Vegan Brioche Loaf

Step 1

Grease a large loaf tin or two small loaf tins with some olive oil.

Step 2

In a medium bowl, mix the salt, yeast and all purpose flour.

Step 3

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the soy milk, aquafaba and sugar until smooth.

Step 4

Add the all purpose flour mixture to the mixer bowl and knead with the dough hook until smooth. Add the bread flour and olive oil and continue to knead for five minutes on medium speed.

Step 5

After five minutes, the dough should look very oily and may not hold together in a ball. If this is the case, remove the dough and pat it together into one large ball of dough, kneading a few times if necessary. Return the dough to the stand mixer and knead for a further ten minutes on medium speed. Patience is key here, the dough looks as though it wont absorb all the oil, but trust me - it will.

Step 6

After ten minutes, the dough should be stretchy, smooth and should spring back into shape if poked lightly. Cover the bowl with a tea towel, set your oven to the lowest setting (I just leave the light oand prove the dough in the oven for roughly 1.5 hours.

Step 7

After proving, the dough should’ve doubled in volume. If it is not doubled, return it to the oven and check after another 20 minutes or so. Remove the dough from the bowl and knock back to burst any extra large air bubbles.

Step 8

Divide the dough in half. Further divide each half into six equal balls. Arrange the balls of dough inside the loaf tin, being sure to stagger their placement to create an uneven effect. Cover the loaf tin with a plastic bag, shower cap or tea towel and prove for a further hour.

Step 9

With 20 minutes remaining of your second prove, preheat the oven to 180c. Mix together the ingredients for the milk wash.

Step 10

Once the loaf is fully proved, wash the top with half of the milk wash and place it in the centre of the oven. Bake for 20 minutes then reduce the heat to 160c and apply the remaining milk wash. Return to the oven for 15 mins.

Step 11

Remove the loaf from the oven and allow to cool for 20 minutes before removing from the tin. Allow to cool fully before slicing (about 1.5 hours).