Apple Pear Coffee Cake

Submitted by Lisa

My oldest son has been asking for apple crisp and suggested that the "next thing I make" be apple crisp. Well, I bought the apples and was preparing to do just that when I decided to see if I could switch it up a bit.

I pulled out my favorite bread book: Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day, and lo and behold, there was a recipe that fit the bill! So I set out to make it. Because it takes more time than traditional apple crisp, I made the dough the day before I actually made the cake. You can do it in one day if you start early.

I asked my son if it passed the test...if it satisfied his need for apple crisp and it did! What I liked about it was that it was something new but satisfied the comfort level needed when going for traditional crisp.

Makes 1 coffee cake

The streusel Topping:

1 c oats

1 c all purpose flour

1 c brown sugar

1 c chopped nuts, optional

1/2 c melted butter

pinch of ground cinnamon

The Cake

1 1/2 lbs. (cantaloupe size portion) Brioche Dough (recipe to follow the instructions)

butter for greasing the pan

2 small apples, 1 tart, 1 sweet, thinly sliced

1 bosc pear, thinly sliced (I didn't have a pear so I just used apples)

3 tbsp brown sugar

zest of 1/2 an orange (next time I make this I wouldn't use this)

1 1/2 c streusel topping (above)

1. Prepare the topping: Combine all the streusel ingredients in a bowl and mix until the butter is roughly incorporated. Don't overmix- you want a crumbly texture. Set aside.

2. Assembling the cake: Grease an 8 inch cake pan with butter and dust with flour. Set aside.

3. Toss apples, pear, brown sugar, and zest together in a small bowl and set aside.

4. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a cantaloupe size piece. Dust with more flour and quickly shate it into a rough ball.

5. Roll out the dough into a 1/8 inch thick rectangle, approximately 12x16 inches. As you roll out the dough, add flour as needed to prevent sticking.

6. Cut the dough into two 8 inch rounds, by tracing the bottom of the pan. (save your scraps for cinnamon twists)

7. Place one of the dough rounds in the bottom of the prepared cake pan. Top with 1/2 the apple mixture and then sprinkle 1/2 the streusel over it. Repeat with the next layer of dough and apple/streusel.

8. Rest the cake for 1 hour 20 min.

9. 20 min before baking time, preheat the oven to 375.

10. Bake the cake in the center of the oven about 45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.

11. Allow to cool for 10 to 15 min. If not using a spring form pan, then invert the cake onto a plate and then invert it to another plate so the top is actually on top again. I think using a spring for pan, 8 inch size, is perfect.

12. Serve warm or at room temperature with whipped cream, or just on its own.

Brioche Dough

Makes four 1 lb loaves. The recipe is easily doubled or halved.

1 1/2 c lukewarm water

1 1/2 tbsp yeast (2 pkts)

1 1/2 tbsp kosher salt

8 eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 c honey

1 1/2 c unsalted butter,(3 sticks) melted, plus butter for greasing the pan

7 1/2 c all purpose flour

egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp water)

1. Mix the yeast, salt, eggs, honey, and melted butter with the water in a 5 qt bowl.

2. Mix in the flour without kneading. If you aren't using a mixer with dough hook, you may need to to use wet hands to incorporate the last bit of flour. The dough will be loose but will firm up when chilled; don't try to work with it before chilling. (You may notice lumps in the dough but they will disappear in the finished products.)

3. Cover(not air tight), and allow to rest at room temperature, until dough rises and collapses (or flattens on top), approx. 2 hrs.

4. The dough can be used as soon as it is chilled after the initial rise. Refrigerate in a lidded (not airtight) container and use over the next 5 days.

**Now follow the instructions above for the coffee cake, or use these for just plain brioche. **

5. Defrost the dough overnight in the refrigerator if frozen. On baking day, grease a 9x4x3 inch nonstick loaf pan. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off 1 lb (grapefruit size) piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a 1/4 turn as you go.

6. Elongate into an oval and place in a prepared pan. Allow to rest for 1 hr 20 min.

7. Twenty min before baking time, preheat oven to 350.

8. Using a pastry brush, brush the top crust with egg wash.

9. Place the bread near the center of the oven and bake for 35 to 40 min, or until a medium golden brown. Due to the fat in the dough, brioch will not form a hard, crackling crust.

10. Allow to cool before slicing or eating.