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A croissant dough recipe that yields flaky and buttery pastry. It can be used to make a variety of breakfast treats.
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Croissant Dough

A simple recipe for croissant dough that yield flaky and buttery pastry.
Course Breakfast, Dessert
Cuisine French
Keyword croissant from scratch
Prep Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Chill times for the dough 11 hours
Total Time 52 minutes
Servings 32 croissants
Calories 147kcal
Author sanna

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk heated to 105°F–110°F
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
  • 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 3 3/4 to 4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 3 sticks cold unsalted butter 1 1/2 cups

Instructions

Make dough:

  • In  the bowl of your stand mixer, stir together warm milk, brown sugar, and yeast.  Let mixture stand for about 5 minutes until foamy and thick . If it doesn’t foam, discard and start over. Add 3 3/4 cups flour and salt and using the dough  hook attachment, mix on low for about 7 minutes, until dough is soft and smooth.
  • Transfer dough to a work surface and briefly knead by hand for about 2 minutes. Add flour, a little at a time as needed to make a soft, slightly sticky dough. Once your dough is smooth and not too sticky, you have needed enough. You only need to use about 1-3 tablespoon of flour. You can use the rest during rolling and folding. Pat and shape dough into a roughly 1 1/2-inch-thick rectangle, wrap in plastic and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.

Prepare and shape butter:

  • Lay a clean, lint free towel on a clean surface (Use a towel that is not fibrous. Do not use terry towels). Arrange the sticks of butter to form a block  with their sides touching. Pound butter with a rolling pin to soften slightly until malleable but still cold. Lay a second towel over the butter. Roll and pound butter over the towel until you form an an  8 x 5 inch rectangle. Wrap the butter completely inside the towels and chill in the fridge until needed.

Enclose the Butter

  • After the dough has chilled, unwrap it and transfer onto a clean, floured surface. Roll the dough into a 16 x 10 inches rectangle.  Flour your surface and rolling pin as needed. Lift the dough often and stretch the corners  to maintain the rectangular shape. Unwrap the butter by gently peeling off the towels and place on the center of the dough. The long side of the butter should be parallel to the short side of the dough. Fold the bottom part of the dough over the butter, then fold the upper part of the dough over it, fully enclosing the butter inside the dough. This is called the business letter style fold.

Roll and Fold the Dough

  • Turn dough so a short side is facing you. Make impressions on the surface of the dough by pressing the body of the rolling pin against the dough. Repeat until dough is flattened. Roll the dough into a 15 x 10 inch rectangle. When you roll, make sure to roll to the ends but not over the very edges, so as not to seal the layers in there.
  • Brush off any excess flour. Fold dough, business letter style: bottom third over the butter and upper third over it, stretching the corners to maintain the  sharp edges.  This is your first fold. Wrap dough in plastic and chill in the fridge for 1 hour, or freeze for 30 minutes.

Repeat the Rolling and Folding

  • Repeat the rolling and folding three more times: After chilling, unwrap dough and roll in the same manner with the short side facing you. Fold in business letter style and chill. After the final fold, refrigerate the dough for at least 8 hours but not more than 18 hours. The dough can now be rolled and used as directed in your recipe.

Notes

Preparation times includes rise time for the assembled dough.
Recipe from Epicurious
Nutrition Facts
Croissant Dough
Amount Per Serving (1 servings)
Calories 147 Calories from Fat 81
% Daily Value*
Fat 9g14%
Saturated Fat 5g31%
Cholesterol 24mg8%
Sodium 224mg10%
Potassium 37mg1%
Carbohydrates 14g5%
Sugar 2g2%
Protein 2g4%
Vitamin A 285IU6%
Calcium 19mg2%
Iron 0.7mg4%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition

Serving: 1servings | Calories: 147kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 24mg | Sodium: 224mg | Potassium: 37mg | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 285IU | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 0.7mg