Chocolate & Hazelnut Brioche Swirls

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Is there anything more mouthwatering than freshly baked pastries? Add chocolate and nuts, and it just might be the perfect breakfast or snack!

These chocolate and hazelnut brioche swirls are soft, sweet, and delicious, and as a bonus, look as pretty as a picture.

These pastries may look complicated, but they are so simple, and if you make them over two days, they do not require very much effort.

What is brioche?

Brioche is an enriched yeasted bread which originated, like so many delicious pastries and breads, in France. The addition of eggs and butter to the dough gives it a rich and soft texture.

Brioche is perfect for sweet breads and pastries, but it also works well for savoury meals, particularly when used as a burger bun.

What is in it?

Flour: A strong white flour works best. Strong flour has a higher gluten content, and this helps with the structure of breads.

Yeast: I usually work with quick-action dried yeast. This means that you can add the yeast to the rest of the ingredients straight away without waiting. If you decide to use fresh yeast, make sure that you double the amount needed.

Eggs: Always use the best eggs that you can afford. There really is no comparison when you compare the flavour of an organic egg to that of a cheap battery farm egg.

Chocolate spread: You can use a brand like Nutella for these; however, most shops have their own brand of chocolate hazelnut spread, which does very well for cooking purposes. And if you want to make a nut-free version, there are other chocolate spread options available.

How to make chocolate and hazelnut brioche swirls:

While there are a few steps to making these delicious pastries, none of the steps are very complicated.

Firstly, make the dough. Mix together the ingredients and knead well. This can either be done by hand or using a stand mixer. A stand mixer definitely takes the hard work out of it!

Rest the dough overnight in the fridge. If you want to skip this step, cover the dough and allow it to rise in a warm environment for an hour and a half or until doubled in size.

The next day, roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface. This is much easier if the dough has been refrigerated. You want to roll it out so that it measures approximately 60cm by 35cm.

Spread the chocolate spread on 2/3, and sprinkle with the remaining filling ingredients.

Fold the dough in a book fold and place it in the fridge to chill.

Cut the pastry into thin strips and roll up.

After resting, brush with an egg wash and bake.

Tips for success:

Chill the dough overnight. This gives more depth of flavour to the final pastry.

Again, chill the dough after filling and folding. This makes handling much easier and helps the dough keep its shape.

With all that chocolate, it can get a bit messy, so it's a good idea to roll out and fill on greaseproof paper. This makes moving the dough easier, too.

Use an egg wash to seal the ends of the pastry when you have made the swirls. This stops it from unravelling.

Store the pastries in an airtight container for up to a week.

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Chocolate & Hazelnut Brioche Swirls

Ingredients:

450g strong white flour

1tsp salt

60g granulated sugar

7g dried yeast

100ml milk - slightly warmed

4 eggs

1tsp vanilla extract

185g softened butter

Filling:

300g chocolate hazelnut spread

50g chopped hazelnuts

50g dark chocolate chips

1 egg mixed with 1tbsp cold water for egg wash

Icing sugar to decorate

Method:

• In a large mixing bowl, place the milk, yeast, flour, salt, sugar, and vanilla. Mix to combine.

• Add all of the eggs and begin to knead, either by hand or using a stand mixer, for 5 minutes.

• Add the butter in, a piece at a time, and continue to knead for a further 5 minutes if using a machine or 8-10 minutes by hand.

• Cover the dough and allow it to proof in the fridge overnight.

• The next day, preheat the oven to 180°C/356°F.

• Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface and roll out so that the dough measures approximately 60cm x 35cm.

• Melt the chocolate spread in the microwave for 30 seconds until slightly runny. Spread it onto the dough, covering 2/3. Sprinkle evenly with the hazelnuts and chocolate chips.

• Fold the dough by bringing the shorter end, without chocolate, over 1/3, fold the opposite short side over that so that you end up with 3 layers with chocolate in between each layer. This is called a book fold.

• Transfer to a baking sheet and place in the fridge for an hour to firm up.

• Remove from the fridge and roll the dough out to measure 20" x 10". Cut into strips of 1".

• Roll each strip of dough up and seal the ends with the egg wash.

• Place on a lined baking sheet 2cm apart. Press each pastry down slightly, either by hand or using a flour-dusted glass. Cover and allow to rise for 30 minutes.

• Brush each pastry with the egg wash and bake for 18 minutes.

• Allow to cool completely and dust with icing sugar.