#5 Croissants

I love a good croissant, almost as much as I love scones. A few years ago, I read the book French Women Don’t Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano. At that time I was just getting interested in real foods made from scratch and putting in the time and effort to make them.

I’m sure many of you have read the book and will remember that there is a croissant recipe featured. I was really intrigued when I came across the recipe. I guess I always knew you could make them at home, but a croissant was something I always associated with a bakery…as in for purchase.

I was motivated at how simple the recipe appeared and after reading the book I copied it and filed it away, knowing one day I would try my hand at making them. Well the day finally arrived a few weeks ago! The croissants made their appearance at our Easter breakfast this year.

I was pleased considering this was my first attempt. They came out flaky and buttery. I do need to adjust the baking time on the next batch as they got a little too brown on the bottom. That’s okay because it only means I get to make them again!

At first it appears to be a complex process, however, there really are very few ingredients involved. Although the steps are spread out, each one is fairly simple. It got a bit confusing while reading the original recipe because I wasn’t sure when to use what, so I’ll split it up according to the day.

The croissants take three days to make and are ideal for a weekend treat on Sunday morning. To do this you’ll need to start on Friday.

Croissants
Recipe from French Women Don’t Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano

Friday Night

1 cup milk
2 tsp active dry yeast
2 ¼ cups flour
2 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt

Dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup of warm milk. Measure out 2 ¼ cups flour and add 2 Tbsp of this flour to the milk and yeast. Whisk until smooth, and then cover with plastic wrap. Set aside for about 20 minutes or until it doubles in size.

Meanwhile, mix the sugar and salt with the remaining 2 1/8 cups of flour. Prepare you mixer by putting on the dough hook attachments.

Next, transfer the raised dough of milk, yeast and flour to the mixing bowl. Warm the remaining ¾ cup of milk and add it to the bowl. Turn the mixer to high and gradually add in dry ingredients of flour, sugar and salt. Reduce the speed to low and allow it to mix until the dough is sticky and soft. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Saturday Morning

12 Tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature
3 Tbsp flour

Using your hand and a plate or a clean surface, knead the flour into the softened butter until fully incorporated. Shape into a square.

Cover your work table with flour. Remove the dough from the fridge and begin to shape it into a 6 inch x 15 inch rectangle. Spread the butter on the top 2/3 of the rectangle of dough leaving a ½ inch border around the outside.

Roll it out again to a 6 inch x 15 inch rectangle and fold again. Transfer to a baking pan, cover tightly with plastic wrap and put back in the fridge for about 6 hours.

Saturday Afternoon

Remove the dough from the fridge, place on a floured work surface. Roll out the dough and fold just like during the morning. Do this two times, wrap it again and refrigerate it overnight.

Sunday Morning (You’re almost done!)

2 Tbsp milk for brushing
1 egg yolk + 1 Tbsp milk for glaze

Plan to start this process about 2 hours before you want to eat the croissants. Transfer the dough to a floured work surface. Roll it out to a 16 inch circle. Cut the dough into quarters and each quarter into 3 triangles.

To make each croissant, roll the wide base of triangle toward the corner. Transfer each one to a baking sheet. Brush with milk and then let them stand for about 45 minutes. They should double in size.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Brush each croissant with the egg, milk glaze. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. If they brown to quickly lay a piece of foil over the top during baking. Let them cool 20 minutes before serving.

Croissants also just happen to be #5 on my 30 Foods List!