Croissant
With a buttery texture and crescent shape, Croissants are commonly enjoyed as a breakfast pastry, often served plain or filled with ingredients such as chocolate, almond paste, ham, or cheese. They are a staple in French bakeries and are enjoyed worldwide.
Add <quantity>265<unit>g</unit></quantity> of bread flour to a large bowl
Add <quantity>21<unit>g</unit></quantity> of sugar and <quantity>4<unit>g</unit></quantity> of dry yeast
Add <quantity>66<unit>g</unit></quantity> of water, <quantity>74<unit>g</unit></quantity> of milk and <quantity>13<unit>g</unit></quantity> of unsalted butter
Combine all the ingredients until it comes together into a dough. Transfer to a kitchen counter
Knead the dough for 10-15m until it can be stretched into a thin, flexible layer without breaking
Shape the dough into a taut ball and cut a cross of about <quantity>1<unit>cm</unit></quantity> deep ont top of it. Let it rest for 15m to relax the gluten
Roll the dough with a rolling pin into a rectagle of <quantity>15<unit>cm</unit></quantity> x <quantity>12<unit>cm</unit></quantity>
Wrap the dough in cling film and place it in the refrigerator for 8-12h to relax and cool
Place <quantity>125<unit>g</unit></quantity> of european-style unsalted butter on a sheet of parchment paper. Fold the paper, pressing the butter, until you obtain a <quantity>15<unit>cm</unit></quantity> x <quantity>12<unit>cm</unit></quantity> rectangle
Roll the butter to evenly fit all the spaces of the parchment paper rectangle. Place it in the refrigerator to firm
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll it to form a rectangle of <quantity>24<unit>cm</unit></quantity> x <quantity>15<unit>cm</unit></quantity>
Wrap the dough in cling flim and place it in the freezer for about 30m until cold and firm, but not frozen
Make sure the dough is <quantity>24<unit>cm</unit></quantity> x <quantity>15<unit>cm</unit></quantity>. Reshape if needed
Unwrap the cold butter rectangle and place it over the dough to cover half of it. Cut the remaining half of the dough and cover the butter with it. Align the three layers
Hit the layered dough with the rolling pin to evenly spread the butter in the middle. Dust it with bread flour and roll it out lengthwise until about <quantity>50<unit>cm</unit></quantity> x <quantity>12<unit>cm</unit></quantity>
Fold one third of the dough over itself legthwise. Fold the remaining third over the already folded part. Adjust the ends
Wrap the dough in cling film and place it in the refrigerator for 1h until cold
Dust the dough with a little flour and place it on the counter with the folded side facing you. Hit the dough with the rolling pin to facilitate the opening
Roll out the dough, always in the same direction, until you get a rectangle of approximately <quantity>50<unit>cm</unit></quantity> x <quantity>18<unit>cm</unit></quantity>. Slightly dust it with flour so the dough doesn't stick to the counter
Fold the dough over itself leaving about <quantity>4<unit>cm</unit></quantity> uncovered. Fold this end part over itself until it touches the end of the previous fold
Fold the dough in half over itself and lightly press it
Wrap it with cling film and place it in the refrigerator for 1-2h until it gets very cold and firm
Dust the dough with a little flour and place it on the counter with the folded side facing you. Hit the dough with the rolling pin to facilitate the opening
Roll it out, always in the same direction, until you get a rectangle of approximately <quantity>50<unit>cm</unit></quantity> x <quantity>18<unit>cm</unit></quantity>
Repeat the previous fold, folding the dough like an envelope without overlapping the layers and then folding in half
Wrap it with cling film and place it in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour to firm and chill. The croissant dough is ready
Remove the cling film and dust the counter and the dough with all-purpose flour
Roll out the dough to obtain a <quantity>30<unit>cm</unit></quantity> x <quantity>24<unit>cm</unit></quantity> rectangle
Trim the borders
Make incisions every <quantity>9<unit>cm</unit></quantity> of the border on the widest side. On the the other side, make incisions aligned with the center of each segment
Cut 5 triangles, aligned with the incisions
Stretch each triangle lenghtwise, without forcing the dough too much. Make a small incision on the base of the triangle
Roll the base, stretching it slightly towards the side and making it wider. Keep rolling the triangle, without making pressure, to obtain a croissant shape. The tip of the croissant must be underneath it
Transfer the croissants to a baking tray lined with parchment paper
Place in the refrigerator to rest for 1h
Turn on the light of the oven and add a bowl of hot water inside to make a humid chamber to proof the dough
Place the croissants in the oven. Keep the temperature around <temperature>27<unit>°C</unit></temperature>, if too hot the butter will start melting. Let it proof for around 2-2h30 until wobbly and fluffy, with some layers of dough starting to separate
Preheat the oven to <temperature>180<unit>°C</unit></temperature>
Brush the croissants with a mixture of <quantity>1</quantity> beaten egg and <quantity>2<unit>tbsp</unit></quantity> of milk
Bake for 15-18m until golden brown. The croissants are ready
Enjoy while fresh and crunchy!
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