CROISSANTS
These flaky, golden-colored crescent-shaped pastries are
best made with pure butter and slightly sweetened yeast dough. The yellow-white interior should be slightly elastic when cut and spread with
butter and jam.
Experts say that
croissants were influenced by Austrian kipfels. This pastry originated in 1683
as a celebration of the Austrian victory over the Ottoman Turks, their shape mimicking the crescent on the
Turkish flag.
One of the true classics of French cuisine, croissants are
not at all easy to make but are worth the trouble.
Ingredients
For 500 g (1 lb) puff pastry:
210 g (1 2/3 cup + 2 tbsp) plain flour
85 ml ( 1/3 cup + 1 tsp) milk
5 g (1 tsp) yeast
30 g (2 tbsp) sugar
10 g (2 tsp) salt
Glazing
1 egg yolk
First, prepare the puff pastry, Take a small bowl and dilute
the yeast with some milk and dissolve the sugar and salt in another bowl.
Place the flour in a 3rd large bowl and pour in
the milk, sugar and salt mixture followed by the diluted yeast. Knead the dough by hand until its texture is
smooth, adding a little water if the dough seems too firm.
Now cover the bowl with cling film and a small blanket and
let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 2 hours. Next, transfer the dough to a floured surface
and punch it with your fist to release the carbon dioxide produced during the
fermentation and the dough will return to its initial volume.
Using a knife make a cross-shaped cut in the centre of the
dough spread each quarter like a flower petal and roll until it is 2 mm (1/16
inch) but make sure to leave a small
thicker bulge in the centre
Take small pieces of softened butter and place them on top. Now
roll each rolled quarter over the butter, so that the dough takes a square
form.
The next stage is called “turning”. Gently roll out the
dough into a rectangle 3 times long as it is wide. The edges should be as
straight as possible. Now fold the dough to form a rectangular envelope to give
its 1st turn.
Now cover the dough with cling film and place it in the
refrigerator for 1 hour. Do 2 more turns
as described above and place them in the fridge for another hour. Now roll out the dough so it is 6 mm ( ¼
inch) thick and cut into isosceles triangles the bases should be 14 cm (5.5
inches) and the sides 16 cm (6.3 inches). Now roll out each triangle starting
from the base to the top.
Line the baking pan with parchment and place the croissants
on top. Make sure you leave enough space
between them because they will rise.
Whisk the egg yolk with some water and brush this mixture over the
croissant and let them sit for one hour until they double in volume. In the meantime preheat the oven to180 C (350
F), brush the top of the croissants with diluted egg yolk and bake for 20 minutes
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