I ate this brioche, flavored with turmeric, in two starred restaurants: one in Milan, in the Navigli, and one in Noto. It is a crunchy but soft, buttery bread that doesn’t taste greasy. Wonderful.
I’ve been trying to figure it out for months, looking for a similar recipe that could act as a substitute.
I therefore decided to adapt a recipe from Paola Sersante by replacing the aroma of turmeric with the savory flavor of the cheeses. A delicacy!

Puffed cheese brioche

  • Preparation time: 18 hours
  • Ingredients for 8 single-portion brioches
  • Difficulty:Difficult recipe

  • Ingredients
  • For the dough:
  • 8 oz (220 grams) of bread flour
  • 1 egg
  • 1/3 cup 2 tbs (100 ml) of water
  • 1 ounce (35 ml) of extra virgin olive oil
  • ¼ oz (5 grams) of salt
  • ½ oz (10 grams) of sugar
  • ½ oz (12 grams) of fresh brewer’s yeast
  • To brown:
  • 4 oz (100 grams) of butter
  • To season:
  • 2 oz (50 grams) of grated pecorino cheese
  • 2 oz (50 grams) of diced provolone
  1. Instructions
  2. Put the egg, sugar, water, and yeast in the mixer and start mixing at low speed. Add the flour a little at a time, mixing very well.
  3. Knead until the dough is smooth; this will take about ten minutes.
  4. At this point, add the salt and oil and knead until everything is absorbed well.
  5. Roll the dough out and put it in a covered bowl to rise for about half an hour.
  6. Take the dough and roll it out into a rectangular shape. Cover it with clingfilm and put it in the refrigerator to cool.
  7. Take the butter and put it inside a sheet of baking paper. Beat it with a rolling pin giving it the shape of a rectangle. Put it back in the refrigerator.
  8. When the dough and the rectangle of butter are the same temperature, start to assemble them. Place the butter in the center of the dough and then fold the flaps of dough both along the edges and in the center.
  9. Now roll the dough very gently with a rolling pin so as to not break the embedded butter and give the first fold to 4. Cover with cellophane and leave in the refrigerator for at least thirty minutes.
  10. Take the dough and stretch it with a rolling pin to give the second fold at 3. Cover it with cellophane and again leave it in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours before using it.
  11. After this time, use a rolling pin to roll out the rectangular dough up to a thickness of 0 1/8 inch. Sprinkle the dough with pecorino and diced provolone and roll it up. Cut the roll every 1 ¼ inch and place each piece in a greased muffin pan.
  12. Leave them to rise in a warm place until doubled in size.
  13. Preheat the oven to 325°F.
  14. Brush them with milk and bake in the oven until brown – generally around 30 minutes.

Tips to ensure the success of the dish:

  • Fats should always be added when the dough is already very smooth. Do not work it excessively, as otherwise it becomes tough and will not spread easily with a rolling pin to make the tournage.
  • The timing of cooking in the oven is indicative because it depends on the oven