Coconut Brioche Snails

I'm aware of the inappropriateness of all this.  This is a rather depressing post for such beautiful brioche snails.  I hope it doesn't put you off and so I warn you, skip to the recipe first.  I had made these over the summer and they were a huge hit with my family.  Perhaps if I had one now I'd be in a better mood.   

I always over analyze my own feelings.  I refuse to believe that I can get upset over little things so I dig deeper to find out exactly what's causing me to feel this way. 

Winter. That's what I'll blame this on. It's that time of the year again. The sun begins to set at 14:30 and it's pitch black by 16:00. The days are shorter and longer at the same time, and you're just waiting for the next day to begin so it'll be better. You've been waiting forever, but it's only mid afternoon, so it's too early to stop working, too early to have dinner, and too early to just go to sleep and forget about the day. And it's cold. It's so cold. It's that Scottish humid cold that soaks you to the bones, accompanied by that dreadful wind and the drizzle that spits you in the face. The lack of light and warmth can really get to you. Yea, it must be the winter that's causing me to be such a nuisance.

Hormones. That's what I'll blame this on. It's that time of the month again. Everything annoys me and I just know that anything, even as small and silly as spoiled milk, has the potential of making me lose my nerves. It's got to be the hormonal imbalance that's making me feel this way.

St.Andrews. The town itself, the places, the people. The fact that everyone on the street is between the age group of 17 and 24, and the fact that I recognize half their faces. Essays, coursework, my modules, all being such a bore and difficult to comprehend. My house, my kitchen, the library, everything just being so oppressive and... It's just everything.  It's the winter and the hormones and St. Andrews.  That's it.  

Oh writing about it does make it a lot better.  Again, I'm so sorry for all this, please still try these brioche snails out. They're really good, I promise. 

Recipe adapted from The Fresh Loaf
Ingredients
Dough
3 ½ cup plain flour
2 tsp instant yeast
¾ cup milk
1 ½ tsp salt
4 tbsp sugar
3 eggs

Filling (this is only for half the dough, half the dough makes 8 brioche snails)
1/3 cup shredded coconut
1/3 cup sugar

1 egg, 1 tbsp milk for egg wash
2 tbsp water, 2 tbsp sugar and ½ tsp vanilla for glaze

Method
Mix the dry ingredients together then stir in the eggs and milk until well incorporated. Slowly knead in the butter, bit by bit until all combined, then leave in a bowl to rise in a warm place for two hours. Press the air out and then cover and leave it to rise over night.

Cut the dough in half.  Reserve one half in the bowl for another use. Roll the other half out into a big triangle, about the size of a 15 inch MacBook. Brush with egg wash, then prinkle with coconut and sugar, reserving about 1/2 cup full. Cut into 16 strips. Pick up two strips, stretch them as long as possible, then braid the two together by just putting one over the other, and roll it up to form a snail. Repeat with the rest to form 8 snails.

Place them on a baking sheet, brush with more egg wash, and sprinkle with some more coconut and sugar.

Bake for about 15 minutes in an oven preheated at 200C. Immediately brush with the sugar water glaze.