This Easter we’re having a few friends over on Good Friday.  I’ve already posted the classic Hot Cross Buns recipe I’ll be making, but I thought it might be good to have something cute for the kids that allows for the unaccountable dislike that many of them seem to have for dried fruit (especially peel) in things…

This is a basic brioche recipe I’ve been playing with recently.  I’ve made buns with jam centres, and rolled the dough around dark chocolate, and thought I’d try something with a bit more shaping – hence the bunnies.

The basic idea for shaping the bunnies actually came from a supermarket magazine ad for bread mix, but I had no qualms in reclaiming it for homemade brioche instead!  They might look fiddly, but it’s just rolling a couple of sausage shapes and pushing them together, and as with my hot cross buns, even the wonky ones are delicious 🙂

As I mention below, the dough lasts for several days in the fridge and is easily doubled, so it’s not a bad idea to make more and use the extra for a loaf, galette, chocolate filled rolls etc.  Let me know if you give the bunnies a try and if you have any other brioche ideas!

Brioche bunnies

Basic dough adapted from the recipe at Artisan Bread in Five

• 3/4 cup lukewarm milk
• 1 1/2 tsp yeast
• 2 tsp flaky salt
• 90g honey
• 4 (60g) eggs
• 170g very soft butter (melted is ok)
• 480g plain flour
• 8 choc chips

Combine all ingredients except choc chips in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix on low speed until combined. Cover and stand at room temperature for 2 hours until beginning to rise, then refrigerate until firm enough to handle (when the butter has set).  At this stage you can leave in the fridge for up to three days.

To make bunnies, remove dough from fridge, and turn out on floured surface. Line a large baking tray with baking paper.  Cut dough into 8 even pieces (about 100g each).  For each piece, divide the dough into two halves, one slightly larger.  Take the larger piece and roll into an even rope.  On the tray, roll the rope into a scroll, leaving the end unattached – the pictures above show the shaping in more detail.  Take the smaller half and break off a little piece for the bunny’s tail – join it to the scroll at the opposite side to the end that will form the paws.  Form the last piece into a fat sausage, attaching it to the top of the scroll before snipping with scissors and spreading slightly to form the ears.  Add a choc chip (point side down) for the eye.

Preheat the oven to 180C (350F).  Leave the bunnies in a warm place (like the top of the stove) until nearly doubled in size.  Bake for 15-20 min, or until golden brown.  Cool on a rack.