Croissant
A classic French croissant!
Servings Prep Time
12-14croissants 20minutes
Cook Time Passive Time
18minutes 5hours
Servings Prep Time
12-14croissants 20minutes
Cook Time Passive Time
18minutes 5hours
Ingredients
Dough
Tourage
Egg Wash
Instructions
Dough – Day 1
  1. In a medium size mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, instant yeast and salt.
  2. In a small bowl add water and adjust the temperature to calculated value for DDT (see notes below).
  3. Add water to the mixing bowl with flour mixture and mix together using your hand.
  4. Incorporate softened butter into the mixture.
  5. Once you have a compact and shaggy dough (no dry spots of flour) turn the dough on a clean counter and knead by using the fraisage kneading method. Knead for about 15 minutes or until window pane test confirms proper gluten development. Your final dough temperature should be around 25ºC (77ºF).
  6. Shape the dough into a ball and transfer into a lightly oiled bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap and keep at 24ºC (75ºF) for 2 hours or until doubled in size. I do this step by keeping the dough in the oven together with small saucepan with hot water to maintain the desired temperature.
  7. Turn the dough on a lightly floured counter and deflate. Slap and flatten the dough with the palms of your hands and form a rectangular shape. Fold in 1/3 of the dough length from the left followed by the 1/3 fold from the right and creating business letter like folded shape.
  8. Fold the top edge to the middle following from the bottom edge sealed in the middle.
  9. Wrap the dough tightly in a plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
  10. Add soften butter into a 15 x 15 cm (6″x6″) zip lock sandwich bag. Using a rolling pin gently roll out and flatten the butter slab making it evenly thick and completely filling the bag. Leave in the fridge overnight.
Dough – Day 2
  1. Take the butter out of the fridge and use sharp knife and cutting board to cut all 4 zip lock bag edges. Remove the top plastic piece and set the butter slab aside at room temperature to soften up. The idea is to obtain the same consistency butter texture as the cool dough in order to facilitate proper laminating. The butter is ready when you can create a dimple by lightly pressing by your finger tip. At room temperature of 22ºC it takes about 1 hour to reach that state.
  2. Take the dough out of the fridge, unwrap and put on lightly floured counter. Using a rolling pin roll out the dough to approximately 15cm x 33 cm (6″ x 13″) rectangle.
  3. Lay the butter slab upside down on the top of the rectangle, remove the bottom plastic piece.
  4. Fold the other end of the rectangle over the top of the butter slab, sandwiching it in between.
  5. On a floured counter roll out the dough starting from the middle, folded dough edge on your right. Roll out the dough to rectangle 60cm x 20cm (24″ x 8″). Flour the counter and the dough as required to prevent sticking.
  6. Brush off any excess flour from the top of the rolled out dough. Fold the left side (folding by length) about 2/3 following with the 1/3 fold on the right side, the folded edges touching.
  7. Use rolling pin to roll out the dough and adjust the thickness of the folded dough, just to make it even thickness.
  8. Fold the dough in half, by length creating book like shape. Again use a rolling pin to even the dough slab thickness.
  9. Place the dough on a parchment paper lined tray or baking pan, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
  10. On a floured counter roll out the dough (by length) to a rectangle 60cm x 20cm (24″ x 8″).
  11. Brush off any excess flour from the top of the rolled out dough. Fold the left side (folding by length) 1/3 of the dough and overlap it with 1/3 fold from the right, business letter like fold. Again use a rolling pin to even the dough slab thickness.
  12. Place the dough on a parchment paper lined tray or baking pan, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
  13. Use a stick blender and make an egg wash, set aside.
  14. On a floured counter roll out the dough to a rectangle 23cm x 70 cm (9″ x 28″).
  15. Cut the dough in 12 to 14 triangles which at the end will provide 80-90g croissants. The easiest way to do it is to cut seven 10 cm (4″) wide rectangles and then cut diagonally each of these rectangles to make 2 triangles. Do complete one set at the time before proceeding to the next rectangle cut.
  16. Make a short 1 cm ( 0.5″) incision cut in the middle of the short side of each triangle.
  17. Lay the triangle in front of you on a clean counter, long tip pointing towards you. Press the tip of the triangle sealing it to the counter, this will provide you with more control.
  18. Grab the each corner of the top of the triangle, fold each one in, press and seal the edges. The each side will look like a small cylinder divided by incision cut made little earlier. Lay your palms of the each hand flat over these cylinders and by simultaneously pressing down slide your hands towards you and roll the whole triangle into a croissant cylinder. Set it on a parchment paper lined baking sheet by placing the croissant seam or tip of the rolled triangle at the bottom.
  19. Repeat the same with the rest of dough triangles.
  20. Using a pastry brush, egg wash all the croissants. If you plan to bake croissants the same day set aside and proof uncovered at room temperature for 2.5 – 3 hours or until they double in size, look puffy and spongy. Note: Alternatively put the baking sheet uncovered in a freezer for 24 hours. Store the frozen croissants in a large zip lock bag and use within 3 weeks. Take the croissants from freezer the night before baking, put on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and let thaw out overnight, uncovered in the refrigerator. In the morning take the baking sheet out of refrigerator and proof uncovered at room temperature for 2.5 – 3 hours or until doubled in size.
  21. Using a pastry brush once again egg wash puffed up croissants right before baking.
  22. Preheat the oven, rack in the middle: – Conventional oven: 200ºC(400ºF) bake for 10 minutes, reduce heat to 190ºC (375ºF) and bake for another 12-15 minutes. – Convection oven (fan is on): 190ºC(375ºF) and bake for about 18 minutes.
  23. Remove croissants from the baking sheet and let cool on a cooling rack. Croissants are best when enjoyed 30 minutes after baking.
Recipe Notes

Desired Dough Temperature (DDT) – the dough temperature that will result with consistent baking results (flavour and bread rise). For a wheat based yeast doughs DDT= 25ºC.

Desired Dough Temperature Formula – provides the means to calculate the factors that influence the dough temperature, with one of the factors being water temperature (the only factor we can easily control).

Total Temperature Factor (TTF) – the average temperature of all components involved in dough making :

  • (RT) Room temperature
  • (IT) Ingredient temperature
  • (WT) Water temperature

(RT+IT+WT)/3=TTF

Friction Factor (f) – the heat added to the dough through kneading or mixing. This factor varies for different doughs and mixers used, but for our purposes and this dough it is 6ºC for either manual kneading or use of stand mixer.

TTF+f=DDT

(RT+IT+WT)/3+f=DDT

RT+IT+WT=3x(DDT-f)

WT=3x(DDT-f)-RT-IT – formula for calculating the water temperature

Example:

  • (RT) Room temperature: 22ºC
  • (IT) Ingredient temperature: 22ºC
  • (DDT) Desired dough temperature: 25ºC
  • (f) Temperature gained by friction: 6º

WT=3x(25ºC-6ºC)-22ºC-22ºC=13ºC