Recipe for Flaky Homemade Butter Croissants

Traditional French pastries with hundreds of buttery layers and a light, airy crumb.

Ingredients

Dough

• 500g bread flour
• 60g sugar
• 10g salt
• 10g instant yeast
• 300ml cold milk
• 25g soft butter

Laminating

• 250g cold unsalted butter block
• 1 egg for wash

Preparation

Dough

1. Mix the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast then add milk and 25g soft butter
2. Knead for 5 minutes then shape into a rectangle and chill in the freezer for 30 minutes
3. Place the cold 250g butter block in the center of the dough and fold the edges over to enclose it

Folding

1. Roll the dough into a rectangle and perform a letter fold then chill for 30 minutes
2. Repeat this process three times to create the flaky layers
3. Roll to 4mm thickness, cut into triangles, and roll them up tightly
4. Let rise for 2 hours then brush with egg wash and bake at 200 Celsius for 18 minutes

Tips

• Keep the dough and the butter block at the same temperature to prevent shattering
• Ensure the oven is fully preheated to 200 Celsius to get the maximum rise
• Allow the croissants to cool for 20 minutes before eating to let the internal structure set