can develop our skills as pasticcieres together, If playing with dough, making "Wow!" desserts for your loved ones, and making new friends sounds fun to you, click here to learn more.
Un bacio,
Amby
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