Recipe of Today: Homemade Croissants

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsps salt
• 1 tbsp active dry or instant yeast
• 1 ½ cups cold whole milk

For The Butter Layer:

• 1 ½ cups unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 tbsps all-purpose flour

For The Egg Wash:

• 1 large egg
• 2 tbsps whole milk

Instructions:

• Cut the butter into four pieces, 1 tbsp each, and place in the bowl of your Kitchenin KM50 Stand Mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment. Add flour, sugar, salt and yeast and blend ingredients gently for 1 minute. With the mixer running, slowly pour in the milk. After all the milk has been added, turn the mixer to medium speed and knead the dough for at least 5 minutes. The dough will be soft. It will mostly pull away from the sides of the bowl, and if you poke your finger at it, it will spring back. If the dough is too sticky after 5 minutes, keep the mixer running until it pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

• Remove dough from the mixing bowl and use floured hands to form into a ball. Place the dough on a lightly floured silicone baking mat, and gently flatten the dough. Then cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Place the entire pan in the fridge and let the covered dough rest for about 30 minutes.

• Remove dough from the fridge and begin to flatten the dough with your hands. Roll it out into a 14×10-inch rectangle. And the measurements need to be precise. The dough will be oval, but continue to work around the edges with your hands and rolling pin until you get a rectangle of the correct size.

• Put the rolled out dough back on the baking sheet. Cover the rolled out dough with plastic wrap or aluminum foil,  then place the entire pan in the fridge, and let the covered dough rest for 4 hours or overnight. (Up to 24 hours is fine.)

• For The Butter Layer: Beat together the butter and flour until smooth and combined with your Kitchenin KM50 Stand Mixer. Transfer the mixture to a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Using a spoon or small spatula, flatten it into a 7×10-inch rectangle. This measurement needs to be as precise as possible. Place the entire pan in the fridge and let the butter layer cool for 30 minutes. 

• Remove the dough and butter layer from the fridge. Place the butter layer in the center of the dough, then fold each end of the dough over it. If the butter is not an exact 7×10-inch rectangle, use a pizza cutter or a sharp knife to smooth the edges. Use your fingers to seal the edges of the dough onto the butter layer as best you can. On a lightly floured counter, roll out dough into a 10×20-inch rectangle. Again, the dough will be an oval, but continue to work with your hands and rolling pin until you get the correct size rectangle. Fold the dough in thirds lengthwise, like folding a letter. This is the first turn.

• 2nd Turn: Roll out the dough again into a 10×20-inch rectangle, then fold the dough in thirds lengthwise, like you would fold a letter. The dough must be refrigerated between the 2nd and 3rd turn, as it has processed a lot by this point. Put the folded dough on the baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil, and put it in the fridge for 30 minutes before the 3rd turn.

• 3rd Turn: Roll out dough one more time into a 10×20-inch rectangle. Fold the dough in thirds lengthwise, like folding a letter.

• Place the folded dough on a lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil, and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. (Up to 24 hours is fine.)

• Remove the dough from the fridge. On a lightly floured counter, roll out dough into an 8×20-inch rectangle. Use your fingers if necessary. Using a pizza cutter or a sharp knife, cut the dough in half vertically. Each skinny rectangle measures 4 inches wide. Then cut 3 even pieces horizontally to get 8 4×5 inch rectangles. Cut each rectangle diagonally into 2 triangles. You now have 16 triangles. Process one triangle at a time. Using your fingers or a rolling pin, stretch the triangle to about 8 inches long. Do this lightly, as you don't want to flatten the layer. Cut a small slit at the wide end of the triangle and roll tightly into a crescent shape, making sure the tip is underneath. Bend the ends inward slightly. Repeat with the remainder of the dough, placing the shaped croissants on 2 lined baking sheets, 8 each. Cover loosely with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour, then in the fridge for 1 hour or up to 12 hours.

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Whisk egg wash ingredients together. Remove croissants from the fridge. Brush lightly with egg wash.

• Bake until the croissants are golden brown, about 20 minutes. Rotate the pan during baking. If the croissants show signs of turning dark too quickly, reduce the oven temperature to 375°F.

• Remove the croissants from the oven and let cool on a wire rack for a few minutes before serving. They will deflate slightly as they cool. Serve with fruits and any jams you like and enjoy!