Nadiya Hussain's Brioche & Camembert Wreath Recipe

The former Great British Baking Show winner and author of Nadiya’s Fast Flavour adds a hint of heat and a sweet-tart superfruit to her holiday showstopper. "Bread and cheese are my go-to, so anytime I can combine two of the things I love the most, I always will," she says. "You can place it in the center of the table, and it’s all-hands-in to share."

Photo: Jennifer Causey

Nadiya Hussain, former Great British Baking Show winner and author of Nadiya's Fast Flavour, adds a hint of heat and a sweet-tart superfruit to her holiday showstopper. "Bread and cheese are my go-to, so anytime I can combine two of the things I love the most, I always will," she says. "You can place it in the center of the table, and it's all-hands-in to share."

Ingredients

Ingredient Checklist

• 1 tablespoon whole milk
• 5 large eggs, divided
• 2 ¾ cups (about 11 ¾ oz.) bread flour, plus more for work surface
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 (¼-oz.) envelope quick-rising yeast
• 1 ¾ cups dried cranberries, chopped
• 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper
• ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons (7 oz.) unsalted butter, softened and cut into 1-tablespoon pieces
• 1 (9-oz.) wooden box Camembert cheese (still wrapped and in box)
• Canola oil, for greasing plastic wrap
• Pinch of flaky sea salt
• 2 tablespoons marmalade

Directions

Instructions Checklist

• Step 1Whisk together milk and 4 eggs in a small bowl; set aside. Place flour, sugar, salt and yeast in bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment; stir together using a spoon until well combined. Add cranberries and red pepper; stir well. Make a well in center of flour mixture; add milk mixture, and stir together until mostly moistened. Beat mixture with dough hook on low speed, slowly adding butter pieces one at a time, beating until each piece is incorporated before the next addition. Increase speed to medium high; beat until dough pulls away from sides of bowl, about 10 minutes. Scrape dough into a large bowl; cover with plastic wrap. Place in fridge; let rise until about 1½ times the original size, at least 8 hours or up to 12 hours.
• Step 2Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove wrapped cheese from wooden box. Place bottom box half on center of baking sheet. Discard top box half. Return wrapped cheese to fridge.
• Step 3Remove dough from refrigerator. Tip dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, and press to remove the air. Roll dough into a 25-inch-log, and cut crosswise into 5 (5-inch-long) pieces. Cut each piece evenly into 5 smaller pieces, so you have 25 (about 1¼-ounce, 1-inch-long) dough portions. Working with 1 piece at a time, fold edges of dough in toward center; pinch to seal. Turn dough piece to face seam side down, and roll around in your hand to create a smooth ball. Arrange the first 10 dough balls, not touching each other, around the outside of box on baking sheet. Arrange the remaining 15 dough balls around the first 10 balls, leaving small gaps between each dough ball to allow them to rise. Cover with a piece of plastic wrap greased with canola oil. Let rise in a warm (about 75°) spot until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
• Step 4Preheat oven to 375°. Whisk remaining egg in a small bowl until lightly beaten. Remove cheese from wrapper, and pop into wooden box on baking sheet. Brush dough balls with beaten egg, and sprinkle all over with a pinch of salt. Bake until dough is browned, 18 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven. Spoon marmalade over hot cheese and serve.

Tips

Need a warm spot to let dough rise? Use your turned-off oven. While arranging your wreath, turn on the oven light, and the temperature within should rise to about 75° by the time the dough is ready.