Caramelized Pear and Hazelnut Cozonac

This caramelized pear and hazelnut cozonac is a variation on classic Romanian cozonac, a soft and fluffy braided brioche loaf enjoyed around holidays like Christmas and Easter.

Last Christmas I spent a few weeks really perfecting my classic cozonac recipe, resulting in a perfectly fluffy brioche dough that comes apart in beautiful gossamer strips.

I love the classic combination of cocoa and walnut flavored with rum but I'm also a big fan of trying new flavor combinations.

The pears are cooked together with butter, sugar and pear liquor which makes a sauce that I can only describe as pear caramel - add a pinch of sea salt to make it salted caramel - so good.

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• Ingredients
• Equipment
• Instructions
• Serving and Storing
• Related
• Recipe
• Comments

Ingredients

Ingredients for the brioche dough

• Flour: The best flour for cozonac is high protein white flour - the protein content should be at least 10%. This means 10 grams protein per 100 grams flour. If you can find higher protein content up to 13% that's also great. King Arthur Bread Flour is a good option at 12.7% protein content, for the Canadians, Five Roses Bleached All Purpose White Flour is about 13% protein content.
• Milk (lukewarm): Milk provides the necessary moisture to make the brioche dough light, fluffy and springy.
• White sugar: White sugar which is the traditional choice for cozonac. Substituting brown sugar will likely alter the moisture balance and color.
• Eggs & egg yolks: The dough calls needs both whole egg and egg yolks which provide structure and body.
• Butter (unsalted and softened to room temperature): If you are starting with fridge-cold butter, you can also cube it and pop it in the microwave for 10-15 seconds - just enough to soften it. If a little bit of it melts that's okay too.
• Salt: Salt balances the sweetness in the dough to bring a more complex, well-rounded flavor while also stabilizing the gluten structure.
• Yeast: You can use either dry yeast (active dry or instant) or fresh yeast for this recipe. There is absolutely no difference in the final cozonac. If you use dry yeast, be sure to bloom it so you don't realize too late if it's expired. Active dry yeast will bloom in 10-15 minutes while instant yeast only takes about 5 minutes. If using fresh yeast then you don't need to bloom it.
• Vanilla bean paste: Vanilla bean paste or whole vanilla bean makes the dough fragrant. I like Nielsen Massey Vanilla Bean Paste.
• Vanilla extract: Using both paste and extract layers in the vanilla aroma. For extract I like Nielsen Massey Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Bean Extract.

Ingredients for the filling

• Fresh pears: Any variety of pear can be used but they should be quite ripe.
• Butter: Butter adds flavor and silky body to the sauce.
• Sugar: The sugar caramelizes into a thick, golden sauce.
• Pear Liqueur: I used eau de vie, a French spirit often made from pears and that has a delicate pear aroma. If you can't find pear liqueur you can use apple or even citrus (I've used Italicus bergamot liqueur before too and it's lovely).
• Vanilla Extract: Vanilla adds warm notes.
• Sea Salt: The salt turns the pear caramel into salted pear caramel.
• Hazelnut: Using blanched and roasted hazelnuts is best. Rough chop them to be able to distribute them more evenly.

Equipment

Loaf pan: You will need a loaf pan for this recipe. The following loaf pan sizes will work.

• Small standard loaf pan measuring 25cm long by 10cm wide (internal dimensions), 8cm deep with a capacity of 1.7 liters / 7 cups. Or 9.5" long by 4" wide by 3" tall in US standard measures.
• Large standard loaf pan measuring 30cm long by 12cm wide (internal dimensions), 9cm deep with a capacity of 2.4 liters / 9.75 cups. Or 12" long by 5" wide by 4" tall.

If you are using a pan that's substantially different from these dimensions, you may need to make your own adjustments to the baking time.

The loaf pan used here is metal and prepared with a mixture of butter and flour to make it non-stick. You can also use a loaf pan made from other materials like ceramic, glass, enamel or silicone but be sure to prepare it so it's non-stick.

Stand mixer: A stand mixer is crucial in this recipe because it does a lot of the heavy lifting in terms of gluten development. I use a KitchenAid Artisan Mixer with the dough hook attachment. You can use other types of mixers, see instructions for details on mixing speed. If you don't have a mixer you can try kneading by hand or doing a no-knead method by adapting the method described in this King Arthur Flour Recipe for Strawberry Swirl No Knead Brioche. I haven't tested those methods with this recipe so I can't guarantee the results will be the same as the ones shown here.

Aluminum foil: Aluminum foil is necessary to cover the cozonac while it's baking so it doesn't' get too dark.

Baking / parchment paper: The baking paper makes it a bit easier to move the cozonac into the loaf pan and then take it out. It isn't necessary but makes things a bit easier.

Pastry brush: A pastry brush or fine basting brush makes it easier to apply the final eggwash on the cozonac. You can also do this gently with your fingers if you don't have a pastry brush.

Instructions

These instructions are a shortened version of the ones in my traditional cozonac recipe. The information here should be sufficient but in case any questions arise then you can find more detailed information in the cozonac post.

The whole process of making brioche dough depends on gluten development. You can really help the gluten along by proofing in a warm oven as indicated in the directions in this section. Just be careful not to overdo it. Don't proof for longer or at a higher temperature.

Step 1: Make the sponge with a portion of the ingredients as indicated in the recipe card and let it rise in a warm oven (50 C / 120 F) for 15-20 minutes until bubbly;

Step 2: Add the sponge to the bowl of the stand mixer with the rest of the dough ingredients except the butter.

Step 3: Start the mixer on low and set a timer for 10 minutes;

Step 4: After 10 minutes, set a timer for 20 minutes and begin adding the butter slowly. After a total of 30 minutes of mixing, the dough should have sufficient gluten - you can test it by seeing if the dough passes the window pane test i.e. can it be stretched thin enough to see through it as shown in the photo below.

Step 5: Proof in a warm oven (50 C / 120 F) for 20 minutes. You will need to do a total of 3 rounds of proofing for 20 minutes each, separated by a series of 3-4 'stretch and folds' in between. After the final stretch and fold, leave it to cool and rest at room temperature for 15-20 minutes.

Step 6: While the dough is proofing, you can make the filling. Combine all the ingredients together (except the hazelnuts) in a skillet and heat over medium, stirring often. After about 20 minutes the sugars will have caramelized and the whole mixture will thicken.

Set the filling aside to cool while you finish proofing and rolling out the dough.

Step 7: After the final rest the dough is ready to roll out and shape. Cut the dough into three equal pieces. For best results, weigh the dough and divide into equal pieces. Roll out the pieces one at a time, while keeping the unrolled dough covered so it doesn't dry out.

Step 8: Distribute the filling equally on the pieces of dough and spread it out in a thin layer.

Step 10: Roll the pieces of dough into carpet-like rolls, then bring together the ends of the rolls and braid them together.

It makes it much easier if you do this with a sheet of baking paper underneath (cut it to less than the width of the loaf pan and you can use it like a little harness to pick up the dough and place it in the loaf pan).

Step 11: Proof the dough one more time in the loaf pan for 20 minutes, then apply eggwash all over and bake.

After baking be sure to allow the cozonac to cool for at least 15-20 minutes as cutting it too soon can compress the dough and make it dense.

Serving and Storing

Traditional cozonac is usually served as a dessert after Christmas dinner or Easter meals, usually pre-sliced and fanned out on a plate. Often the sliced cozonac isn't finished, so it's also enjoyed for breakfast with coffee during the holidays.

I think this pear and hazelnut cozonac would be especially nice for Easter, since it has lighter flavors more reminiscent of spring.

Cozonac is best stored whole in an airtight zipper bag at room temperature. A whole cozonac will stay fresh for a day or maybe 2 when stored this way.

If you end up having leftover pre-sliced cozonac, you can also store it in an airtight zipper bag at room temperature for up to 2 days. Any longer and it starts to dry out so it's better to freeze it. Alternatively you can let the slices fully dry out and make cozonac French toast.

Related

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