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Happy Christmas Eve!
Today, we are taking a little holiday trip to Provence in baking the Gibassier. I first tried this fluffy pastry bread at the Pearl Bakery and quickly became infatuated with it. Anise, orange flower water, and candied orange rind give it a delicate and unusual flavor. Plus, it’s coated in sugar. C’est parfait!
I followed the Fresh Loaf’s recipe. The recipe includes many steps, including creating a fermented starter the night before. The most difficult aspect was trying to be accurate in measurements; I used a scale that made precise gram measurements difficult. Still, the recipe flowed well and smelled delightful as it developed. For measurements and instructions, see the link above. This post is a photographic journey to my first Gibassier!
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My Christmas Eve Baking Outfit, powered by the tutu I made a few days ago. Gotta have some spirit, right?
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Ingredient lineup: sugar, bread flour, olive oil, salt, butter, yeast, anise seed, orange flour water, candied orange peel. Not pictured: eggs.
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Pre-ferment mix. The night before (left) and the next morning (right.)
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Olive oil and orange flower water.
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Smashing the butter!
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Chopped candied orange peel and anise seed. So pretty.
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After mixing the dough, it needs to sit to create an awesome plastic bubble.
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90-100 gram balls of dough, resting for 20 minutes.
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Each dough ball gets rolled, then pressed into a half-circle. Next, use a flat edge to cut three slits into the center of the roll, then four slits around the edges.
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Glazing the pastries with a milk-egg mix before baking.
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The finished product, brushed with clarified butter and covered with sugar. Perfectly airy and sweet.Now I’m off to spend time with family. Bon soir!
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