Brioche Raisin Snails

With the 2nd half of the brioche recipe, I decided to make these. They sounded marvelous and as fast as they were eaten, I guess they were! This recipe is yet another by Dorie Greenspan.

These are the Sun-Maid raisins I used in my snails.
They are fabulous. A variety of colors and flavors.



FOR THE RAISIN SNAILS
1 cup moist, plump raisins (I used Sun-Maid Mixed Plump)
3 Tbls dark rum
1 1/2 tsp sugar
Scant 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon (I used fresh ground in a mill)
1/2 recipe dough for Golden Brioche Loaves, chilled and ready to shape)
1/2 recipe Pastry Cream



FOR THE OPTIONAL GLAZE
3/4 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted
About 1 tsp water
Drop of pure vanilla extract (I used Vanilla Paste)

GETTING READY:  Line one large or two smaller baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

Put the raisins in a small saucepan, cover them with hot water and let them steep for about 4 minutes, until they are plumped. Drain the raisins, return them to the saucepan and, stirring constantly, warm them over low heat. When the raisins are very hot, pull the pan from the heat and pour over the rum. The raisins and rum can be kept in a covered jar for up to 1 day.

Mix the sugar and cinnamon together.

On a flour-dusted surface, roll the dough into a rectangle about 12" wide and 16" long, with a short end toward you. Spread the pastry cream across the dough, leaving a 1-inch strip bare on the side farthest from you. Scatter the raisins over the pastry cream and sprinkle the raisins and cream with the cinnamon sugar. Starting with the side nearest you, roll the dough into a cylinder, keeping the roll as tight as you can. (At this point, you can wrap the dough airtight and freeze it for up to 2 months. Or, if you do not want to make the full recipe, use as much of the dough as you'd like and freeze the remainder.)

With a chef's knife, using a gentle sawing motion, trim just a tiny bit from the ends if they're very ragged or not well filled, then cut the log into rounds a scant 1 inch thick. Put the snails on the lined baking sheet(s), leaving some puff space between them.

Lightly cover the snails with wax paper and set the baking sheet(s) in a warm place until the snails have doubled in volume- they'll be puffy and soft- about 1 hr and 30 minutes.

GETTING READY TO BAKE: When the snails have almost fully risen, preheat the oven: depending on the number of baking sheets you have, either center a rack in the oven or position the racks to divide the oven into thirds & preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Remove the wax paper, and bake the snails for about 25 minutes (rotate the sheets, if using two, from top to bottom and front to back after 15 minutes), or until they are puffed & richly browned. Using a metal spatula, transfer the snails to a cooling rack.

IF YOU WANT TO GLAZE THE SNAILS: put a piece of wax paper under the rack of warm rolls to act as a drip catcher. Put the confectioners' sugar in a small bowl, and stir in the teaspoon of water. Keep adding water drop by drop until you have an icing that falls from the tip of the spoon. Add the vanilla extract, then drizzle the icing over the hot snails.