C'est la pièce de résistance. This is our last SMB (or "Simba" as Will likes to call it) for the year, as we'll soon be back in the US for a month long holiday (woo!). For this reason we wanted today's SMB to be good; and it is. We made
croissants.
From scratch. And it was easy. Granted, the croissants did take some planning ahead. The dough needed to chill in the fridge for HOURS, so we had to start the recipe two days before we intended on consuming the croissants. Also, there still is a bit of prep work required the morning of eating, so serving the croissants for brunch is probably a better idea than serving them for breakfast (unless you don't mind waking up early on your one day to sleep in). With those things in mind, here it is: la pièce de résistance.
CroissantsAdapted from French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille GuillianoFor dough:
1 cup milk + 2 tbsp to brush over croissants
2 tsp active dry yeast
2 1/4 cups + 3 tbsp sifted all purpose flour (measure and reserve in separate bowls)
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
12 tbsp unsalted butter*
For glaze:
1 egg yolk mixed with 1 tbsp milk
DAY 1 (Thursday Evening if enjoying Saturday)
Heat 1 cup of milk to lukewarm. Dissolve the yeast into 1/4 cup of the lukewarm milk. Stir in 2 tbsp flour (from the 2 1/4 cups) and whisk until there are no lumps. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature until doubled in volume (approximately 20 minutes).
Mix the sugar and salt into the remaining 2 1/8 cups flour (formerly the 2 1/4 cups).
Heat the remaining milk. Transfer the raised dough to a large bowl , add the lukewarm milk, and mixing at a high speed (by electric mixer with dough hook or by hand with a dough whisk) start adding the sugar, salt, and flour a little bit at a time, reducing the speed to low-medium until the dough is sticky and soft.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
DAY 2 (Friday morning/afternoon if enjoying Saturday)*
Bring the butter to room temperature. On a large, flat surface use the heel of your hand to incorporate the remaining 3 tbsp of flour into the butter until smooth. Shape into a square.
Sprinkle the work surface (a marble slab is ideal, but your counter or cutting board will work fine) with flour. Shape the cold dough into a 6x15 inch rectangle and spread the butter square on the upper 2/3 of the rectangle, leaving a 1/2 inch border around the sides and top. Fold the dough like a letter into thirds. Turn the dough counterclockwise (it will look like a notebook with the flap on your right), and then again roll out the dough into a 6x15 inch rectangle and fold as before.
Transfer the dough to a baking pan, cover with plastic wrap, and let chill for 6 hours.
DAY 2 (Friday afternoon/evening if enjoying on Saturday)
Roll out the dough two more times, fold/wrap, cover and chill overnight.*
DAY 3 (Saturday morning if enjoying that day!)
About 1 1/2 hours before baking time, remove the dough from the refrigerator and sprinkle your work surface with flour. Roll the dough into a 16-inch circle, working as quickly as possible (you want the dough to stay cooler so it is easier to manipulate neatly). Using a knife, cut the dough circle into quarters, and then cut each quarter into three triangles (think how you would cut a round pizza).
With both hands, roll the base of each triangle towards its point. Do not curl the ends into a croissant shape. Transfer the croissants to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or Silpat and brush with the 2 tbsp of milk. Let stand at room temperature for about 45 minutes, or until doubled in volume.
Preheat the oven to 400 F/190 C. Brush the croissants with the glaze and bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. If the croissants brown too quickly, cover them loosely with foil and continue baking. Let cool 20 minutes before serving.
Makes 12 petits croissants. Our Variations
For Chocolate Croissants: Place bits of roughly chopped [70% dark] chocolate on dough triangles. Roll as instructed, trying to keep chocolate bits inside croissant.
For Almond Croissants: Mix confectioners sugar and water (more sugar than water) to create a light icing. Brush on baked croissants. Sprinkle with sliced almonds.
From left to right: Almond, Plain, Chocolate.*Notes*
1. Butter: I think you can get away with using 10 tbsp; I found 12 tbsp almost too buttery for my taste. I plan on testing this next time I make croissants (which will be awhile). However, I would not use less than 10 tbsp or even think of substituting the butter. Croissants are supposed to be a delicious buttery pastry, why try to pretend it's something else? You're not going to be making or eating them everyday, so make them right and enjoy them as they are intended to be enjoyed. This is one of the secrets of why French women don't get fat, even though they make and eat croissants with 12 tbsp of butter.
2. I totally dropped the ball on this one. I didn't realise the dough had to refrigerate for 6 hours the day before baking as well as overnight. I started working on the second stage of croissant making around 8pm Friday night. Oops. Since we were staying up late to watch a movie, things worked out alright. The dough was able to chill for about 3-4 hours in the fridge as well as overnight and it came out fine.
3. Why all the rolling and folding? You're gradually incorporating the butter into the dough until they become one, super buttery dough.
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