Citrusy Kougelhopf, Traditional Brioche Bread From Alsace-France

I always like making (and eating) kougelhopf. But, I never really made it using both poolish and leaven all together. It was always much more simpler recipe with much shorter time in process. When I found Robertson's book also has a recipe for kougelhopf, I just have to try it. Anyway, if you have been making kougelhopf before, you might want to try this recipe, and compare the result. For me, I found it   quite amazing how delicious, buttery, and rich  this is compare to the one I have been making before. So, if time permit, I definitely will make it again using this recipe. 

Note: Robertson's recipe uses combination of dried currants, dried apricots, and pistachios.

Kougelhopf, Traditional Brioche Bread From Alsace - France
Recipe adapted from Chad Robertson's Tartine Bread Book
makes 1

Leaven:
1 tbs mature starter
110 g all-purposed flour
110 g water  (80℉)

* mix all ingredients for leaven in a bowl. Ferment at room temperature for 12 - 14 hours, or refrigerate overnight.

Poolish:
100 g all-purposed flour
100 g water (75℉)
1.5 g active dry yeast

* mix all ingredients for poolish in a bowl. Ferment at room temperature for 3 - 4 hours, or refrigerate overnight.

The kougelhopf dough:
1 cup grappa
1½ cups chopped glazed Buddha's hand citrus (see note above)
225 unsalted butter, cut into pieces
500 g bread flour
12.5 g salt
60 g sugar
5 g active dry yeast
250 g eggs
120 g whole milk
150 g leaven
200 g poolish
Zest of 1 large orange
1 tbs orange blossom water
12 whole almonds, to put inside the mold

A day  prior to make kougelhopf, soak glazed citrus with grappa. Drain, and reserve the soaking liquid.

3o minutes prior to mix the dough, take butter out from refrigerator, and leave it at room temperature to soften.

Add bread flour, salt, sugar, yeast into electric mixer bowl, mix with wooden spoon.  Add eggs, milk, leaven, poolish, orange zest, and orange blossom water. Using a dough hook attachment, knead for about 3 to 5 minutes. Turn off the mixer, scrape the side of the bowl with rubber spatula, cover with clean kitchen towel, and let rest for 15 - 20 minutes.

After the dough rested for 15-20 minutes, knead the dough on a low speed for 2 minutes. Increase the speed to speed #2, continue to knead until the dough is no longer stick to the side of the bowl, about 8 minutes. Add butter, a piece at a time, mixing it well before adding the next,  until all butter has been use up. Continue to knead until the dough is smooth, and silky. Add drained glazed citrus, knead just enough to incorporate the ingredients, about 1 minute.

Transfer the dough into a clean bowl, cover, and ferment for 2 hours with one fold every hour.

Turn the dough out onto clean kitchen counter, shape into round.

Brush generously kougelhopf mold with butter. Place almond in each top crease around the crown.

Make a hole in the center of round shape dough, place the dough inside the mold with seam side up. Cover the bowl with clean kitchen towel, let rest at warm draft-free room temperature, for 1½ to 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 425℉. Bake kougelhopf until golden brown for 35 to 40 minutes. Unmold onto wire rack, immediately brush kougelhopf lightly with reserve grappa. Cool completely. Once cooled, dust with confectioner's sugar if desire.

For YeastSpotting.