Croissants

I've never made them, but coincidentally a few weeks ago I found this recipe online http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/bakers-croissants-recipe. There are also step-by-step instructions complete with photos on their blog, for which there is a link on the recipe page. It all looks rather complicated to me, but I'm willing to give it a go when I have more time.
 
Elawin said:
I've never made them, but coincidentally a few weeks ago I found this recipe online http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/bakers-croissants-recipe. There are also step-by-step instructions complete with photos on their blog, for which there is a link on the recipe page. It all looks rather complicated to me, but I'm willing to give it a go when I have more time.
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Thanks for the link. It is so completely different from the recipe I was intending to follow (Paul Hollywood's). Fascinating! It is much more complicated than Paul Hollywood's. I think croissants should be simple - like puff pastry. Its basically butter trapped and rolled in layers of dough. Its time consuming - but only because you have to rest it in the fridge a lot between the rollings (and you can rest then too!).

I am going to attempt it tomorrow, all being well. I haven't been well today due to heart problems, so we shall see.
 
morning glory said:
Thanks for the link. It is so completely different from the recipe I was intending to follow (Paul Hollywood's). Fascinating! It is much more complicated than Paul Hollywood's. I think croissants should be simple - like puff pastry. Its basically butter trapped and rolled in layers of dough. Its time consuming - but only because you have to rest it in the fridge a lot between the rollings (and you can rest then too!).

I am going to attempt it tomorrow, all being well. I haven't been well today due to heart problems, so we shall see.
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I'll have to have a look at Paul Hollywood's recipe. I've probably got it saved somewhere anyway. I do look at the King Arthur site quite often for ideas, and I have made some of their recipes, particularly the whey pancakes (!), although I have adapted that recipe to make it more mutt-friendly :giggle:.

I wish you better. I have had enough problems these last few days with just a cold, although since I completed my cancer treatment even a cold knocks me for twelve instead of six. Honey and Lemon, and hot chocolate (100% chocolate, no milk and no sugar) seem to be the drinks of choice at the moment and plenty of stew to eat are the order of the day in my house.
 
morning glory said:
Thanks for the link. It is so completely different from the recipe I was intending to follow (Paul Hollywood's). Fascinating! It is much more complicated than Paul Hollywood's. I think croissants should be simple - like puff pastry. Its basically butter trapped and rolled in layers of dough. Its time consuming - but only because you have to rest it in the fridge a lot between the rollings (and you can rest then too!).

I am going to attempt it tomorrow, all being well. I haven't been well today due to heart problems, so we shall see.
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Let us know the results - we tried a month or so back but the results were very poor
 
So far, so good. I made the dough and rested it in the fridge in a plastic bag. Then rolled it out into an oblong. Rolled out butter into a smaller oblong and placed it on top. Then folded over and chilled in fridge again. Rolled it out and folded it three times more (chilling for 1/2 an hour between each rolling). Paul Hollywood says rest an hour in the fridge between each rolling - but my fridge is turned up very high so I think it will be OK.

Now it has to rest overnight in the fridge to rise a little. In the morning it will be rolled out again and cut into thin triangles and shaped into croissants. Then it will be left to rise for 2 hours before baking!
 
I am SO pleased with these. I used Paul Hollywood's recipe: http://paulhollywood.com/recipes/croissants/ - which I followed slavishly. I have the book with the recipe in it and there are really useful photos showing the rolling and cutting sequence. They came out beautifully light and taste so much better than anything I've ever bought in a shop here. Anyone else want to try making them...? I could photograph the step by step photos from the book and post them here if people are interested.

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@morning glory

These croissants look quite lovely however, I have not tasted them, so I cannot say in reality ..

My mom in law who is French and my daughter in law prepare them for her tiny Crepérie Café with French flour ..

I have never made them and I have to be quite honest, the croissants in Barcelona or Madrid are certainly not the best I have had ..

The ones I had in Carcassonne, Montpellier and Marseille were amazing and crisp on the exterior .. And light, flaky interiors that were just scrumptuous ..

Have a lovely weekend ..
 
@Francesca - I think I have looked into this before but not got to the bottom of it. How does French flour differ from UK flour. I have bought flour on-line which is supposed to be milled as French flour for making baguettes. It works well so perhaps I should have used that for the croissants.
 
morning glory said:
@Francesca - I think I have looked into this before but not got to the bottom of it. How does French flour differ from UK flour. I have bought flour on-line which is supposed to be milled as French flour for making baguettes. It works well so perhaps I should have used that for the croissants.
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@morning glory

Here are the authentic French ingredients of my Mom in law ..

1) 45 Farine ( Flour ) De Grauau ( it is a designation of origin ) .. This is an unbleached bio / organic flour which is part pastry flour and part bread flour ..
2) 10 Grams of salt
3) 20 Grams Bio Boulanguer Frâche ( Bread Baker´s ) Yeast
4) French Butter that is 82 % Butter Fat ( I know Usa butter is 80 % butter fat, I do not know about the U.K. )
5) 300 grams / liquid measurement of Water.
6) 30 grams / liquid measurement of whole cow milk.
7) 50 grams of semoule " sugar " (granulated)

The butter 82% is the laminator of the Croissant ..

I am thinking that using French Butter is another key to the success of your crossiants as well as French Flour ( 45 farine de Grauau unbleached Bio which is a combo of both bread and pastry flours ) .. I am guessing that UK Butter is 80 % also, and crossiants must be 82 % butter fat - French butter !!!

Morning Glory,

It is the same thing with any foreign baked or cooked or roasted or sautéed ingredients.
A Paella in London does not taste like a Paella in Spain or Scones, for example, do not taste the same in Spain ..

The flour is different and the wáter is different .. The butter is different etcetra ..

Definitely can taste wonderful but it is different !!
 
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morning glory said:
Thank you. I've ordered some French bio flour on-line and I should be able to get French butter.



I think you mast mean 450g?
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member: 1122"]Thank you. I've ordered some French bio flour on-line and I should be able to get French butter.



I think you mast mean 450g?[/QUOTE]

Let me call my Mom in law .. I will be back in a couple of minutes ..

22.10 ..
 
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