Croissants
Buttery with just the right amount of flakiness, these delicious croissants will hit the spot.
Ingredients
- 4 1/4 cups Manny's Choice flour
- 4 1/4 teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 3/4 cups whole milk room temperature
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons European-style unsalted butter melted, plus 24 tablespoons chilled
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
- 1 tbsp water & pinch of salt
- Note: if the dough retracts or softens at any point, fold in into thirds , warp it in plastic & freeze it for 15 minutes. Do not make these in a room that is warmer than 80 degrees.
Instructions
- Whisk flour, yeast & salt together in bowl of stand mixer. Whisk milk, sugar, and melted butter in 4-cup liquid measuring cup until sugar dissolves. Using dough hook on low speed, slowly add milk mixture to flour mixture & mix until cohesive dough starts to form & no dry flour remains, about 2 minutes, scraping bowl as needed. Increase speed to medium-low & knead for 1 minute. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap & let dough rest for 30 minutes.
- Transfer dough to parchment paper-lined rimmed baking sheet & press into 10 by 7-inch rectangle -- about 1 inch thick. Wrap tightly with greased plastic & refrigerate for 2 hours.
- Meanwhile, fold 24-inch rectangle. Fold over 3 open sides of rectangle to form 8-inch square with enclosed sides. Crease folds firmly.
- Place chilled butter directly on counter & beat with rolling pin until butter is just pliable but not warm, about 60 seconds, then fold butter in on itself using bench scraper. Best into rough 6-inch square.
- Unfold parchment envelope. Using bench scraper, transfer butter to center of parchment, refolding at creases to enclose. Turn packet over so that flaps are underneath & gently roll until butter fills parchment square, taking care to achieve even thickness. Refrigerate for at least 45 minutes.
- Transfer dough to freezer & chill for 30 minutes. Transfer dough to lightly floured counter & roll into 17 by 8-inch rectangle, with long side parallel to counter edge. Unwrap butter square & place in center of rectangle. Fold 2 sides of dough over butter so they meet in center. Press seam together with your fingertips.
- Using rolling pin, press firmly on each open end of dough packet. Roll dough into 24 by 8-inch rectangle, with short side parallel to counter edge. Fold bottom third of dough over middle, then fold upper third over it like business letter to form 8-inch square. Turn dough 90 degrees counterclockwise & repeat rolling & folding into thirds. Return dough to parchment-lined sheet, wrap tightly with greased plastic & return to freezer for 30 minutes.
- Transfer dough to lightly floured counter so that top flap of dough is facing right. Roll dough into 24 by 8-inch rectangle, with short side parallel to counter edge & fold into thirds. Return dough to baking sheet, wrap tightly with plastic & refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours.
- Transfer dough to freezer & chill for 30 minutes. Transfer dough to lightly floured counter & roll into 18 by 16- inch rectangle, with long side parallel to counter edge. Fold upper half of dough over lower half. Using ruler, mark dough at 3-inch intervals along bottom edge with bench scraper (you should have 5 marks). Move ruler to top of dough, measure in 1 ½ inches from left, then use this mark to measure out 3-inch intervals (you should have 6 marks).
- Starting at lower left corner, use pizza cutter or chef’s knife to cut dough into triangles from mark to mark. You will have 12 single triangles & 5 double triangles; discard scraps.
- Unfold double triangles & cut into 10 single triangles (making 22 equal-size triangles in total). If dough begins to soften, return to freezer for 10 minutes. Cover all triangles loosely with greased plastic.
- Cut ½ inch slit in center of short end of 1 dough triangle (keep remaining triangles covered). Grasp triangle by 2 corners on either side of slit & stretch gently.
- Grasp bottom point of triangles & stretch. Place triangle on counter so point is facing toward you & fold both sides of slit down.
- Positioning palms on folds, roll partway toward point. Gently grasp point again & stretch. To finish continue to roll, tucking point underneath. Curve ends gently toward one another to create crescent shape. Repeat with remaining triangles.
- Place 12 croissants on 2 parchment-lined rimmed baking sheets, spaced about 2 ½ inches apart, 6 croissants per sheets. Cover loosely with greased plastic & let rise until nearly doubled in size, 2 ½ to 3 hours. (Unrisen croissants can be refrigerate for up to 18 hours; let rise at room temperature for 3 to 3 ½ hours before baking.) Place remaining 10 croissant on separate parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet, spaced about 1 inch apart. Wrap tightly with greased plastic & freeze until solid, about 2 hours. Transfer frozen croissants form baking sheet to zipper-lock bag & return to freezer. (Frozen croissants can be stored in freezer for up to 2 months. Arrange on 2 sheets as directed & increase rising time by 1 to 2 hours.)
- Adjust oven racks to upper-middle & lower-middle positions & heat oven to 425 degrees. Gently brush croissants with egg mixture. Place croissants in over & reduce temperature to 400 degrees. Bake for 12 minutes, then switch & rotate baking sheets. Continue to bake until deep golden brown, 8 to 12 minuets. Transfer croissants to wire rack & let cool for 15 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
- Enjoy!