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how to make croissants
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5 from 1 vote

Croissants

This recipe has been adapted from Le Foodist
Prep Time5 hours
Cook Time14 minutes
Total Time5 hours 14 minutes
Course: Dessert, Snack
Cuisine: French
Servings: 20 Servings

Ingredients

Poolish

  • 10 g Dried Yeast
  • 112 g Room Temperature Water
  • 75 g All Purpose Flour

Dough

  • 375 g Pastry Flour
  • 75 g All Purpose Flour
  • 175 g Room Temperature Whole Milk
  • 100 g Unsalted Butter
  • 50 g Sugar
  • 12 g Salt

Butter Block

  • 350 g Unsalted Butter

Egg Wash

  • 1 Egg
  • 1 Egg Yolk
  • Pinch of Salt

Instructions

Make the Poolish (Starter Dough)

  • In the bowl of your stand mixer add the yeast and water and mix well.  Add in the water and mix well. 
  • In a separate bowl mix together the 375g of Pastry Flour and 75g of All Purpose Flour.  Place all this flour on top of the yeast mixture.  Level the top of the flour and press slightly with a small bowl.  Cover the bowl and leave to activate the yeast for 30 minutes.

Make the Dough and Butter Square

  • Check your poolish and make sure there are cracks forming through the flour.  Once this happens add in the milk, butter, sugar and salt to the mixture.  When adding in the sugar and salt take care to not tip them on the yeast that might be seeping out, only place it on the flour.
  • Using the dough hook on your mixer, turn it on to meduim speed and mix for 3-5 minutes until the dough starts wrapping around the hook and you hear a slapping sound against the mixing bowl.  Stop the mixer once you here it slap.
  • Cover the bowl with a tea towel and leave to rise in a humid environment.  To make a makeshift one place a cup of just boiled water in a cold oven and place your covered bowl next to it.  Leave to double in size for an hour.
  • Once it has doubled line your bench with plastic wrap and form the dough into a 14x10 in rectangle.  Cover and put in the refrigerator.
  • Take the butter and put it in between to pieces of parchment paper.  Pound it down to a 15x15 in square.  Put in the refrigerator and leave to cool and rest for 1 hour with the dough.

Lamination

  • Take the dough and butter out of the refrigerator.  Roll out the the dough to make sure it has enough space to cover the butter square.  Place the butter diagonally on the dough and press it down to eliminate any air pockets.
  • Layer each dough ear over the butter square making sure to press down to eliminate any air pockets and to pinch the dough to the butter and around the edges to seal it.  Repeat with all the dough ears until you have covered the butter thoroughly.  
  • Turn 1:  Roll out the dough to a perfect rectangle that is approx 20in x 8in.  Fold the dough into thirds making sure the edges are straight.  Wrap in plastic wrap. Press one finger on the dough to make it with 1 turn. Leave to cool and rest for 20 minutes in the refrigerator.
  • Turn 2:  Prior to rolling out make sure the dough is placed like a book in front of you.  Roll out the dough to a perfect rectangle that is approx 20in x 8in. Fold the dough into thirds making sure the edges are straight. Wrap in plastic wrap. Press two fingers on the dough to make it with 1 turn. Leave to cool and rest for 20 minutes in the refrigerator.
  • Turn 3:  Prior to rolling out make sure the dough is placed like a book in front of you. Roll out the dough to a perfect rectangle that is approx 20in x 8in. Fold the dough into thirds making sure the edges are straight. Wrap in plastic wrap. At this stage you can leave the dough overnight to rest and develop flavor.  If you have time during the day leave to rest for 30 minutes in the refrigerator. 

Shapping the Croissants

  • Prior to rolling out make sure the dough is placed like a book in front of you. Roll out the dough to a perfect rectangle that is approx 20in x 8in.  Cut this long piece of dough into 3rds with a pizza cutter.  Cover the two sheets of dough with plastic wrap and leave in the refrigerator until they are ready to cut.
  • Roll out the small sheet of dough to about 15in x 8 in making sure to not make it too thin.  Using a pizza cutter cut out triangles.  At the bottom of each triangle cut a little slit.  Slightly stretch out the triangles to make them thinner.  Starting at the bottom with the slit fold the dough over each other and keep rolling until the tip gets locked under.  Repeat with all the triangles. 
  • At this point you can just bake the one sheet of triangles or continue on to shaping all the sheets into croissants. 

Egg Wash

  • Mix the egg and egg yolk with the salt and brush on the croissants.  Leave to rise for up to an hour in the same fashion as the dough with just boiled water in a cup and leave both the tray of croissants and cup of water in a cool oven. 

Let's Bake!

  • Pre-Heat the oven to 350 degrees coat with another layer of egg wash and bake for 12-14 minutes until golden brown.  Eat right away after they have cooled for a bit and enjoy your freshly baked croissants!

Notes

If you wanted to freeze some criossants for future baking, form and egg wash them and cover with plastic wrap and freeze up to 3 months.  To bake take them out overnight to proof and prior to baking add another layer of egg wash.