Pillowy soft and buttery, this gluten free brioche is all you’ve ever dreamed of from a gluten free bread and more!!
I never stop. Seriously. I never stop fiddling with things. Sometimes that’s a bad thing, but sometimes it can be really, really good. And today it’s really, REALLY good!
I have several recipes that make really soft and light loaves of bread. But lately I’ve been obsessed with trying to make something like the loaves and rolls that I often buy for my son from Aldi. They’re brioche hot dog and hamburger buns, as well as brioche loaves, and when you pick them up it’s like you’re picking up nothing. They are SO light and ethereal and soft. Of course I’ve never tasted them, but Brandon tells me all the time how wonderful they are.
You should be happy that I rarely leave well enough alone because some of my best recipes are created from not leaving well enough alone. I strive for perfection in my baking, and if I can ever make something better than it was before, I’ll never give up until that happens. With all that in mind, this amazing gluten free brioche bread was born!
What is in Gluten Free Brioche?
So here’s the deal. There is 1 whole egg and 6, yes 6! egg yolks in this dough. And a half cup of sugar. And six tablespoons of butter. Let’s just get that out of the way. I know many of you are clicking out of here right now. But for those who stuck around, I appreciate your faith in me. After all, we’re making the best of the best, the richest, the bread behind the saying “Let Them Eat Cake.” We’re making brioche, people, not health food!
I know many people out there eat gluten free because they think they’re being healthier. And maybe they are. Who am I to say? I’m not a nutritionist. But if that’s what you’re after when you visit my site, I’m so sorry to disappoint you but none of my recipes are made to be healthier. Not saying that some of them aren’t healthy. But they are ALL made as a way of being able to feel normal and have the things we, who were told we can’t eat gluten, can no longer have. These recipes are not necessarily for those who choose to eat gluten free for a healthier lifestyle.
In addition to all the eggs/egg yolks, sugar, and butter, there’s also the usual suspects–my gluten free bread flour blend, yeast, psyllium husks, salt, baking powder, and milk.
How to Make GF Brioche
- The dough begins in a stand mixer, BUT I’ve heard from some of my readers who have made many of my doughs in a large bowl with a handheld mixer with success! If yours has dough hook attachments, use them.
- After mixing, cover the dough and refrigerate it for at least 6 hours or up to 3 days. We’re opting for a cold bulk fermentation instead of the usual method of letting it rise in a warm area until doubled in size. It will still double in size, but this time it’ll do it in the fridge. Do not skip the fridge step because you’ll have a mess on your hands.
- Remove from the fridge and knead on a well-floured surface. It will be sticky. Shape it into a loaf shape and place it in a well-greased 8 by 4-inch loaf pan and cover it loosely with plastic wrap.
- Allow it to rise until it rises above the pan. This can take anywhere from a half an hour to 2 hours or more. Be patient.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake the brioche for 30-35 minutes. A knife inserted all the way through to the bottom of the bread will come out clean or nearly clean. This is a better test than the temperature test for this loaf. It will also be very light in weight relative to its size.
- Remove it from the oven and brush it with melted butter. Allow the loaf to cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then carefully remove the loaf from the pan to finish cooling on a wire rack.
Gluten Free Brioche FAQs
In a word, no. The egg, and especially the egg yolks, are what make this bread so light and fluffy. Without them, I don’t think you’ll get the texture that I was after and achieved in this bread. Egg yolks also offer extra fat in this bread, but in addition they allow for a more tender and even texture.
I often get asked about substitutions, within my bread flour blend itself OR within my recipes. And I get it. Some people can’t have eggs, or dairy, or nightshades, etc. And I feel tremendously for those people and try to help when I can. But my wheelhouse is solely gluten free, and I’m definitely no expert in any other allergen. That being said, I think you could substitute the milk in this recipe with a non-dairy milk and the butter with a non-dairy butter. I also think an oil, such as vegetable, canola, or even coconut, would work well, but the amounts may need to be adjusted. You’ll need to experiment.
The crazy good part about this bread is that it will stay soft for DAYS!!!! Even over a week, if wrapped well! I know. I couldn’t believe it either. But it’s true. I thought I found the holy grail of gluten free breads when I made my best ever gluten free white sandwich bread. It is a great loaf of bread and not to be dismissed. However, this is a whole different type of bread. I mean, brioche. Need I say more?
This soft and buttery gluten free brioche bread is a total game changer in the gluten free world! I can’t wait for y’all to try it and let me know what you think!!
Soft and Buttery Gluten Free Brioche
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups (245g) Kim's gluten free bread flour blend
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tbsp plus ¾ teaspoon (12g) instant yeast
- 1 tbsp (5g) whole psyllium husks (or 1½ teaspoon psyllium husk powder)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tbsp (85g) butter, very soft or melted
- 1 cup (240ml) whole milk
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 6 large egg yolks, at room temperature
For Brushing
- 1 large egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water and a pinch of salt (for egg wash)
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted (for brushing)
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, weigh the flour blend, sugar, baking powder, yeast, psyllium husks, and salt. Whisk to combine.
- Add the softened or melted butter and mix on low using the dough hook or the beater blade. Add the egg and egg yolks, followed by milk. If using the dough hook, slowly add the liquid. Knead/mix on medium high for about 5 minutes. Dough will be wet and sticky and stretchy, which is completely normal.
- Scrape the dough into the middle of the bowl (or into another bowl) and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight (or up to 3 days).
- On baking day, remove the dough from the fridge and knead it on a well-floured surface until smooth. Use plenty of extra flour as it will be very sticky. You can also place it in the freezer for 10 minutes to make it easier to work with if it's hot in your kitchen. Shape it into a loaf shape that will fit an 8½ by 4½ inch pan. Place it into a well-greased loaf pan. Cover with plastic wrap loosely (tucked in around the edges) and allow it to rise until doubled in size and cresting above the top of the pan by about one inch. This can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours, depending on your proofing area.
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. Brush the top of the dough with egg wash gently. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a knife inserted all the way into the bread to the bottom comes out clean to nearly clean. You can also tell if it's done by feel. If the loaf feels relatively light for its size (picking up with pot holders in the pan), it's done.
- Remove the bread from the oven and immediately brush with melted butter. Place the loaf (in the pan) on a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes. Remove it from the pan and continue cooling until warm or room temperature before cutting.
- This bread will keep, well wrapped, at room temperature for up to a week. For any longer storage, freeze whole or cut into slices.
Karla F
My loaf came out very dense and not pillowy soft. What did I do wrong?
Kim
I'm not sure, Karla. Without knowing what you did, I don't know what could have happened. Did you use my flour blend? Did you substitute anything within the flour blend or the recipe itself? Did you use superfine or ultrafine white rice flour? How long did you let the dough rise for the final proof? If it hasn't risen to where it's doubled in size, it will be very dense. That could take one hour or several hours. I find that a lot of people are anxious to bake their loaves when they haven't risen properly and will put them in the oven prematurely. This will cause a very dense loaf of bread.
Karla Ferrians
Thank you for replying. I did use your flour blend and superfine white rice flour. I did not substitute anything, so I am guessing I didn't let it rise long enough. The dough seemed to take a lot of flour during the kneading process. I kept adding it until the dough wasn't sticky. Is it possible that I added too much flour? My son wants me to try again for Thanksgiving and I really want to make it nice for him.
Aslan Balaur
What does the Psyllium Husk do in the recipe? This is not something I have in my pantry as a general rule. $25 for a 1 1/2 pound bag is a bit steep for my budget, so if it is just there for the dietary fibre, I'll know I can leave it out. If there is another need for it, for texture or some part of the reactions between ingredients or the yeast, I can try to find it in a significantly smaller quantity.
Cath
Psyllium husk is used in gluten free baking to help give the dough elasticity. It's a load-bearing ingredient and the recipe will definitely turn out differently/not work without it. If you're in the US, I got a large jar for ~$10 at trader joe's and it's been totally worth it for gluten-free baking. There's a good write-up you can read about psyllium husk here: https://theloopywhisk.com/2021/10/23/psyllium-husk-101/
Kim
I'm sorry, Cath. While I can sing the praises of psyllium husks for the ease of kneading gluten free dough, I don't agree with a lot of what this article says because before I even knew what psyllium husks were, I was kneading and shaping my own cinnamon roll dough with ease (I just had to use a little more flour than I normally would). Nearly ALL of my recipes can be made without psyllium husks BECAUSE of my special gluten free flour blend that I developed before knowing what psyllium husks were. To say that the recipes won't work at all is not true. Maybe without my flour blend, but with my flour blend you can still make them just fine and they will be amazing. An example of this is my gluten free bagel recipe, which requires no psyllium husks and is able to kneaded and shaped perfectly.
Kim
While I normally say that most of my bread recipes can be made without psyllium husk, because this one is on the stickier side, I would not recommend it. However, the amount of psyllium husks per recipe is so minute that that 1 1/2 lb bag will last you quite a long time.
Abby Z
Hi Kim,
Love your recipes! I have made this brioche bread many times now and it always turns out beautifully for me. I was curious if you could freeze the dough unbaked? Have you tried this? Where in the process would I stop and freeze?
Thanks so much!
Kim
Yes, I have! I have frozen it after the first rise. I wrap it in a greased piece of plastic wrap and then put that in a gallon ziptop bag.
David Checchi
Hey there,
I love to back and have some friends who are gluten free. Do you think this recipe will be amenable to use as a base for cinnamon rolls?
Typically, I use a class brioche recipe, and then once its ready to bake, I simply roll it out and add a layer of butter and cinnamon sugar, then bake until golden brown. Please let me know if you think this would work!
Thank you
Kim
It would be fine for cinnamon rolls, but I already have a wonderful recipe for a cinnamon roll dough if you'd rather check that out: https://www.letthemeatgfcake.com/ultimate-gluten-free-cinnamon-rolls/
Paul
I made two loaves, one each at two separate times. Both came out with big holes in the middle (about the size of a small tennis ball) with slightly raw dough around the edges of the hole. The outside 1/3 on either side of the hole was cooked perfectly and tasted great. I inserted a knife and it came out "mostly clean." I didn't knead the dough for too long, maybe only 3-4 minutes, adding white rice flour along the way because it was sticky. Shaped it into the loaf pan, and stuck it in the fridge. The first loaf I let sit overnight. The second loaf (made a couple of weeks later) I let sit in the fridge for 3 days. I let them rise on the counter before baking as instructed. Both looked beautiful coming out of the oven. Any thoughts on where I went wrong? Should I have kneaded them more? Because of the raw edge around the hole, it would seem I didn't bake it long enough (I used your max cooking time). My oven is only a couple of years old and the temp is calibrated. Any advice would be helpful.
Kim
Oh no! I'm guessing that you didn't knead it long enough or well enough to make sure the dough was smooth with no large air bubbles. That's what can cause huge holes or tunnels within the inside of the baked bread.