Christmas Brioche Recipe

Mix yeast with warm water and set aside to soften.
With a mixer, cream the butter, sugar, vanilla, orange peel,and salt until fluffy.
Beat in eggs and yolks, a few at a time, blending well.
Then add yeast and milk and gradually mix in 4 1/2 cups of the flour; you may have to work in the last portion of flour with your hands or a spoon.
Turn dough onto a heavily floured (about 3/4 cup) board and knead until smooth and quite elastic, about 15 minutes.
Add more flour if necessary.
Butter a large bowl; turn dough over in it to coat surface.
Cover and let rise in a warm place for about 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in bulk.
Snowflake Design: Turn dough onto a lightly floured board and knead into a smooth ball.
Pinch off a lump of dough about 3 inches in diameter to use for decorating and reshape both pieces into smooth balls.
Flatten large ball with hands to a 1/2 to 3/4-inch-thick circle on buttered foil or a 14-inch pizza pan.
Invert a bowl (about half the diameter of the dough circle) in the center of the dough circle.
Make about 20 evenly spaced cuts with floured kitchen scissors around the dough in sunburst or petal fashion, from the outside of the circle in to the bowl.
Twist each of the 20 "petals" tight (several twists each).
Remove the bowl.
Slip foil (if pan is not used) onto rimless baking sheet (one sheet or two baking sheets overlapping).
To decorate, form little pieces of dough from small ball into teardrop shapes by pulling surface of dough to underside, so base is pointed.
With a floured finger poke holes into the center of the large cake of dough (where the bowl rested); nest teardrops in them.
Let dough rise, uncovered, in a warm place until well puffed, 30 to 45 minutes.
Brush surface with beaten egg white.
Bake in a 325° oven for 45 to 50 minutes or until richly browned.