Breadmaker Lemon and Almond Brioche

No doubt I should be far more authentic and homely and do my own proving and kneading without the aid of a machine. Well I do sometimes, but I really like my breadmaker. This recipe is a simple extension of the basic brioche loaf recipe provided with the machine but I’ve added ground almonds and flavoured it with lemon and vanilla in line with some brioche that I’ve seen on sale in France.

I use a Panasonic breadmaker for this recipe, but for most other machines the liquid will need to go in first. I really like vanilla bean paste, but extract will do fine instead.

1 tsp dried, fast action yeast
Brioche400 g strong white bread flour
50 g ground almonds
Zest of 1 lemon
3 tbsp sugar (golden caster sugar works well)
1 tsp salt
½ tsp (or thereabouts) vanilla bean paste
100 g softened, unsalted butter
3 medium eggs, lightly beaten
150 ml milk

Ideally, the ingredients should be at room temperature. Add the ingredients in the order stated and bake with the following settings:

“Basic” bake
“Medium” size
“Light” crust

Couldn’t be easier, really.

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