Grand Aioli is my idea of a perfect party dinner. Four different kinds of Aioli, one of them vegan, are served with a stunning spread of different vegetables and protein for dipping. Easy to prepare ahead of time and guaranteed to please everyone, this is one of my favourite dishes to serve, when I want both an impressive and healthy spread. Vegan version included.
Why You Want to Make This
Easy
I know it looks like it’s a lot of effort, but it really isn’t. The 4 types of Aioli take a maximum of 5 minutes each. There is a bit of vegetable chopping, but since you want them large enough to dip comfortably, that’s quickly done. Some roasting, boiling and quick steaming of some of the ingredients and you are ready to assemble. You could buy ready cooked prawns or scampi, if you wanted to skip the extra step of frying them briefly.
Can be Prepared in Advance
Most of the ingredients for Grand Aioli can be prepared well in advance. The different aioli keep well in the fridge for several days. Pre-chop the veggies, so you only have to stem or boil them quickly on the day. The eggs can be cooked the day before too. I tend to keep each ingredient in its own container in the fridge, so they keep the perfect flavour.
Satisfies Everyone
Always wondering what to serve the vegans and non-vegans, without preparing two different meals? This is it. There is plenty of variety for both here. The Green Cashew Aioli is so delicious, even the non-vegans will want their share. If you’ want to make all the sauces vegan, use a larger quantity of the cashew base without herbs, then divide and mix different flavourings into it.
Healthy
During my weight loss journey, which lasted nearly a year, I was looking for feasts that would not throw me back in my progress. This is one of them. With all the fibre from vegetables, protein from prawns and eggs and healthy carbs from the boiled potatoes, you have a pretty balanced meal that is surprisingly low in calories. Depending on how much aioli you spread on said veg of course. But if you use the cashew aioli as base, even that gives you fibre, protein, and healthy fats.
The Four Types of Aioli
I made four different kinds of Aioli for this Grand Aioli, though theoretically you could also use my Black Garlic Aioli. It would be delicious for sure.
Traditional would be just the classic version, but I do love variety in my dips and can never decide on just one.
Classic Aioli – This is the very classic base version, made with egg, oil a bit of lemon juice, mustard and, of course, garlic
Chili Aioli – By simply adding a little bit of Sriracha, chili powder and maple syrup to the basic version, we have made a Chili Aioli, for the lovers of spicy food.
Green Aioli with Greek Yoghurt – For a slightly lighter and fresher version, the basic Aioli gets mixed with 0% fat Greek yoghurt and loads of fresh herbs. Tons of flavour, less fat.
Green Cashew Aioli – The vegan version. But don’t be fooled, this is no less delicious than the original. I would even say it’s my favourite out of all of them. Still super creamy, lots of flavour from garlic and herbs, I’m completely hooked!
The Ingredients
This depends a lot on you: What vegetables do you like for dipping? You can get very creative here. Just don’t leave out the potatoes, as they might be the best of all with any of the Aioli.
Use fresh and good quality new or baby potatoes, for their size and creamy, nutty flavour.
Broccoli and asparagus are lovely for their green crunchiness, so are green beans.
I used some squash, since I found some small and pretty ones. Hokkaido was my favourite of them, as it has a particular sweet and nutty flavour when roasted, that I adore.
Fresh carrots, mini sweetcorn, mini peppers, cherry tomatoes, and radishes can never go amiss. If you can find it, radicchio would be lovely for the bitterness and colour it brings to the table. Unfortunately it is very hard to find in Ireland.
For protein, boiled eggs and prawns or scampi are typically served. But if you have more meat eaters in the crowd, some sliced roast beef might be nice too. Or grilled chicken breast pieces.
Lemons, both for garnish and squeezing over last minute. And some Maldon salt for sprinkling.
On the Aioli front, being at the heart of a Grand Aioli, it will depend which ones you decide to make.
The classic version is made mainly with eggs, oil, mustard, lemon juice and garlic.
For the Chili version use Sriracha or any chili sauce you enjoy, chili powder, lime juice and cilantro.
Fresh herbs and 0% fat Greek yoghurt for the lighter green version.
The Cashew Aioli is, as the name says, based on cashews which get soaked in water and then blended with water, mustard, lemon juice, garlic, dates (I know this sounds weird, but trust me, it’s delicious) and lots of fresh herbs.
The Process
Aioli
Prepare the Aioli first since you can leave them in the fridge for the flavours to meld while you prepare the veggies and proteins.
My personal trick to perfect mayonnaise, leading to perfect Aioli is, to use a stick blender.
Using a slim jar or container that just fits the stick blenders head with very little room to spare on the sides, you add your egg, mustard, and lemon juice at the bottom, then top it with all of the oil. Gently lower your blender head, equipped with the whisking disc, all the way down, so it covers the egg. Switch it on at full speed and do not move it for a few seconds. You will see mayonnaise forming right away at the bottom. Keep it still until the white mass doesn’t expand upwards further, then gently tip your blender into a diagonal, and very slowly move it upwards.
This method will do the same as you would do by hand: Incorporate the oil in a thin stream, by creating a vortex that pulls it slowly into the egg, emulsifying it in the process. The trick lies in the waiting time before moving the blender, to give it enough time to pull in the oil until it reaches no more. Once you’ve pulled it all the way up, most of the oil will be incorporated and you will have a firm and very stable mayonnaise.
Mash your garlic, chop your herbs roughly and add all of them with some salt and pepper to your mayonnaise. Blend again with the pureeing attachment, to create a smooth and delicious Aioli.
Due to the specific jar requirement, you’ll have to make one portion at a time. If you’d rather make the whole batch at once, you could use a food processor or blender and slowly drizzle the oil in, to emulsify the mayonnaise.
Variations of Aioli
I made 3 batches of this basic Aioli, then mixed the chili sauce and maple syrup into one, finely chopped herbs and Greek yoghurt into the next and left one as it was.
Cashew Aioli
The Green Cashew Aioli is even easier: Soak the cashews in just boiled water for about 30min. Drain, then add to a high speed blender with the rest of the ingredients and blend until super smooth and creamy. I’m using my Nutribullet for this. You could use the zest of the lemon as I did here, but I found it tastes lovely with just the juice, so I left the step out in the recipe.
This is one of the recipes that, yes, in theory you could make in a normal blender or food processor, but it will never be as satisfyingly smooth as in the high speed version. So if you, like me back in time, wonder why on earth anyone would eat a grainy cashew sauce, the lack of high speed is the reason.
Things to Dip
Prepare the Veggies for the Grand Aioli
Depending on what veggies you are using for dipping, cut them into easy dippable pieces.
Leave the potatoes whole, especially if you got baby potatoes.
The squash was halved, deseeded with a spoon, and sliced into wedges, drizzled with a little olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper, and roasted on a baking tray until the edges started to brown and caramelize. About 25min at 400°F/200°C.
Boil the potatoes for about 20-25 minutes until you can easily pierce them with a sharp knife.
The eggs are boiled for about 7-8 minutes, for that waxy perfection.
Clean tender stem broccoli, asparagus, and beans, leaving them whole, but cutting off any dry ends. Steam the broccoli for 3-4 minutes, until slightly tender but crunchy. The Asparagus gets 5-10 minutes in the steam, depending on the thickness of your spears. You’ll want them tender but with bite. The beans can be cooked or steamed for about 5-10 minutes, until tender-crisp.
If using mini sweetcorn, it is also great steamed for 5-6 minutes.
Prepare the Protein
If using ready cooked prawns, you don’t need to do anything to them. I used raw and briefly pan fried them with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper, until they were opaque and no rawness showing in the middle anymore. This just takes a few minutes.
Serve
Now it’s time to serve. Peel your eggs. Divide the Aioli into smaller serving bowls, so everyone at the table can reach them easily.
Arrange potatoes, eggs, prawn and vegetables on a big board or plate, sprinkle over a bit of Maldon salt and squeeze over some lemon. Top with lemon wedges and dig into your Grand Aioli!
Meal Prep
Most parts of this meal can be prepared ahead of time as described above. If you do so, keep each part in a separate container in your fridge.
The Aioli will last for about 2-3 days covered in the fridge. The Cashew Aioli up to 5 days, as it doesn’t contain raw egg.
There will most likely be leftovers in form of aioli, which are amazing on sandwich, vegetables of course and any meat you might have. Cold or hot, it’s a pretty universal dip.
Now I’d love to hear from you in the comments!
Have you tried this? Did you enjoy it?
What other recipes would you like to see?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please share and comment. It helps me a lot.
Grand Aioli
Grand Aioli is my idea of a perfect party dinner. Four different kinds of Aioli, one of them vegan, are served with a stunning spread of different vegetables and protein for dipping. Easy to prepare ahead of time and guaranteed to please everyone, this is one of my favourite dishes to serve, when I want both an impressive and healthy spread.
1tbspSriracha or another chili sauce you enjoy. More or less to taste.
1tbspmaple syrup
1/8tspancho chili powder or more to taste
2tbspfresh cilantrochopped
Green Herb Aioli
½cup0% fat Greek yoghurt
4tbspmixed soft herbs like dillparsley and basil, chopped
Cashew Aioli
1cupcashewssoaked in just boiled water for 30min
2datesdestoned
4-6tbspfresh soft herbs like parsleybasil and dill, roughly torn
3clovesfresh garlic
2tbsplemon juice
1tspDijon mustard
1tbspliquid aminos or Tamari or soy sauce. Liquid Aminos are slightly sweeter so you might have to adjust the seasoning if you are using one of the other options
½-1cupwaterstart with ½, add more after blending if the aioli is too thick. If you keep it in the fridge, it will thicken more
Salt and pepper to taste
Vegetables for dipping
1lbbaby or new potatoes
1-2Hokkaido or similar squashesdepending on size
1-2packs tender stem broccoliI used 2 small packs
1pack green beansabout 300g
1-2bunches of Asparagusdepending on size
2packs mini sweetcorn
1romaine lettuce heart
1pack radishes
1pack cherry tomatoes
½lbcarrots
1pack mini peppershalved and deseeded
Protein
2packs large prawns or scampiready cooked or raw (fry them if you got raw ones)
8eggs for boilinguse more if you have more than 8 people
Instructions
Aioli:
Start by preparing the Aioli as it benefits from some time in the fridge for the flavours to meld.
Use a stick blender for a foolproof method. In a slim jar, add eggs, mustard, and lemon juice (lime juice for one batch for the chili version) at the bottom, then pour in all the oil.
Lower the blender head equipped with the whisking disc, covering the egg. Switch on at full speed, keeping it still for a few seconds until mayonnaise forms.
Tilt the blender diagonally and slowly move it upwards, allowing the vortex to pull in the oil. This method creates a stable mayonnaise.
Mash the garlic and add it with salt to the mayonnaise. Blend again to create a smooth Aioli. Taste and add more salt ort lemon juice to taste.
Do this in 3 batches, since a jar slim enough to fit your blender will likely only hold one batch of Aioli. Use lime juice instead of lemon in one portion for the chili sauce.
Customize one with chili sauce and maple syrup, another with finely chopped herbs and Greek yogurt, and leave one as it is.
Cashew Aioli:
Soak cashews in just-boiled water for 30 minutes. Drain and add to a high-speed blender with other ingredients.
Blend until super smooth and creamy. High-speed blending ensures a satisfyingly smooth texture.
Things to Dip:
Cut veggies into easy dippable pieces. Leave potatoes whole, especially if using baby potatoes.
Halve and deseed squash, slice into wedges, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and roast at 400°F/200°C for about 25 minutes.
Boil potatoes for 20-25 minutes until easily pierced with a sharp knife.
Boil eggs for 7-8 minutes for waxy perfection.
Clean tender stem broccoli, asparagus, and beans, leaving them whole. Steam broccoli for 3-4 minutes, asparagus for 5-10 minutes, and beans for 5-10 minutes until tender-crisp.
Steam mini sweetcorn for 5-6 minutes if using.
If using ready-cooked prawns, no preparation is needed. If raw, pan-fry briefly with olive oil, salt, and pepper until opaque and cooked through.
Serving:
Peel eggs, slice in half lengthways, and divide Aioli into smaller serving bowls.
Arrange potatoes, eggs, prawns, and vegetables on a large board or plate.
Sprinkle with Maldon salt, squeeze over some lemon, and top with lemon wedges.
Serve and enjoy the Grand Aioli feast!
Notes
Most parts of this meal can be prepared ahead of time as described above. If you do so, keep each part in a separate container in your fridge.The Aioli will last for about 2-3 days covered in the fridge. The Cashew Aioli up to 5 days, as it doesn’t contain raw egg.There will most likely be leftovers in form of aioli, which are amazing on sandwich, vegetables of course and any meat you might have. Cold or hot, it’s a pretty universal dip.No nutrition calculation this time, as it depends on the vegetables used, the amount of aioli on each veg when dipping and which aioli you would use. So this has too many variables to calculate. So I used just a general 500cal per portion as a wild estimate. Depending on how much of it you eat and the amount of aioli you spread on your veggies, this may be below or above.
Nutrition
Calories: 500kcal
Nutrition Facts
Grand Aioli
Amount per Serving
Calories
500
% Daily Value*
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Keyword Easy, For Guests, Healthy, vegan, vegetables, Vegetarian, versatile
Cranberry Rosemary Roasted Chicken might be the easiest Holiday dinner you can make, while being utterly delicious and impressive. Everything gets roasted in the same pan, minimizing the cleanup. And you can prepare it ahead of time, up to the point where you just push it into the oven an hour before you want to eat. It even makes its own sauce by virtue of the pretty pink cranberry butter you spread under and on the skin.
Why You Want to Make This
A roast chicken of some sort has long been my go-to easy dinner when I had friends over. It is equal parts super easy and impressive and never fails to deliver. This Cranberry Rosemary Roasted Chicken is no exception but might become my new obsession. Well…as long as I can find cranberries that is.
Super Flavourful
Similar to my Black Garlic Roast Chicken, which I’m using usually to make an epic salad, this Cranberry Rosemary Roasted Chicken gets its flavour and juiciness mainly from the compound butter that is spread both under and on the skin, to deeply infuse the flesh with festive fruitiness. Meaning opposed to just serving it with cranberry sauce, we let the delicious pink butter penetrate the meat and keep it both juicy and extra flavourful.
Comes with Sides
Not just the chicken, but also the sides come included in the recipe, so you have everything ready right out of the oven. Surrounded by baby potatoes, seasoned with rosemary, mushrooms, roasted in the juices while the chicken rests, and cranberries, creating a delicious sauce that needs nothing else, you get a complete meal. Time to start a new Christmas tradition!
Versatile Cranberry Butter
The Cranberry Rosemary Butter I made especially for this recipe is the secret star of the show. I saw a fair few recipes for cranberry chicken, but all just had the cranberries surround it. I really wanted the flavour in my chicken. So I thought “What if I use the Cranberry Port Sauce I made and add it to the butter? Let me tell you, it was a full success! Not just pretty in pink, but so delicious, you’ll want to spread it on everything from bread to meat. I imagine it would be fantastic with any dark and gamey tasting meat like lamb or deer, who both benefit from sweet fruity flavours.
I’ve added orange zest and rosemary here, but you could easily vary it with different herbs or citrus fruits. For a change, I did not use any garlic, as I wanted the cranberries to shine.
Quick to Prepare
Most of the work is done by your food processor (or a quick mashing with a fork) and the oven. And while the smell of roasting chicken and cranberries fills your house, you have time to get ready or relax. Is there any better way to prepare dinner?
The Ingredients
The Chicken
Use the best quality bird you can afford. Free range does make a difference for both the welfare of the animals and in flavour. I often get one of the lovely local free range chickens my butcher offers and am always amazed by the difference it makes.
Potatoes
Baby potatoes are best, as they keep their shape while roasting and you don’t have to peel them.
Mushrooms
I used chestnut mushrooms here but use whatever you enjoy and find in your local supermarket.
Cranberries
Fresh or frozen are both great options. Due to the long roasting time, you don’t need to account for either, they will cook through and disintegrate into the sauce.
Butter
Use good quality butter here, as it will flavour both meat and sauce. I’m using 1 stick, which makes more than you need for the chicken. But apart from being so delicious, you’ll want to try it on everything, it’s harder to mix smaller amounts in the food processor. So you are left with delicious leftovers to use on sandwich or maybe even scones for breakfast.
Cranberry Sauce
I’m using my homemade Cranberry Sauce with Port and Clementines for this, which makes for incredible flavour in the butter. But you could easily use shop bought. Just make sure not to use warm sauce or a very runny kind. Mine was about Jam consistency.
Orange
The zest is added to the butter, the juices squeezed over the potatoes and the remains stuffed into the chicken cavity, to get absolutely all the flavour I can.
Rosemary
Fresh Rosemary works best. About 1 tbsp chopped in the butter and 1 tbsp chopped in the potatoes. You could use thyme too if you like.
The Process
Optional Chicken Brining
I often brine my chicken in a simple 4 cups water, ½ cup salt, a few cloves smashed garlic, sliced lemon and some herbs. Similar to, but simpler than the one I used for my Black Garlic Chicken. This keeps the chicken extra juicy and flavourful. But this is by no means essential. If you choose to use it, add the chicken to a large sealable bag (I user Freezer bags), add cold water, lemon, herbs, maybe some smashed garlic and ½ cup of salt. Seal the bag and shake, so the salt dissolves. Keep in the fridge like this for up to 2 days.
This is an optional step, so I haven’t shown it here, to keep things simple. Let me know if you’d like a full recipe and I’ll add one soon.
Take your chicken out of the fridge (if you brined it, rinse, and pat dry) about 1h before you want to roast it, so it can come to room temperature.
Preheat your oven to 400°F/200°C
The Cranberry Butter
Now all you need to do is mix either homemade (like this Cranberry Sauce with Port and Clementines) https://forthepleasureofeating.com/cranberry-sauce-with-port-and-clementines/ or shop bought Cranberry sauce with butter, balsamic vinegar, rosemary, orange zest, salt and pepper in your food processor or mash it by hand. You can prepare this the day before if you like but remember to take it out of the fridge about an hour before, so it’s easy to rub onto the chicken skin.
Add the Cranberry Butter under and on the chicken skin, being careful not to rip the skin. I usually gently slide my hand under the skin of the breast, starting on the neck side, which has more room to expand, and create 2 pockets for the butter, before pushing a few portions under it and spreading it out by gently pushing on the skin towards the bottom. Then use some of the remaining butter and rub it all over the chicken skin.
Potatoes, Cranberries and Mushrooms
Half the baby potatoes, depending on their size. Very small ones can be left whole. In a bowl, drizzle with a tablespoon of olive oil, season with salt and pepper and add a tablespoon of chopped rosemary. Mix everything so the potatoes are evenly coated.
Lightly grease your roasting tin with a bit of olive oil.
Add the potatoes to the roasting tin and tumble over the fresh cranberries. Squeeze over the juice of the orange and stuff the halves into the chicken cavity.
Roasting
Nestle the chicken between the potatoes and cranberries and roast in the middle of the oven for about 1 hour. Rotate once after 30 minutes, if your oven roasts unevenly.
Towards the 45 minutes mark, check the skin of your chicken. If you see some spots getting too dark, cover it loosely with a bit of kitchen foil, while it cooks through.
While your chicken is roasting, quarter the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. No oil is needed, as they will be coated in the buttery juices later.
Once the chicken is golden brown and cooked through (Test by piercing the thickest part of the leg with a knife. If the juices run clear, your bird is ready), carefully transfer it to a large rimmed plate and cover loosely with kitchen foil to rest.
Add the Mushrooms to your tin. Stir briefly, to coat them in the flavourful, buttery juices and turn the potatoes, so they can brown. Put back into the oven for another 15-20 minutes, or until your potatoes have nice and golden edges and your mushrooms are cooked.
To Serve
Serve everything on a big plate, carving your Cranberry Rosemary Roasted Chicken at the table or pre-carve and serve the meat over the potato-cranberry-mushroom mix. Don’t forget to drizzle the buttery, fruity pan juices over everything. Add more Cranberry Sauce at the table if you like.
Meal Prep
Both Cranberry Sauce (if you decide to make your own) and Cranberry Butter can be prepared a few days ahead.
If you decide to brine your chicken, you can do so up to 2 days ahead.
The butter is best spread on in the last moment, as it tends to slide off if cooled and then warmed again.
Potatoes and Mushrooms can be prepared ahead, but they take just a few minutes.
Please Comment
Now I’d love to hear from you in the comments!
Have you tried this? Did you enjoy it?
What other recipes would you like to see?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please share and comment. It helps me a lot.
Cranberry Rosemary Roasted Chicken
Cranberry Rosemary Roasted Chicken might be the easiest Holiday dinner you can make, while being utterly delicious and impressive. Everything gets roasted in the same pan, minimizing the cleanup. And you can prepare it ahead of time, up to the point where you just push it into the oven an hour before you want to eat. It even makes its own sauce by virtue of the pretty pink cranberry butter you spread under and on the skin.
Take the chicken out of the fridge about 1 hour before roasting to bring it to room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C.
Make the Cranberry Butter:
In a food processor or by hand, mix cranberry sauce, butter, balsamic vinegar, 1 tablespoon of rosemary, orange zest, salt, and pepper.
Carefully lift the skin of the chicken and rub some of the cranberry butter underneath. Rub some of the remaining butter over the chicken skin. Keep leftovers of the butter in the fridge for another use.
Prepare Potatoes and Cranberries
In a bowl, toss the halved baby potatoes with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon of chopped rosemary.
Grease a roasting tin with olive oil and add the potatoes. Sprinkle fresh cranberries over them.
Squeeze the juice of the orange over the potatoes and place the squeezed halves inside the chicken cavity.
Place the chicken in the roasting tin among the potatoes and cranberries.
Roast the Chicken:
Roast in the middle of the oven for about 1 hour. Rotate the tin once after 30 minutes.
Check the chicken skin at the 45-minute mark. If it's getting too dark, cover it loosely with kitchen foil.
Prepare Mushrooms:
While the chicken is roasting, season quartered mushrooms with salt and pepper.
Once the chicken is cooked, transfer it to a plate and cover loosely with foil.
Add mushrooms to the roasting tin and stir to coat them in the buttery juices. Turn the potatoes.
Finish Roasting:
Place the tin back in the oven for another 15-20 minutes until the potatoes have golden edges, and mushrooms are cooked.
Serve:
Carve the chicken at the table or pre-carve and arrange it over the potato-cranberry-mushroom mix.
Drizzle the buttery pan juices over everything. Serve with additional cranberry sauce at the table.
Enjoy your Cranberry Rosemary Roasted Chicken with its fruity blend of flavours!
Notes
Meal PrepBoth Cranberry Sauce (if you decide to make your own) and Cranberry Butter can be prepared a few days ahead. If you decide to brine your chicken, you can do so up to 2 days ahead.The butter is best spread on in the last moment, as it tends to slide off if cooled and then warmed again.Potatoes and Mushrooms can be prepared ahead, but they take just a few minutes.4 portionsCalories: Approximately 510 calories
Protein: Approximately 23 grams
Carbohydrates: Approximately 42 grams
Fat: Approximately 28 grams
Fiber: Approximately 6 grams
Nutrition
Calories: 510kcal
Nutrition Facts
Cranberry Rosemary Roasted Chicken
Amount per Serving
Calories
510
% Daily Value*
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This Cranberry Sauce with Port and Clementines is a very grown up version of your usual Cranberry Sauce. It’s made by caramelising the sugar first, giving it depth of flavour. Even richer by adding port, taking it into Christmas territory via cinnamon and clementines, all working together wonderfully. You can use it as sauce or, if cooked longer, jam.
Why You Want to Make This
Everyone needs a good Cranberry sauce recipe. Especially if you, like me, are utterly tempted by the lovely bright ruby berries appearing on the supermarket shelves around this time of the year.
So why would you choose this one, considering you have to *gasp* caramelise sugar for it? (I promise, it’s easy)
Depth of Flavour
Have I made the very simple Cranberry sauces and jams that just require you to boil the cranberries with some sugar and be done? Of course I have. Were they good? Absolutely.
So why go through this extra step? Because caramel flavour just adds a whole new dimension to your sauce. The deeply dark, even slightly burnt, caramel flavour elevates this to a dish worthy for a Christmas Table. Either in form of Sauce or, if you prefer, as I do, as jam on your breakfast table.
It doesn’t add much extra work either. Just a little patience and occasional swirling of your pot, until you achieve that deep amber colour we are aiming for.
Port
Friends told me that for them, Port is the epitome of a Christmas drink. For me, being German, it always was Mulled Wine. So I basically combined the two here by using spices found in mulled wine and adding Port to the Cranberries while cooking, so the alcohol evaporates. It leaves behind its deep, sweet, and fruity notes, adding richness to the slightly astringent cranberries.
Versatility
As mentioned above, you can use this as Sauce by cooking shorter and adding some salt and pepper or Jam, by cooking longer. But have you ever tried adding it to butter, making essentially a cranberry compound butter, to spread under chicken skin. This is what I used for my Cranberry Rosemary Roasted Chicken.
The Ingredients
Cranberries, of course. You can use fresh or frozen here. I used 1 pack of fresh ones as I found them in the supermarket in Ireland.
Sugar, which will be caramelised first. Caster sugar, being finer, will melt a tiny bit faster, but I used standard white sugar, and it worked just fine.
2 cinnamon sticks – You could also use ground cinnamon. About 1 tsp should be enough.
Allspice – This, together with the cinnamon and the clementine zest, gives this sauce it’s very Christmas-like flavour.
A pinch of salt – Don’t skip this. It might seem like a tiny addition, but it lifts all the other flavours.
Clementines – Instead of the more classic oranges, I’m using clementines for their sweeter flavour. Both zest and fileted flesh.
Port – Use whatever port you’d also like to drink. Not only because there will be plenty left over in the bottle, but also because the flavour of it will shine through very clearly.
If you’d rather not include alcohol, you could use grape juice instead.
Variations: Try adding a different alcohol. Red wine, for a less sweet flavour or maybe some Amaretto for almond flavour. In Germany it’s sometimes added to mulled wine and it’s delicious.
Especially if using it as sauce, some Rosemary or Thyme would be lovely here.
Orange instead of clementine will do just fine and be a little less sweet.
The Process
For the clementines I specified zest and filets. I grated the zest, then, with a sharp knife, sliced off the top and bottom peel, so I could see the flesh. Then, following the curve of the fruit, I sliced off the skin, to expose the separate segments, taking off the bitter pith. By cutting with a small knife along the dividing skin between the segments, I cut out the little filets.
If you feel that’s just way too much work, feel free to just squeeze out the juice after zesting.
In a heavy based pot, for even heat distribution, add the sugar. Without stirring, but the occasional swirl, let it slowly melt and caramelise. It should turn a deep Amber, but not burn. Use your nose to determine when it reaches caramelisation. A stainless steel pot can help too, as you see the colour. Mine is dark and antistick, but the caramel scent worked perfectly, telling me when it was enough.
Once the caramel has reached the desired colour, add the remaining ingredients, and stir, so everything is coated with the caramel.
Let the Cranberry Sauce with Port and Clementines simmer for 10-20 minutes, depending on your desired consistency. I wanted a relatively firm and concentrated Jam I could spread on bread, so mine was cooked close to 20min.
With a spoon, fish out the cinnamon sticks and discard.
Serve you Cranberry Sauce with Port and Clementines either warm, as sauce or fill into a very clean jar and keep in the fridge for up to 3 weeks, if used as Jam. This is lovely either with cold meats (Try Roast Beef with crispy potatoes!) or spread on bread or used in a compound butter for all sorts of recipes.
Meal Prep
The Sauce can be made up to a week ahead and will keep fine in the fridge. Just gently warm it through before serving and maybe stir in a little water if needed, as it tends to firm up when cooling.
As Jam, this is absolutely delicious on my Sourdough Pumpkin Soda Bread, which would be lovely as Christmas breakfast.
Please Comment
Now I’d love to hear from you in the comments!
Have you tried this? Did you enjoy it?
What other recipes would you like to see?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please share and comment. It helps me a lot.
Cranberry Sauce with Port and Clementines
This Cranberry Sauce with Port and Clementines is a very grown up version of your usual Cranberry Sauce. It’s made by caramelising the sugar first, giving it depth of flavour. Even richer by adding port, taking it into Christmas territory via cinnamon and clementines, all working together wonderfully. You can use it as sauce or, if cooked longer, jam.
Put a heavy-based pan over a medium heat and allow the sugar to melt (without stirring) and turn a rich caramel colour before adding the cranberries, clementine filets and zest, spices and port.
Stir to coat everything in the caramel. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10-20 minutes until the cranberries break down and thicken.
If you’d like to use this as sauce, season while cooking with salt and pepper and cook a bit shorter, to achieve a more sauce like consistency. For Jam, cook longer, until very thick.
Take out the cinnamon sticks and discard.
Pour into a very clean Jar and store in the fridge. The Sauce will keep about 1 week in the fridge.
Notes
Meal PrepThe Sauce can be made up to a week ahead and will keep fine in the fridge. Just gently warm it through before serving and maybe stir in a little water if needed, as it tends to firm up when cooling.6 Portions:Calories: Approximately 107 calories
Protein: Approximately 0.3 grams
Carbohydrates: Approximately 27 grams
Fat: Approximately 0.1 grams
Fiber: Approximately 3 grams
Nutrition
Calories: 107kcal
Nutrition Facts
Cranberry Sauce with Port and Clementines
Amount per Serving
Calories
107
% Daily Value*
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Keyword Easy, For Guests, fruit, meal prep, Vegetarian
With a good dash of German October Fest spirit, this Pretzel Burger with Black Garlic Aioli might be my ultimate favourite burger. The brioche pretzel buns are chewy, with the typical flavourful pretzel crust, while having the sweetness and tenderness of brioche.
The burger patty is combining the juiciness of pork with classic beef, adding flavour and crunchy edges with some additional ingredients. Brought together by the umami-sweetness of Black Garlic Aioli lifting this to the level of a feast rather than fast food.
Why You Want to Make This
The Burger as Feast
The Buns
To me, especially after being on my weight loss journey, a burger is a feast, rather than a convenient fast food. Which is exactly the treatment they get in this recipe.
Having worked in the kitchen of a Rock Café in Hanover for most of my 20s, known for the best burgers in town, I had a few ideas on how to take a burger to the next level.
While we used simple store bought sesame buns in said pub, (Gourmet Burgers weren’t a thing back then, though they were still really good) I decided I wanted the sesame, but up my bun game. As described in detail in my post for the Sourdough Brioche Pretzel Buns I developed especially for this Pretzel Burger with Black Garlic Aioli, you get the rich, soft, and slightly sweet Brioche experience, needed for contrast to the salty burger. It holds the patty firmly in place, avoiding the dreaded patty slip, while soaking up all the flavourful juices, giving you the perfect flavour in each bite.
A mix of Sourdough, Pretzel and Brioche for the perfect Burger Bun
But Brioche alone wasn’t what I wanted, or I could just use storebought brioche buns, right? I wanted the added flavour of sourdough and the crust and chewiness of Pretzel buns, topped with salt and sesame. Adding a decidedly German Octoberfest touch. That’s not something I found anywhere. So I made it, and now you can too.
Of course, if you don’t feel like making your own buns, but want to try the rest, feel free to use your favourite shop bought buns.
The recipe for the Sourdough Brioche Pretzel Buns is separate, since you’ll want to start the preparation of them 2 days before and can easily bake them the day before, to just reheat them in the oven. Or prepare to just before boiling in baking soda water and get them into the oven an hour before you want to eat, so they can cool down a little.
The Patty
While burger purists may object, to me, the pure beef patties were never something I found particularly tempting. I feel they are rather dry with mainly iron flavour from the beef, which I’m sure appeals to the steak lovers. And don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy a good steak, but I’d rather have it in its whole form, not ground.
Then what makes a great patty to me?
Let’s start with crispy edges. At said Rock Café, they were created by first frying the patties in a pan for meal prep, then deep frying them to heat up before serving. But also: The ingredients of said patties, which I will explain in the Ingredients section.
While I obviously have no intention of deep frying my burger patties every time, I figured that both air fryer and a second brief fry in the pan will give a very similar crunch. So they get fried just until browned and cooked through first, at which point they are already delicious, but they will be even better when reheated, making them perfect for meal prep and a proper burger feast.
The Sauces
Black Garlic Aioli
Sauces make or break a burger. That much is clear if you look at how popular the Big Mac is. It’s the secret sauce that makes it so addictive. Now I’m not re-creating it here, but rather looking for a gourmet burger sauce, to take this to the next level.
I found it in Black Garlic Aioli.
Black Garlic is created by very slowly caramelising bulbs of garlic over several weeks, transforming it into black, shiny nuggets of sweet umami notes, with hints of fruit and garlic. Think balsamic and liquorice, utterly addictive and complex. Some supermarkets offer it these days, or you can make it yourself very easily in a rice cooker or dehydrator. It’s not complicated. All it takes is time, to cause a very slow Maillard reaction.
Check this post for detailed instructions on how to make your own Black Garlic.
The addition of herbs and lemon takes this aioli over the top and makes it utterly addictive. You’ll want it with all kinds of things from fries over sandwiches to using it in a Grand Aioli, it’s just so good.
If you have a stick blender, it also takes just 5 minutes to make and is super easy. Not that the classic method is hard, slowly drizzling oil into the egg and whisking, it just takes a bit of feel and patience.
BBQ Sauce
If I’m creating a feast worthy burger, I’ll create my own Peach BBQ Sauce with Single Malt for it. I mean, who wouldn’t?
You? Ok, yes, I can see why. And sure, you could use a good shop bought BBQ sauce, I won’t blame you. But if you have 35 minutes to spare, I urge you to try this Peach BBQ Sauce with Single Malt. It’s worth it!
Sweet and summery fruity notes from the peaches come together with smoky malt whisky together with molasses and brown sugar and liquid smoke, to create a stunningly delicious sauce for all your BBQ needs. It’ll keep for a while, so make extra and enjoy with spareribs or steak.
What do you mean “butter”? In a burger?
Yup, butter. One of the best kept secrets of that famous “Booster Burger” from said Rock Café (which has long since been eradicated from existence, much to my dismay) was the home made herb butter from the owners’ wife. It was spread onto the cut bun sides, which were then toasted under the Salamander, to have it deliciously melt into the bun, soaking it with garlic-herb flavour.
I don’t have her secret recipe unfortunately, which consisted of copious amounts of garlic and a lot of fresh herbs, brought to us in huge boxes, we were using so much. But I got pretty close with this one and feel the Black Garlic, which wasn’t in the original, improves it even further.
Could you just use shop bought garlic butter? Sure. It’ll be delicious. But home made takes 5 minutes (either with black garlic or just fresh, if you can’t find it) and works with so many dishes, you’ll just want it in your fridge all the time. You can also make double and freeze a batch, to have the perfect steak or sandwich butter at your fingertips. Or just make the best garlic bread you ever had.
The Toppings
If you use any of the above mentioned ingredients, your burger will already be delicious. So you can choose whichever toppings you love. For me, it’s always the classic combination of crunchy lettuce, fresh cherry tomatoes (Or a really flavourful heirloom tomato if you can find it), sweet dill pickles, red onion rings and crispy fried Serrano ham. Or fried bacon, depending on your preference. I just love how fried Serrano ham shatters into pieces when fried and adds so much salty umami flavour, I don’t miss the fat bacon would bring. And the type of patty I’m making isn’t dry as beef would be, so we don’t need the added fat.
You could of course add avocado, melted cheese, caramelised onions or go a completely different way by using a vegan burger patty.
Optional Sides
Since this Pretzel Burger with Black Garlic Aioli is on the rich side, I wanted something light to go with it, hinting to Germany, but not…well…Sauerkraut. So I made a super quick Herbed Cashew Aioli Slaw (recipe coming soon), which has white cabbage, basically what Sauerkraut is made of, but fresh and playing with the garlic theme of the burger.
In the picture you also see Sweet Potato Fries, which I made following this easy recipe.
My wild guess is though, that, depending on the size of your buns, you probably won’t need many sides. But with this being a proper feast, of course you’ll want all the options.
While these are super easy to make, it’s part of where the magic of the famous Booster Burger stemmed from. Now this will be controversial with the beef purists, but they are, in fact, made from half pork and half beef mince. Not low fat either, as we want them juicy. I’m using ready minced beef and pork here, but if you want to take this completely over the top, mince your own.
Eggs
Wait what? Not your standard burger, the Booster Burger was going more into the direction of really good and homemade meatballs the German way. Made with eggs and soaked white bread to bind the burgers and add crispy edges and juiciness.
Baguette
Another controversial one, water (or milk) soaked baguette which is then squished, to lower the water content again, is used in a similar way as breadcrumbs in meatballs. It binds and adds both juiciness and crunch to the burger patties, making them utterly delicious on their own.
Flavourings
Finely chopped onions, ideally caramelised (though I’ve used raw in the past, when in a hurry) add a lovely backbone to the flavourings of this Burger patty. Some dried parsley, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper complete it. Make more than you need. You’ll definitely want one straight from the pan and freeze some for emergency burger cravings. My freezer is not complete without these.
Black Garlic Aioli
Since the black garlic is sweet, the balsamic complements it perfectly, but I felt it needed a more acidic counterpoint, to lift it, hence the addition of lemon zest and juice.
While the herbs are optional, I urge you to try fresh dill, as it’s very fresh version of anise flavour goes perfect with the black garlic and takes this to a whole different level. The parsley adds minerality, to balance both sweetness and umami. You could use dried, but personal I always miss the freshness when I do.
For oil you could use ¼ cup of a very mild olive oil instead of part of the neutral oil (I’m using Grapeseed oil), but don’t replace it all with olive oil, as it tends to get bitter when used for mayonnaise.
And fresh egg of course. This emulsifies the aioli together with the mustard.
Liquid smoke – I’ve added this specifically for these Black Garlic Aioli Burgers, to complement the flavour and despite not grilling them, give a reminder of summer BBQs. You can leave it out if you don’t have it.
Black Garlic Lemon Butter
Use good quality unsalted butter here, so you control the saltiness. Several cloves of Black Garlic. You can vary how strong you’d like the flavour of it. Same goes for fresh garlic.
Some fresh herbs. I like Dill, Parsley and Basil. Though I left out the basil this time, as mine had died it’s usual winter death.
The Process
Buns
If you chose to make these incredible Sourdough Brioche Pretzel Buns to take your burgers to the next level, start by feeding the sourdough 2 days before you want to eat them. Then follow the recipe here for the whole process.
If you’d rather not, get some good burger buns from your supermarket. But honestly: Do make the buns. You won’t regret it, I promise.
Peach BBQ Sauce
You can use shop bought. But if you decided to make your own Peach BBQ Sauce with Malt, follow the recipe here.
Black Garlic Aioli
Using a slim jar or container that just fits the stick blenders head with very little room to spare on the sides, you add your egg, Dijon mustard, balsamic vinegar, liquid smoke if using, and lemon juice at the bottom, then top it with all of the oil. Gently lower your blender head, equipped with the whisking disc, all the way down, so it covers the egg. Switch it on at full speed and do not move it for a few seconds. You will see mayonnaise forming right away at the bottom. Keep it still until the white mass doesn’t expand upwards further, then gently tip your blender into a diagonal, and very slowly move it upwards until all the oil is incorporated.
Mash your garlic and black garlic or chop it, chop your herbs roughly and add all of them with some salt and pepper to your mayonnaise. Blend again with the pureeing attachment, to create a smooth and delicious Black Garlic Aioli. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
Try not to eat it all with a hunk of fresh bread.
Keep in a lidded container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Black Garlic Butter with Lemon
Add all the ingredients to the small bowl of your food processor and mix until you have a smooth mass.
Alternatively, if making by hand: In a medium-sized mixing bowl, let the unsalted butter soften at room temperature. Add all remaining ingredients to the softened butter and mix thoroughly with a fork until well combined.
Taste the mixture and adjust the seasoning if desired.
Once the black garlic lemon butter is well mixed, transfer it to a serving dish or roll it into a log shape using plastic wrap.
Refrigerate for at least 1 hour to firm up the butter.
Toppings
Prepare your toppings. Slice pickles, tomatoes, and onions. Wash your lettuce. Fry Serrano ham or bacon until crispy, if using and keep warm in the oven.
The Patties
Caramelize Onions
If you choose to caramelize your chopped onions, do that first. In a pan with a little olive oil, fry them on medium heat slowly, until caramelised. Don’t let them burn, or they will turn bitter.
Alternatively add your chopped onions raw.
Soak Baguette
Rip your baguette into 3 large pieces. In a medium bowl cover with water (or milk, if you like) and let it sit to soak while you add the remaining ingredients to a large bowl.
Mix Patties
In a large bowl, add your pork and beef mince, the eggs, Dijon mustard, dried parsley and salt and pepper to taste.
Squeeze as much moisture as you can out of your baguette, by squishing it with your hands. Add to the bowl with the meat.
Using your hands (this is the fun part), mix the whole thing until you have a relatively uniform dough that holds together nicely.
Fry
Heat a pan to medium high heat and add some oil. I’m using standard (not extra virgin) olive oil, but any oil that is suited for frying will work.
Using your hands, form thin, large patties with irregular edges. You don’t want perfectly shaped rounds here, as the edges will crisp up and add the addictive caramelised crunch to the burger.
Once your pan is hot, fry the patties. I usually manage to get 3 into the pan and keep the rest warm, if I plan to eat them right away.
Re-heat for extra crispy edges
However, and this is a step I highly advise you to take, you could prepare them the day before (or weeks and just freeze them) and quickly reheat them when you are ready. Either fry a second time in a very hot pan, to crisp them up or in the air fryer at 400°F/200°C for a few minutes, until hot and with crispy edges.
I know this sounds unusual for burgers, but trust me, it makes them even more irresistible.
To Serve
Briefly re-heat your burger buns by sprinkling them with a little water, then baking for 5-10 mins at 350°F/175°C in the air fryer or oven. Slice them open horizontally. Spread some Black Garlic Butter with Lemon on each side and briefly fry in a hot pan until golden. Or put them under your grill in the oven, but keep a very close eye on them, as they burn quickly.
Top both sides with a little Black Garlic Aioli. On the bottom side, stack lettuce, followed by a hot burger patty and add your desired toppings. Drizzle with BBQ sauce. Add the top half of the bun and enjoy your Pretzel Burger with Black Garlic Aioli.
Meal Prep
You can make pretty much everything in this recipe ahead of time, except for slicing your Tomatoes if using, frying the bacon or Serrano ham and re-heating buns and patties.
Both the Sourdough Brioche Pretzel Buns and the Burger Patties freeze well. So does the Black garlic Lemon Butter. The Peach BBQ Sauce can me made weeks ahead, the Black garlic Aioli ideally the day before.
For more amazing Black Garlic Recipes check these:
Now I’d love to hear from you in the comments!
Have you tried this? Did you enjoy it?
What other recipes would you like to see?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please share and comment. It helps me a lot.
Pretzel Burger with Black Garlic Aioli
With a good dash of German October Fest spirit, this Pretzel Burger with Black Garlic Aioli might be my ultimate favourite burger. The brioche pretzel buns are chewy, with the typical flavourful pretzel crust, while having the sweetness and tenderness of brioche.
The burger patty is combining the juiciness of pork with classic beef, adding flavour and crunchy edges with some additional ingredients. Brought together by the umami-sweetness of Black Garlic Aioli lifting this to the level of a feast rather than fast food.
Sourdough Brioche Pretzel Buns – Recipe see Link in Post
Optional Toppings:
Peach BBQ sauce with Malt - See link in post
Crunchy Lettuce
Crispy fried bacon or Serrano Ham
Fresh sliced tomato
Sliced dill pickles
Sliced onionsfresh or caramelised
Cheese
Avocado
Instructions
Sourdough Brioche Pretzel Buns:
Follow the instructions in the provided link to make the Sourdough Brioche Pretzel Buns. Begin by feeding the sourdough 2 days before you plan to make the buns. Follow the detailed recipe at forthepleasureofeating.com.
Peach BBQ Sauce (If using):
Follow the recipe at forthepleasureofeating.com to make the Peach BBQ Sauce with Malt.
Black Garlic Aioli:
In a slim jar or container, layer egg, Dijon mustard, balsamic vinegar, liquid smoke (if using), and lemon juice.
Top with all the oil.
Using a stick blender equipped with the whisking disc, blend on full speed without moving for a few seconds until mayonnaise forms at the bottom.
Gradually tilt and move the blender upwards until all the oil is incorporated.
Mash or chop black garlic and regular garlic, chop herbs, and add them to the mayonnaise with salt and pepper.
Blend again with the pureeing attachment until smooth.
Taste and adjust seasoning. Keep refrigerated in a lidded container for up to 3 days.
Black Garlic Butter with Lemon:
In a food processor, combine unsalted butter, mashed black garlic, minced fresh garlic, chopped parsley, chopped dill, kosher salt, lemon zest, and freshly ground pepper.
Mix until smooth.
Transfer to a serving dish or roll into a log shape using plastic wrap.
Refrigerate for at least 1 hour to firm up the butter.
Toppings:
Prepare toppings by slicing pickles, tomatoes, and onions, and washing lettuce.
Fry Serrano ham or bacon until crispy, if using, and keep warm in the oven.
Burger Patties:
Optionally caramelize chopped onions in a pan with olive oil until golden.
In a medium bowl, soak large baguette pieces in water or milk.
In a large bowl, combine pork and beef mince, eggs, Dijon mustard, dried parsley, salt, and pepper.
Squeeze moisture from the soaked baguette and add it to the meat mixture.
Mix by hand until a uniform dough forms.
Heat a pan with oil and form thin, irregularly shaped patties with your hands.
Fry patties until cooked through and crispy at the edges.
To Serve:
Reheat burger buns by sprinkling with water and baking at 350°F/175°C for 5-10 minutes in the air fryer or oven.
Slice buns horizontally and spread Black Garlic Butter with Lemon on each side.
Briefly fry in a hot pan until golden or place under the oven grill.
Top both sides with Black Garlic Aioli.
On the bottom side, stack lettuce, a hot burger patty, and desired toppings.
Drizzle with Peach BBQ Sauce.
Add the top half of the bun and enjoy your Pretzel Burger with Black Garlic Aioli!
Notes
Meal PrepYou can make pretty much everything in this recipe ahead of time, except for slicing your Tomatoes if using, frying the bacon or Serrano ham and re-heating buns and patties.Both the Sourdough Brioche Pretzel Buns and the Burger Patties freeze well. So does the Black garlic Lemon Butter. The Peach BBQ Sauce can me made weeks ahead, the Black garlic Aioli ideally the day before.Since both burger size, calories of the buns and toppings vary, I'm giving you a rough estimate of the calories of the patties, rather than the whole burger.The other recipes have calories included on their own posts, so you can add them depending on the parts you are using. Burger Patties:Total Calories per Portion: Approximately 387 calories
Total Protein per Portion: Approximately 27 grams
Total Carbohydrates per Portion: Approximately 15 grams
Total Fat per Portion: Approximately 24 grams
Total Sodium per Portion: Approximately 376 milligramsFor the complete Burger as I made it, it added up to this:
Calories: Approximately 778 calories
Protein: Approximately 14.2 grams
Carbohydrates: Approximately 29.7 grams
Fat: Approximately 32.3 grams
Sodium: Approximately 393 milligrams
Nutrition
Calories: 778kcal
Nutrition Facts
Pretzel Burger with Black Garlic Aioli
Amount per Serving
Calories
778
% Daily Value*
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Keyword Black Garlic, burger bun, meal prep, Pretzel, Protein
One of the more involved recipes, but so worth it, this Sourdough Brioche Feuilletee is absolutely heavenly! Think a mix of Brioche, croissant, and cinnamon roll, with layers of flaky, rich dough. The sourdough adds a pleasant tang and easier digestibility. I have given 2 filling options below: Cinnamon and Chocolate, which are equally good. A sprinkling of brown sugar on top gives a lovely crunchy crust. Perfect for the holidays as breakfast!
Why You Want to Make This
I won’t lie, there is a bit of labour of love in this Sourdough Brioche Feuilletee. So why would you want to put in the work when you could just buy Brioche?
Flavour
While I have seen Brioche Feuilletee on its own and am sure they are sold in patisseries in France, I have never seen a sourdough version of it. “Feuilltee” means “folded” and describes the process of a brioche dough being folded multiple times around a block of butter and rolled out, to create flaky layers. Very similar to croissants.
Sourdough however, apart from acting as a raising agent, helps with digestibility, adds nutrients and layers of amazing flavour you would never get without. If you ever thought Brioche is…nice, but maybe a little boring, this is for you. Or if you love Brioche, but want to up your game a little.
This recipe was adapted into a Brioche Feuilletee with different fillings from the fantastic Sourdough Brioche recipe by “Bread by Elise”. If you’d like to make a classic and really good brioche that uses sourdough, this is the best recipe I have found so far.
Special Holiday Treat
If you are looking for a seriously impressive holiday breakfast for your loved ones, this is certainly it. You’ll be sure to get lots of impressed comments of “You made this!?” and then very satisfying purring noises while they are enjoying it.
Can be prepared ahead of time
While it does take some hands on time to roll out the dough a few times, to laminate the butter in, creating those flaky layers, you can do most of the preparation the day or even 2 days before. On the day, you simply put your loaf pans in the oven and enjoy breakfast with your friends and family.
Makes incredible leftovers
While I loved this re-heated on its own, you could make a seriously amazing bread and butter pudding from the leftovers. If there are any. Which is doubtful. Maybe make double, so you can try it?
Not hard to make
I know this sounds counterintuitive, after saying this takes a little work. But if you can fold a towel and roll out dough, you will have a very easy time making this Sourdough Brioche Feuilletee.
The Ingredients
Sourdough Starter
Since we want a good rise, I’m using active, fed starter here. If you don’t have one yet, here is how to make it. Sourdough starter can be used in a million recipes, not just bread. It makes sweet baked goods more flavourful and better for you, helps even with gluten intolerance, as the little bacteria basically pre-digest the gluten for you. (Apologies for the picture in your mind now. But yoghurt and other fermented foods work the same way.)
Tangzhong
Bless you! What?
That was my reaction when I first heard about Tangzhong. The Tangzhong method basically pre-cooks a portion of the dough using hot liquid, which causes the starch to gelatinize and make the bread softer. And with Brioche, I’m all about soft bread!
Though this method says there will be no crust, I do love a crunchy crust, so I brushed the bread with butter and sprinkled some brown sugar over it just before baking.
Yeast
Although you could make this with just sourdough, I opted for adding a tiny bit of yeast, since I’m adding quite a lot of butter to the dough with the lamination, so it’s a fairly heavy mix that can use a little help on the rising front. If you don’t want to use yeast or can’t eat it, leave it out.
Ascorbic Acid – Vitamin C powder
Same as with the yeast, this is to help with the rise and crust, as it will strengthen the gluten in the dough. I found the trick of adding it when researching the best Banh Mi buns and have used it in various bread recipes since, loving the results. It’s not a huge change, but noticeable.
This is pure vitamin C powder that I got fairly cheap from “Bulk”.
It will last me for ages and can be used not just in baking, but also simply add to water, for a refreshing drink and boosting your vitamin C intake. Win/win really.
Same as with the yeast: If you don’t have any, leave it out.
Flour
Traditionally Brioche, even more so Brioche Feuilletee is made with plain or bread flour. But as usual I wanted to see if whole wheat flour works too, and it certainly didn’t disappoint. I’m replacing about 1/3 of the white flour with whole wheat, for a slightly nutty flavour and better nutrition profile. The results were lovely: Still soft and fluffy, but with a satisfying bite and flavour to it. This feels less like the cloud-like Brioche texture and more like a really satisfying sweet, soft, crunchy, and flaky bread. Very hard to describe, but utterly addictive.
Eggs and Butter
Brioche is an enriched dough with lots of butter and eggs. Most certainly not for your diet days, but oh so satisfying! And I firmly believe, if we eat most of the time healthy, a proper treat now and then is entirely ok and needed. This is a really good one for those days.
Use good European butter for this. Living in Ireland, I used Irish of course, which may be the best butter you can get. As it adds flavour to the dough, you want it to be delicious.
Milk
Being lactose intolerant, I only have plant milk at home. With all the butter and eggs, this Sourdough Brioche Feuilletee is not the place to save on fats, so I’m using full fat Oat Milk here. My favourite is Oatly Barista, which I always have around for my coffee. You can use any full fat milk of your choice.
Sugar
Only a little sugar is used in this Brioche dough, which might feel surprising, as this is essentially a sweet bread. But trust me, it’s enough to give a slightly sweet flavour and support the fillings.
Filling Options
As usual, I couldn’t decide if I wanted chocolate or cinnamon filling, so I simply made both. To me, even though I’m a complete chocoholic, the cinnamon-sugar won. But I’d love to hear in the comments which one you chose to make or preferred.
The Process
Start ideally 2 days before you want to eat the Sourdough Brioche Feuilletee.
2 days before baking:
Sweet Sourdough Starter
Mix 40ml (about 2.5 tbsp) with 40g flour, 10g sugar and 30g active sourdough starter. Cover and leave in a warm spot over night or until doubled in size.
Tangzhong
Make the Tangzhong by adding 140ml milk to a small pot and whisk in 35g flour. Gently warm on medium heat while whisking. After a while, your mixture will start to thicken quite quickly. Once it has thickened and reached about 150°F/65°C it is ready.
Transfer into a small bowl and cover tightly with clingfilm touching the whole surface of your Tangzhong, to prevent a skin from forming. Leave to cool to room temperature.
1 day before baking
Mix your dough
In a stand mixer, as the dough gets fairly soft and sticky, or a large bowl, if you are kneading by hand, add all your ingredients except the butter and salt. Mix to combine, then let it stand for 30minutes for the autolyse.
Knead
Adding the salt, knead for 5-10 minutes, until the dough comes apart from the sides and starts to look really smooth.
Slowly add half of the butter at room temperature, cut into cubes, bit by bit, slowly incorporating it into the dough.
Keep kneading for 15-25 minutes, until the gluten has fully developed, and your dough passes the windowpane test.
Your dough will still be pretty sticky, but that should improve during the resting time.
Rest
Lightly grease a bowl. Use your hands to form a ball from your dough and let it rest, covered on your counter, in the prepared bowl for about 3h. By then it will have about doubled in size.
Now you can go ahead to either start the lamination process or rest your dough in the fridge overnight, to continue the next day.
Laminating the Dough Or: Putting the Feuilletee into the Brioche
The lamination process will take about 2.5h including 3 rests in the fridge for 20-30min each.
For this step you need a stick (about 100g) of cold butter. Place the butter between 2 layers of baking parchment and smash it a little flatter first, using your rolling pin or the bottom of a cooking pot until you have a roughly 8 x 8 square.
Lightly flour a surface for rolling out your dough. Take your dough from the bowl and roll it out into a rectangle that is about 16″ x 24″.
Remove the top layer of baking parchment from your flattened butter block, turn it around, so the butter lands in the middle of the dough rectangle. Then fold your dough like an envelope over it, covering it firmly. Pinch the sides of the dough close, so the butter doesn’t escape.
Roll your dough out again, to seal in the butter.
Turn your dough by 90 degrees and repeat the folding and rolling out.
Wrap into plastic wrap and leave to rest in the fridge for 20-30 minutes.
After that time, take out your dough and repeat the folding and rolling out twice. Put back into the fridge for 20-30 minutes.
Preparing the filling
Decide if you’d like to make both fillings or just one. If using only one, double the quantities given below for the chosen filling.
Melt 2 tbsp butter for brushing onto the rolled out dough.
For the dark chocolate filling:
Chop your dark chocolate roughly. You want some nice chunks and some finer bits that melt into the dough.
For the Cinnamon Sugar:
Mix 3 tbsp sugar (white or brown will both work) with 1 tsp cinnamon.
Last rolling out and filling
Roll your dough out one last time. Aim for a rectangle of about 1/16th thickness.
Slice in half through the middle, if making both fillings. Brush the rectangles with the melted butter.
Sprinkle one with dark chocolate, the other one with cinnamon sugar evenly, leaving about 2” room on one end of the short side.
Start rolling up the dough from the short side, where the filling is spread all the way to the end. Roll all the way until you reach the end and gently pinch to close. It probably won’t close perfectly, which is fine.
I only had one long and one shorter bread pan, so I chose to keep the chocolate roll longer and the cinnamon roll shorter.
Cover both rolls tightly with plastic wrap and chill for at least 20 minutes or overnight.
On the Day of baking:
Cut and add to Loaf tins
Grease 2 loaf tins or line with baking parchment.
Cut your dough rolls into 3 equal pieces each and add them to your loaf tins, so the side showing the spiral with the filling is pointing up.
Brush with more melted butter and sprinkle with some brown sugar with cinnamon. I only sprinkled the cinnamon version here and regretted it later. Don’t be like me.
Cover and let them rise outside of the fridge for another hour.
Now you can either bake them or cover with plastic wrap and leave in the fridge until ready to bake.
When ready to bake, preheat your oven to 375°F/190°C.
Bake for 25-30 minutes. The cover with aluminium foil and bake 10-15 minutes longer. Depending on your oven.
Take out and leave on a rack to cool. Dust with icing sugar if you like.
Enjoy just as they are, with jam, or more butter.
Meal Prep
Make Ahead
The resting time of the dough makes this recipe predestined for meal prep, as you can do all the steps in the days before you want to bake it. Pretty perfect for the holidays, to have a really impressive breakfast treat, while relaxing with your loved ones.
Freeze
While this Sourdough Brioche Feuilletee lasts a few days in a bread tin, I tend to freeze leftovers and just reheat them in air fryer or oven for a bit, to get the crunchy crust and warm, buttery insides, that makes it so utterly delicious. Freeze the separate thirds in small bags or lidded containers, for an indulgent breakfast treat any time you crave it.
Still looking for a main course?
Have a look at this super delicious Vegetarian Mezze Feast.
Now I’d love to hear from you in the comments!
Have you tried this? Did you enjoy it?
What other recipes would you like to see?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please share and comment. It helps me a lot.
Sourdough Brioche Feuilletee
One of the more involved recipes, but so worth it, this Sourdough Brioche Feuilletee is absolutely heavenly! Think a mix of Brioche, croissant, and cinnamon roll, with layers of flaky, rich dough. The sourdough adds a pleasant tang and easier digestibility. I have given 2 filling options below: Cinnamon and Chocolate, which are equally good. A sprinkling of brown sugar on top gives a lovely crunchy crust. Perfect for the holidays as breakfast!
2sticks butter. 1 cubedat room temperature. One whole, cold from the fridge.
Filling and topping
If you want to make both fillings:
4tbspbuttermelted
½cupdark chocolatechopped (don’t use chips here, as we want the irregular and rather fine pieces.)
5tbspbrown sugar
2tspcinnamon
If you only make one of the fillings:
4tbspbuttermelted
1cupdark chocolatechopped (don’t use chips here, as we want the irregular and rather fine pieces.)
2tbspbrown sugar
1tspcinnamon
or
8tbspbrown sugar
3tspcinnamon
Part of the brown sugar/cinnamon mix will be used for sprinklingso you’ll need some of it.
Instructions
2 Days Before Baking:
Sweet Sourdough Starter:
Mix 40ml of oat milk with 40g flour, 10g sugar, and 30g active sourdough starter.
Cover and leave in a warm spot overnight or until doubled in size.
Tangzhong:
In a small pot, whisk 140ml oat milk with 35g flour.
Warm on medium heat, whisking until thickened and reaching about 150°F/65°C.
Transfer to a bowl, cover with clingfilm, touching the Tangzhong to prevent a skin from forming, and let it cool to room temperature.
1 Day Before Baking:
Main Dough:
Combine all ingredients except butter and salt. Allow a 30-minute autolyse.
Add salt, knead for 5-10 minutes, then slowly add half the room temperature butter.
Knead for 15-25 minutes until gluten develops and the dough passes the windowpane test.
Let the dough rest covered for about 3 hours until doubled in size.
Store the dough in the fridge overnight.
Laminating the Dough:
Flatten a cold butter stick between parchment paper to an 8x8 square.
Roll out the dough to a 16" x 24" rectangle.
Place the butter in the middle or your rolled out dough, fold like an envelope, and roll out to seal in the butter.
Turn by 90 degrees, repeat the folding and rolling out.
Wrap into plastic wrap and leave to rest in the fridge for 20-30 minutes.
Repeat the folding and rolling process twice, resting in the fridge between each cycle.
Preparing the Filling:
Melt 2 tbsp butter for brushing onto the rolled-out dough.
For dark chocolate filling: Roughly chop dark chocolate.
For cinnamon sugar filling: Mix 3 tbsp sugar with 1 tsp cinnamon.
Last Rolling Out and Filling:
Roll out the dough thinly to about 1/16” into a rectangle.
Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with the chosen filling.
Roll up the dough, cover, and chill for at least 20 minutes or overnight.
On the day of baking:
Cut and Add to Loaf Tins:
Grease 2 loaf tins or line with parchment.
Cut dough rolls into 3 equal pieces each and add to tins, cut side facing up, so you see the pretty spirals.
Brush with melted butter, sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon.
Let rise covered outside of the fridge for an hour.
Baking:
Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, then cover with foil and bake 10-15 minutes longer.
Cool on a rack. Dust with icing sugar if desired.
Enjoy your Sourdough Brioche Feuilletee with jam or butter!
Notes
Meal PrepThe resting time of the dough makes this recipe predestined for meal prep, as you can do all the steps in the days before you want to bake it. Pretty perfect for the holidays, to have a really impressive breakfast treat, while relaxing with your loved ones.While this Sourdough Brioche Feuilletee lasts a few days in a bread tin, I tend to freeze leftovers and just reheat them in air fryer or oven for a bit, to get the crunchy crust and warm, buttery insides, that makes it so utterly delicious. Freeze the separate thirds in small bags or lidded containers, for an indulgent breakfast treat any time you crave it.Total Calories per Portion: Approximately 285 calories
Total Protein per Portion: Approximately 5.7 grams
Total Carbohydrates per Portion: Approximately 33.1 grams
Total Fat per Portion: Approximately 15 grams
Total Sodium per Portion: Approximately 347 milligrams
Nutrition
Calories: 285kcal
Nutrition Facts
Sourdough Brioche Feuilletee
Amount per Serving
Calories
285
% Daily Value*
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Keyword Breakfast, For Guests, meal prep, sourdough
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