Honey Brioche

“Qu’ils mangent de la brioche” – Queen Marie-Antoinette

With all the stress of studying for exams, it sometimes gets difficult to remember to take care of the basic life necessities. Despite my 18+ years of exam taking, I have not become immune to these effects. In fact, a week ago noticed that I was starting to sleep less, I was ignoring my twitching muscles that were trying to every-so-politely trying to tell me to haul my butt to the gym, and, worst of all, I was forgetting meals. It pains me to admit that to myself. I mean, I’m supposed to be a foodie, and what self-respecting foodie ever misses a meal?! Upon coming to this realization, I immediately bought a ticket home. The simple fact is I wasn’t taking care of myself, but I was going to find someone who could…and who better to take care of you than your parents? So last Saturday I boarded a bus and headed home to continue the relentless studying, but this time, in the presence of two incredibly accommodating parental figures. They made sure I ate my meals, left me alone during study time, and then dragged me up from the basement (which I have now lovingly started referring to as my “study dungeon”) to spend an hour or two in the presence of “real people” and watch a movie. At times it felt pretty pathetic that I had reached the point of not even being able to make my own breakfast, but that was quickly forgotten when my mom would present me with my incredible omelet breakfasts, complete with freshly squeezed grapefruit and orange juice. My concerns were pushed even further from my mind when I got to eat my dad’s world famous (at least in my world) pizza. With this relaxing…well maybe relaxing isn’t the right word…rejuvenating week behind me, I thought it would be appropriate to share another one of my parents’ edible creations. This week’s recipe is my mother’s take on a Brioche. A brioche is a French pastry-like bread, that is sometimes baked with fruit or chocolate and can be served as a breakfast or dessert.  Traditionally, a brioche is sweetened with sugar, but my mother, being who she is, has come up with a much healthier version of this tasty treat, and managed to include her favorite ingredient – honey.

Just a warning – this recipe is a bread machine recipe. I realize not everyone has easy access to one of these, but I’ve got an easy fix for that! Drag yourself over to the nearest thrift store, and I can all but guarantee that you will find one for less than $10. It’s a worthwhile investment if for no other reason than there is no better way to make your house/apartment/dorm room/etc. smell absolutely delicious than by baking a fresh loaf of bread.

Okay…now on to the good stuff.

What you need:

• 3 eggs
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1/3 cup warm milk (heat in the microwave for 10-15 sec)
• 2 1/2 tbs warm water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• ¼ cup honey (the more honey you add, the spongier the bread)
• 3 cups flour
• 1 ½ tsp yeast

What you need to do:

1. Add the ingredients to the bread machine in the order listed above except for the yeast.
2. Once you’ve added the flour, make a small indentation in the flour pile and add the yeast.
3. Set the machine to “white bread” cycle for 3.5 hours at medium crust.
4. Once it’s finished baking, immediately remove from the bread machine and allow to cool on a baking rack.
5. Enjoy! (I recommend toasting it and adding some tasty sunflower butter)

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