CHOCOLATE GLAZE

Method: Sift the cocoa powder. Mix the dry ingredients together. Combine the wet ingredients and slowly incorporate them into the dry. Whisk until completely incorporated.

Formulation Tips for Success

1. Reserve half the sugar and all the butter and berries. Do not add to the dough until the gluten is almost completely developed, near the end of mixing. Wait to add the berries until the other reserved ingredients have been incorporated and the dough has developed. These ingredients interfere with gluten development and prolong the mixing process. Prolonged mixing causes oxidation and loss of flavor.

2. Do not add the butter in chunks. Rather, beat the cold butter into a pliable disk with a rolling pin before adding. Chunks of butter do not incorporate well, leading to pools of butter in the dough, decreased volume and richness, and a denser, drier end product with a shorter shelf life.

3. Use osmotolerant yeast in this enriched dough; it performs much better than regular yeast in the relatively high-sugar environment of the brioche dough. If not using osmotolerant yeast, increase the amount of regular yeast in the dough.

4. The desired dough temperature at the end of the mix is 74°F to 75°F. If you overmix the dough, the temperature will be too high. If this happens, flatten the dough onto a sheet pan; cover with plastic wrap and chill until the dough is at the desired temperature. Then, allow the dough to bulk ferment at room temperature, 70°F.

The San Francisco Baking Institute (SFBI) is a world-renowned leader in artisan bread and pastry education. Its global alumni base includes thousands of professionals, educators and enthusiasts. Critics hail its book, Advanced Bread and Pastry, as the authoritative textbook in the field. For more information, visit SFBI's website, www.sfbi.com.