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Lemon-Poppyseed Mini-Brioches (with a couple of healthy tweaks)
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by Jeff, May 5, 2009
Filed Under Recipes | 34 Comments
On Mondays, it’s my turn to pick up my oldest daughter from school, and then stop for tea and treats before her guitar lesson. We’ve been doing this for six years, and I think I love the tradition as much as she does. Our downtown coffee shop has great coffee and tea, but the baked goods leave a lot to be desired, especially by the time we roll in at 4:00pm. There’s one exception– they have a lemon-poppyseed pound cake that is just terrific (or it would be, if it were fresh!). I wondered if we could adapt the brioche from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day to the bright fresh flavor of lemon and the crunchy texture of poppyseed, topped with a simple glaze. They baked up perfectly in cupcake tins so if you’re inclined to call these cupcakes, go right ahead. And I snuck in two healthy tweaks to the recipe: canola oil instead of butter, and even a little whole grain. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. The dough you’ll use is based on our brioche recipe, with some simple changes. With the liquid ingredients, add the following…
1 teaspoon lemon extract
1 teaspoon lemon juice
I substituted canola oil for butter today, and I got away with it because I knew I’d be doing these in cupcake tins. This kind of simple swap would not have worked well for free-form loaves, because of sideways spreading that you get with this much liquid shortenings (eg., canola oil). There are some tricks for using liquid shortenings (which are healthier), but those are going to be in our second book 
.
… and then make some changes in the dry ingredients…
1. Add the zest from 1 lemon, scraped off with a microzester (try not to include much of the bitter white pith, just the yellow part).
2. Substitute 3/4 cup of white whole wheat flour for 3/4 cup of the white unbleached all-purpose flour called for in the recipe. Given this amount of whole grain, and the fact that liquid shortenings yield looser doughs, means that you don’t need to make any changes in the proportion of liquid to dry ingredients.
3. Add 1 tablespoon poppy seeds.
Because of all this liquid shortening, the result will be a very wet and loose dough, that will not work as a free-form loaf, so don’t try it!
Allow to rest/rise for 2 hours, then into the fridge for up to five days (freeze after that); chilling this dough makes it much easier to handle. Briefly shape golf-ball sized balls and place in a non-stick muffin tin. I didn’t grease the non-stick surface but you probably should if you’re using a traditional muffin tin. I covered loosely with plastic and rested for about an hour (these were small and the dough had been made that day).
Bake for about 25 minutes at 350 degrees F., being careful not to overbake. Eggy doughs like this one can get tough and dry if you overdo it.
Pop out of the pan, cool completely, and brush with a simple glaze. The Glaze: Mix 1 1/2 teaspoons confectioners sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons milk, and 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract.
Now sprinkle with poppyseeds:
Enjoy!
Comments
Renato said...
May 5, 2009 at 4:57 pm
Beautiful.
Great idea. I’ll test it.
Thanks
Janice said...
May 5, 2009 at 7:04 pm
I’m making these next!
Ramya said...
May 6, 2009 at 2:22 am
Wow, they look very pretty!
Happy Cook said...
May 6, 2009 at 7:04 am
Wow they have puffed up so good and looks so yumm.
I just made the peasan european bread from you book today and it is in my kitchen couter cooking. And it looks beautiful if i may say so myself
Coffee and Vanilla said...
May 6, 2009 at 7:15 am
They look very yummy
I just made Orange Poppy Seed Cake with Cranberries few days ago 
Kristy said...
May 6, 2009 at 7:33 am
Hello,
I have been eating egg white omelets lately and have 6 egg yolks in the fridge. Can I use these in the Brioche recipe? It calls for 8 eggs, how would I substitute for the missing egg whites?
Thank you,
Nina said...
May 6, 2009 at 10:00 am
How much dough did you use for the 12 “cupcakes”? I want to know because of the lemon zest, extract and poppy seeds.
Did you add these to the entire recipe and then just use each time the amount needed for one batch?
The Food Hunter said...
May 6, 2009 at 10:48 am
I know you said this wouldn’t work in a free form loaf but could you have used a loaf pan?
jeff said...
May 6, 2009 at 11:55 am
Kristy: Try your yolks, plus just a little water. Quarter-cup? May take some trial and error.
Nina: The amounts I made were for the full brioche recipe, of which about 2/3’s were used for the 12 of them.
Food: Loaf pan should be great, it won’t spread.
MommaBlogger said...
May 6, 2009 at 1:51 pm
These look amazing, and would make an interesting surprise for someone thinking they’re getting a muffin
Janice said...
May 6, 2009 at 2:31 pm
Is there a substitute for lemon extract? I have plenty of lemons on the tree and would rather use those if possible. Thanks!
MommaBlogger said...
May 6, 2009 at 3:20 pm
Is “white whole wheat” necessary or will regular whole wheat suffice?
Also, is there a way to use wheat germ with any of your recipes, including this one?
zoe said...
May 6, 2009 at 8:45 pm
Hi Janice,
You can use a 1/4 teaspoon of very fine lemon zest to give you that same flavor. Or you can replace the milk with lemon juice.
Hi MommaBlogger,
You can use whole wheat flour instead. We have lots of whole grain recipes in our new book and many of those use wheat germ as well.
Thanks, Zoë
MommaBlogger said...
May 7, 2009 at 10:21 am
I can’t wait to see what you have in the new book, especially with the wheat germ
I just finished making a variation of your Lemon Poppyseed Brioche, combining the dough with the recipe for the Bostock, and I’ve got it up now here:
http://homemakersguidetothegalaxy.blogspot.com/2009/05/lemon-poppyseed-almond-brioche-bostock.html
And here:
http://homemakersguidetothegalaxy.blogspot.com/2009/05/lemon.html
Hanneke said...
May 7, 2009 at 11:27 pm
hi, I think they will taste lovely, must definitely try it this weekend. Saw your tweet about the new book, I already pre-ordered it at amazon! it will be published in october….can’t wait…
bye!!
CJ said...
May 8, 2009 at 7:46 am
Good morning Jeff and Zoe! My mum has requested these for Mother’s day so I have a quick question. In the absence of non-stick muffin tins, would you recommend using muffin papers or just greasing the pan really well?
Thanks so much for everything you do. I love telling friends – and sometimes complete strangers – about your book and how it has revolutionized our approach to bread. And I can’t wait for the new book to come out. Congratulations on that, but the way.
CJ
jeff said...
May 8, 2009 at 9:14 am
Thanks Hanneke!
CJ: Should be able to just grease it well– it’s already a pretty “short” dough so it won’t stick. Thanks for the kind words!
aprendizdepanadera said...
May 8, 2009 at 9:59 am
These Lemon-Poppyseed Mini-Brioches seem really lovely.
I must confess my addiction to your Bread in 5 minutes. Since I discovered it, I only prepare it. Thank you for all the information given here.
Regards from Spain.
Aprendiz de panadera
aprendizdepanadera.blogspot.com
Carrie said...
May 8, 2009 at 7:47 pm
Zoe and Jeff, since you’re here in Minnesota have you tried the Rasperry Fritter bread at Nelson Brother’s bakery in Clearwater? I would love to use the methods in the book to create something similar. Any ideas?
Thanks!
zoe said...
May 8, 2009 at 7:51 pm
Hi Carrie,
I’ve never heard of Nelson brother’s bakery, but I’m really wishing I could have some of the raspberry fritter bread!
Thanks, Zoë
Eileen said...
May 10, 2009 at 7:22 pm
I made the dough tonight following the brioche recipe using the butter, the 3/4 cup white whole wheat flour switch, the lemon zest, juice, extract and poppyseeds. It rose nicely and is now in fridge until I can bake tomorrow after work. I wonder if Food Hunter made the loaves? I would like to do that. What do you suggest for baking temp/time? BTW – I have pre-ordered the new book. Looks like you have another best seller on your hands! Thanks so much!
jeff said...
May 11, 2009 at 8:07 am
Thanks Eileen! Didn’t hear back from FH, but I’m sure it would work well. Try 30 to 35 minutes at 350F.
CJ said...
May 11, 2009 at 5:08 pm
Hi Jeff & Zoe! I made the lemon brioche this weekend and it was lovely. Guess what – I have another question.
I’m not going to go through all the rest of the dough right away so I need to figure out the best way to not waste it. Freezing is obviously an option. I’ve got company coming in two weeks and wondered if this dough would be suitable for par-baking, to save some time on a lazy Saturday morning. But the richness and high egg content made me a little nervous to try.
What do you think?
zoe said...
May 11, 2009 at 9:15 pm
Hi CJ,
I think it would work well, especially if you were baking them as buns.
Just allow the frozen bread to sit at room temperature, still wrapped for about 15 minutes, while the oven preheats. Place the bread in the 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes (for buns), longer for loaves.
Enjoy, Zoë
CJ said...
May 12, 2009 at 7:26 am
Thank you Zoe! It looks like it is going to be a rainy day – what better way to brighten it up than with lemon brioche.
Hope you’re enjoying sunshine in the cities.
CJ
jeff said...
May 12, 2009 at 10:43 am
There is no better way to brighten the day than with homemade bread!
Ms Gypsy said...
May 24, 2009 at 8:26 am
I’m another person who has become addicted to this kind of bread baking! I have completely retired my bread machine and my Kitchenaid sometimes looks at me sadly. I have a potluck to attend today and this will definitely be on menu! I will probably make it in a loaf pan, but no matter how I make it I know it’ll be good.
jeff said...
May 24, 2009 at 8:54 am
Thanks MG! Keep on baking!
christina said...
June 11, 2009 at 10:40 am
love the idea for par baking muffins. Would you freeze the ones CJ is talking about in the muffin tin or would you take them out and then put them back in to finish the baking?
jeff said...
June 11, 2009 at 6:49 pm
Christina: Par baking could work for just about anything, but the smaller the loaf (like a muffin), the more it might suffer from freezing. Worth a try though. Jeff
Magali said...
November 3, 2009 at 5:54 am
These look amazing!! Thank you so much for keeping your website so fresh and inspirational.
ivy said...
February 3, 2010 at 9:34 pm
Hmmm… keep the butter. It’s a healthy, natural fat. Canola oil is not.
jeff said...
February 4, 2010 at 12:42 pm
Sorry Ivy, I’m not convinced. Canola has taken some bashing on the web, but the material being quoted is not scientific evidence. Jeff
Claudia Lima said...
May 5, 2009 at 4:41 pm
♪♪ This is heaven! ♪♪
I loved! ♥