The Kugelhopf
German or French, Gugelhopf or Kugelhopf, this famous breakfast bread has a multitude of stories behind it. Some say the Kugelhopf came to France by way of the Austrian Marie Antoinette, the French queen at that time. Despite the name and where it came from, the Kugelhopf has become a symbol of hospitality throughout the Alsatian region of France. The Alsatian legend begins in a town called Ribeauvillé, where both the pastry and the traditional ceramic ring mold are said to have originated. As the legend goes, a potter named Kugel invited three weary travelers into his home. They were three kings returning to Germany after visiting the Christ Child in the Holy Land. Gaspard, Melchior, and Balthazar were on the verge of perishing when they were taken in and fed that evening by the humble potter. As a show of thanks the next morning, the kings made Kugel, a special cake - that has now become Kugelhopf. The name coined from the hopf, hopf sound that resonated from the potter s wooden leg. In Paris, it is often soaked with syrup and coated with granulated sugar. In Alsace, the cooled bread is dusted with powdered sugar. Others use raisins, nuts, or candied fruits. Similar in appearance to a brioche or savarin, it seems every shop has its own version of the Kugelhopf. Served with a nice jam and butter, this is as a wonderful holiday or everyday delight. Importance of Scaling You will notice that our recipes are measured in grams. This is not only the traditional French way of measuring ingredients in pastry and baking but it is also the most common practice among pastry chefs in general. In pastry, you have to be as exact as possible, and measuring in grams allows you to do that even more so than with ounces. For example, if a recipe calls for 4 grams of salt, that is equivalent to even less than one fifth of an ounce! If you don t already have one, you can find a digital scale in many kitchen supply stores (or office supply stores), and they often measure in grams as well as ounces.
Kugelhopf (Base Temp 54ºC) Yield: 20 cm or 8 wide mold Ingredients: 1x = 1 Kugelhopf 3x = 4 Kugelhopf Fresh Whole Milk 230 g 690 g Dry Yeast 20 g 60 g King Arthur Pastry Flour 60 g 180 g King Arthur Bread Flour 340 g 1,020 g Sea Salt 10 g 30 g Sucrose 32 g 96 g Fresh Whole Eggs 40 g 120 g Plugrá Butter 82 % Fat 120 g 360 g Golden Raisins 100 g 300 g Premium Gastronomie Kirsch d Alsace (40%, 80 proof) 10 g 30 g Total Weight: 962 g 2,886 g Method: Soak the raisins in the kirsch. Mix the milk with the yeast in a mixing bowl. Cover it with the pastry flour and let ferment until cracks form on the surface of the flour. Add the salt, sucrose, bread flour, and eggs. Mix in a slow gear until the dough is elastic and wraps around the hook. Add half of the butter in slow gear until incorporated (2-3 minutes). Add the rest of the butter in medium gear (4-5 minutes). Finally, mix in the Kirsch soaked raisins. Place the dough in a bowl, dust with flour, and cover with plastic wrap. Let double in volume in a warm place (24ºC / 75ºF).
Press down to push out the first gasses and place in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Press down again to push out the second gasses and place in the refrigerator overnight. Rinse the whole almonds in water. Grease the Kugelhopf molds and place the almonds at the bottom of the molds. Weigh the appropriate amount of dough for the size of the mold. The dough should reach half way up the side of the mold. Shape the dough into a ball. Make a hole in the center and place the dough in the mold. Let the dough double in volume in a proofer. Bake at 200ºC/392ºF (deck oven) for 40-50 minutes until baked. Take out of the mold and place on a wire rack to cool. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with confectionery sugar.
Once the gluten is fully developed, add kirsch soaked raisins and mix on 1 st speed until combined.
Shape a piece of the dough into a ball to fit the size of the mold. Make a hole in the center and enlarge. The dough should reach half way up the side of the mold.
Place whole almonds on the bottom of the buttered mold. Place the seam side down into a mold, gently pressing to ensure the dough makes contact with the almonds.
Bake at 199ºC/390ºF for approximately 40-50 minutes. Take out of the mold and place on a wire rack to cool.
When cool, brush with melted butter and dust with powdered sugar.
About The French Pastry School The French Pastry School of Kennedy-King College at City Colleges of Chicago is the premier international institution of pastry arts education. Superb instruction, superior equipment, and top quality ingredients enable the co-founders, Chefs Jacquy Pfeiffer and Sébastien Canonne, M.O.F., to uphold an exceptional educational facility for all things sweet and baked. The French Pastry School s team of award-winning instructors has grown to a faculty of many renowned chefs, including Nicole Bujewski, Patrick Doucet, Anthony Kosar, John Kraus, Sunny Lee, Eric Perez, and Joel Reno; Master Baker, Jonathan Dendauw; United States Master Baker, Jeffrey Hamelman; Master Cake Artist, Nicholas Lodge; World Baking Champion, Pierre Zimmermann; and World Pastry Champions, Patrice Caillot and En-Ming Hsu. The French Pastry School instructs over one thousand students and pastry professionals in hands-on classes each year and offers three main programs: L Art de la Pâtisserie, a full-time 24-week pastry and baking certificate program; L Art du Gâteau, The Professional Cake Baking and Decorating Program, a full-time 16-week certificate program; L Art de la Boulangerie, an 8-week Artisanal Bread Baking Course; and Continuing Education courses, 3- to 5-day long classes year-round for professionals as well as food enthusiasts. Additionally, the Chef Instructors of The French Pastry School lead demonstrations on the premises and around the country for thousands more pastry professionals and enthusiasts. The French Pastry School offers you the rare opportunity to learn the art of pastry in an intimate setting, being personally mentored by masters in their field. Your skills will be finely honed through hands-on practice and repeated exposure to the best pastry techniques, tools, and ingredients. Our school is dedicated only to the art of pastry, and it is our goal to be the finest pastry school in the United States, producing the best-prepared professionals entering the industry. The French Pastry School's programs are approved by the Illinois Community College Board through Kennedy-King College at City Colleges of Chicago. Students in our full-time certificate programs earn from 16 to 24 college credit hours.