The aroma of this brioche while you make, bake and eat it is intoxicating — warm orange and sweet cinnamon that conjure summer evenings in Morocco. Fresh from the oven it’s hard to resist; the crumb is fragrant and tender and the flavour can feel mildly addictive.

I discovered this recipe by chance after connecting with Carla Tomasi on Twitter. Carla is a former chef and restaurateur with a generous spirit, and she kindly shared this brioche recipe that she learned from a Swede living in Spain. It’s a wonderful international loaf and rightly popular among her friends.

This brioche is delightful sliced on its own, smeared with butter, or lightly toasted. Unlike many brioche recipes that are very high in butter, this version uses a moderate amount, making it a little less rich while still wonderfully soft and flavourful.

Want to bake and taste this orange-cinnamon brioche? Read on for the full recipe.

The quantities below yield about 2 kg of dough, enough for two 1 kg loaf tins or three slightly smaller loaves. If you want equal loaves, weigh the divided dough rather than eyeballing it. Line your loaf tins with greaseproof paper or use loaf liners.

A stand mixer with a dough hook makes the process easier, but you can knead this by hand if needed. You’ll need a large bowl for proving and a sheet of oiled cling film or an oiled plastic bag to cover the dough so it doesn’t dry out. Preheat your oven to 180°C and avoid using a fan oven, as the sugar content can brown the crust before the centre is fully cooked.

Ingredients:

For the dough

Either use:
25 g dried yeast
1 tsp sugar
60 g warm water — mix these and wait until the yeast froths (about 15 minutes)

Or use:
2 sachets easy-bake yeast — add the 60 g warm water to the orange juice below

250 g tepid full-fat milk

250 g fresh orange juice (about 5 oranges) or a smooth carton juice

100 g sugar (granulated or brown caster for a deeper colour)

50 g unsalted butter, softened

110 g eggs, beaten (about 2 eggs)

Grated zest of 1 orange

1.2 kg strong white bread flour

For the cinnamon sugar filling

120 g sugar (granulated or brown caster)
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
50 g unsalted butter, melted

Method

This brioche is easiest with a stand mixer and dough hook; by hand requires more kneading effort. In the mixer bowl (or a large mixing bowl) combine the milk, orange juice and zest, sugar, softened butter and beaten eggs. Add 400 g of the flour and mix until combined — a paddle attachment can be used at this stage.

Add the activated yeast and another 400 g of flour and mix. Switch to the dough hook if you have one, and gradually add the remaining flour, ensuring each addition is fully incorporated before adding more. Stop adding flour once the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Knead until the dough becomes silky and elastic and springs back when pressed. A good test is to stretch a small piece into a thin translucent “window” without tearing; if it tears, knead longer. With a machine this can take around 12 minutes at a slow speed and then 5 minutes faster; by hand it will take considerably longer.

Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough inside, cover with oiled cling film or an oiled plastic bag, and leave to rise in a warm spot until roughly doubled in size — about 45 minutes or longer depending on room temperature.

Divide the risen dough into two or more pieces, handling gently. Flatten each piece into a rectangle: the short side should be slightly shorter than your loaf tin length, the long side about one-and-a-half times that length.

Mix the sugar and cinnamon together. Brush each rectangle with melted butter, then sprinkle an even layer of the cinnamon sugar. Starting from the short side, roll the dough up tightly and place it seam-side down in the lined loaf tin. Cover with oiled plastic and let rise again in a warm place until doubled — roughly 30 minutes, depending on temperature.

Repeat with remaining pieces. When fully risen, bake in the preheated oven at 180°C for about 35 minutes until golden brown. For an evenly cooked loaf, remove the brioche from the tin partway through or after initial baking, turn it upside down and bake for another 5 minutes until the loaf feels firm all over.

Once baked, transfer the brioche to a cooling rack and allow it to cool thoroughly so the crumb sets before slicing. Brioche freezes very well — slice or halve large loaves, wrap tightly and bag before freezing to preserve freshness.

Enjoy this fragrant orange and cinnamon brioche. Grazie mille, Carla — buon appetito!