Croissants

Preparation

1) In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a dough hook, add all the ingredients for the dough and knead on medium speed for a few minutes or until the dough comes together, if the dough looks a touch too sticky (like it looks more like batter than dough) add 1 Tbsp of flour at a time until it looks just right (refer to the video to see exactly what it should look like).

2) Place the dough on a floured surface, knead it together for a minute and form it into a disk, transfer the dough into a lightly floured bowl, lightly sprinkle the top with flour, cover with plastic wrap and pop it in the fridge for a minimum of 6 hours or overnight (the dough won’t rise much so don’t panic, that's how it’s supposed to look).

3) Slice the butter into thin strips and place them in the center of a piece of parchment paper, place another piece of parchment paper on top of the butter and using a rolling pin, roll the butter into a 7” square piece trimming the edges and placing those little bits on top of the square and adhering them in the butter square with the rolling pin. Place the butter in the fridge.

4) Place the dough on a lightly floured surface, roll it out to a 10-1/2” square, brush of any excess butter from the surface of the dough and place the cold square of butter (if the butter is too soft, stick it in the fridge a bit longer) in the center but on the opposite side as the dough (one of the corners of the butter should line up with one of the flat sides of the dough) fold in each corner to enclose the butter (brushing off any excess flour as you go) then sprinkle a touch of flour on the very top and using your rolling pin, roll it out to 8” wide by a 24” long rectangle, fold in thirds (like a letter) making sure to brush off any excess flour, place it on a parchment paper lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and stick it in the fridge for 30 minutes.

5) Repeat the rolling out (into a 8x24” rectangle) and folding it in thirds method 2 more times making sure to chill in the fridge for 30 minutes in between (wrapped in plastic wrap). In total, you should have have rolled and chilled 3 times, on the last time, place the dough in the fridge overnight.

6) Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll it out in a 8x44” rectangle, if your kitchen is too warm, you might find that the dough starts resisting the stretching out part and shrink, if that happens, fold the dough into thirds, place it in the fridge for 15 minutes at a time and roll it out little by little.|

7) Using a ruler or tape measure, measure the length of your rectangle so you can make sure it’s the right size, trim the edges so you have a perfectly straight edge, and using the ruler as a guide, mark a spot every 6 inches (you should have 7 markings total) do the same thing at the bottom of dough so you get the right size.

8) Brush off any excess flour, cut out each square and then cut that square in half on a diagonal.

9) Lay each little triangle in front of you, brush off any excess flour from top and bottom, stretch it out at the largest side (at this point the pointed end isn't centered and it needs to be) stretch it just a bit to make sure the pointed end is centered.

10) Starting at the widest part of the triangle, roll it into a crescent shape pinching the ends together (they will come apart but this helps keep their shape), continue with the remaining croissants.

11) Place the croissants on your parchment paper lined baking sheets and place them somewhere slightly warm (around 75 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit) and allow them to proof for about an hour or so (they won’t double in size but they will puff up just a little)

12) Meanwhile, line a couple large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Whisk together an egg with some milk for the egg wash.

13) When ready to bake, arrange your oven racks on your lower and upper third of your oven, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brush the tops of the croissants with the egg wash and bake the for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

14) Serve warm with your favorite accompaniment and enjoy!

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