Classic Croissants
Classic croissants aren’t that easy. I’d be lying if I told you they were but boy are they so satisfying to conquer when you do. Golden, buttery and delicate, we all know the joy of biting in to one. I love them toasted with jam, but you can easily use this recipe as a base for a hot breakfast sandwich or use the puff pastry to make a smattering of other recipes. If you make bad ones, don’t fear–just eat ’em and try again next time.
There are a lot of nuances in baking and making a classic croissant is one that’s very, very nuanced. Lots of things can go sideways.
I remember my first attempt, I ended up with crescent rolls (if you’d like my actual crescent roll recipe, it’s here) after all my butter leaked out in the oven and nearly set my house on fire.
I was sitting on the porch, smoke alarms going off, doors all standing open while smoke billowed from them.
Don’t bake these on a rimless cookie sheet. And better yet, make sure your oven is hot enough that the butter makes steam on contact instead of melting out.
Please don’t try to make these on a whim for an impromptu dinner party. These are a snow day, rainy day kind of project you can take your time with. The good news is, when you do get a successful batch you can freeze them and rewarm for guests later if you want to impress them.
The best puff pastry tutorial I’ve ever seen
This Food 52 video with Erin McDowell is the BEST video tutorial for making puff pastry dough that I’ve ever seen. Hands down. If you really want to see how it’s done, take the time and digest this. I watch it for fun before bed at night.
Start with the Sponge
Sometimes recipes will start with a blend of flour, water and yeast that’s been allowed to sit in advance. Some people call it a sponge, some call it a pre ferment. What we’re doing here isn’t technically a sponge because usually those sit and develop much longer than an hour, but I was out of ideas for what this should be called.
After the flour, water and yeast sit and double in size, add it to the remaining flour, sugar and salt in a bowl. Add the warmed milk and stir to combine.
A note on butter
Gently knead in the softened butter. This butter is separate from the cold butter block we’ll make in a minute. Make sure to get the best butter you can with the least amount of water. European butter is about 83% fat compared to 78% butter fat in American butter. Avoid US brands if you can.
Cover the dough and let it rise in the refrigerator to build flavor in cooler temperatures. This may take 1-2 hours or a bit longer. Just watch the dough instead of the clock here. If you don’t want to raise it in the fridge, a cool place in your house (less than 70 degrees) would also be okay but it will double more quickly.
Make the butter block
I don’t think we need to make this hard. Slice your sticks of butter into half inch pieces. My butter was cut down the length of a stick, but you can do whatever suits you. Slightly overlap the slices to make a 3 1/2 by 4 1/2 inch rectangle. Cover it with parchment or plastic wrap and bash it with a rolling pin until it’s a solid piece.
If it’s too large, use your hands to shape it and press it back to size a bit. We want a rectangle about 5×6 inches.
Wrap your butter and chill until you need it.
When it’s time to add it to your dough, it needs to be FLEXIBLE. Not rock hard so it cracks, not greasy and floppy and unmanageably warm. This is key! You may have to bring it out of the fridge 10 or 15 minutes before you need it but this will be trial and error on how long it takes to get it soft enough to work with.
Roll out and fold up–Step 1
When your dough is doubled, roll it out to a rectangle about 7 inches wide and 15 inches inches long. Always keep the short end of the dough close to you and roll away from you to make the longer part.
Place the butter on the top half and fold the bottom half up and over it. If your butter is hanging out, make sure it’s sealed in as much as possible before proceeding.
From here we’ll do a book fold. This video shows it perfectly at the 2:45 mark. Roll the dough to a 7×20 inch rectangle.
Bring the top portion of dough down nearly to the middle, and the bottom portion up to meet it. Then fold the whole thing in half. This is the first fold.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill 30 minutes.
Take it out and this time turn the dough so the long end is closest to you (running left to right). Roll the dough out again to about the same size. Fold the same way. This is turn 2. Return it to the fridge.
After 30 minutes, take it out and turn the dough so that the short end is closest to you. Repeat the rolling and fold the dough the same way. Chill again. Last time though.
Finally we roll the dough out quite long. Nearly double what it was before–to about 30 inches or about 1/4″ thick. If it’s looking thinner than that, stop rolling.
Cut the croissants
Use a ruler or measuring tape to measure 5 inches on one of the long sides. Make a cut every five inches all the way down then connect them to make triangles. (See image above.) Make a small notch in the middle of each wide end then stretch the point of the triangle to make it a bit longer before rolling. About 10 or 11 inches long with a very skinny point at the end.
Roll starting at the wide end without pressing hard on the dough. Then transfer them to a parchment lined rimmed baking sheet to double in size at room temperature.
Give them lots of space so no one ends up touching.
Once doubled, bake! And eat whatever comes out of your oven. Even a flat croissant is a delicious one.
How to store homemade croissants
Store your croissants at room temperature in an air tight container. I love glass storage but a big Lock and Lock bread box is also high on my list. A ziplock back isn’t going to be enough. Your classic croissants will stay fresh for up to three days.
How to freeze this classic croissant recipe
You can buy shaped and unbaked frozen croissants so I think this recipe would work if you froze the dough after shaping. Freeze them on a cookie sheet first then transfer the dough to an air tight container for up to six weeks.
To bake, place the frozen croissants on a lined baking sheet and cover with greased plastic wrap. Allow to thaw and double which could take 8-12 hours.
You can also bake and freeze the finished croissants in an air tight container for up to six weeks. I greatly prefer this method. Thaw at room temperature then toast or stick them in the oven for a few minutes to warm through.
Can I make croissants without yeast?
No you can’t. It’s a necessary here for flavor, rise and structure. There’s no way around it.
Favorite dips, sauces, jams and jellies to smear on your classic croissants
There are so many amazing flavors you can add to your croissants. Jam and butter will always be my top pick but try some of these:
- Slow cooker apple butter
- Homemade lemon curd and fruit
- Nutella
- Mascarpone
- Whipped goat cheese, roasted red peppers and pesto
- Homemade cherry jam (or any store bought you like!)
Equipment
- Rolling Pin
- Measuring Tape or Ruler
- Pastry Brush
Ingredients
Sponge Ingredients
- 1 cup water lukewarm
- 1 cup all-purpose flour plus extra for dusting
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
Additional Dough Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup whole milk lukewarm
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 ½ tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 egg egg wash
- 1 cup + 2tbsp unsalted butter
Instructions
Make the Sponge
- Heat 1 cup water for the sponge to 110 degrees.
- In a medium bowl, mix the water, yeast and 1 cup of flour.
- Mix well so there are no lumps of flour and leave at room temperature for 30 minutes or until the mixture has doubled.
Make the Dough and Butter Block
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix the next 3 cups flour with the sugar and salt.
- Pour the pre ferment mixture, which has already doubled in size, into the flour and mix gently with a wooden spoon.
- Add the milk and stir until the ingredients are combined.
- Add the cubed butter and knead the dough until just smoothing out and slightly elastic. Knead for no more than 6-7 minutes. Do not knead the dough too much.
- Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap.
- Refrigerate for 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size. Watch the dough and not the clock for this step.
- On a large piece of parchment paper, cut the butter into half inch thick slices and shingle them, overlapping them as needed to make a 3 1/2 by 4 1/2 inch rectangle.
- Cover with another piece of parchment paper and, using a rolling pin, roll out the butter into a rectangle no larger than 5×6 inches.
- Leave it wrapped in parchment and refrigerate.
Roll the Dough and Wrap the Butter
- Lightly flour your worktop with a few tablespoons of flour.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll it into a rectangle about 7×15 inches.
- Place the cooled butter on one end of the dough. The butter should be cold but flexible. If it's so cold that it crumbles, let it sit on the counter a few minutes until more flexible. Close with the other end of the dough by folding it up and over the butter.
Fold the Dough: Step 1
- Lightly flour your rolling pin and carefully begin to roll dough into a 7×20-inch rectangle.
- After you have rolled out the dough to the required size, fold the top third down to the center, the bottom third up to the center and then fold the top portion over the bottom. Cover with parchment paper or plastic wrap and let the dough rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place on a floured kitchen counter.
Fold and Turn: Repeat Two More Times
- Roll again from the short side to a 7×20 inch rectangle.
- Fold the dough again as instructed in step 1 and place in the refrigerator for another 30 minutes.
- Repeat step 1 turning again, folding again.
- Leave for another 30 minutes in the refrigerator. You should have rolled the dough three times at this point.
Cut and Roll
- Flour the kitchen counter well.
- Roll out the dough one final time, but this time double the size of the length of the dough to about 35 inches. The width isn't quite as important, but about 10 inches wide.
- Use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to cut triangles width about 5 inches at the widest end.
- Cut a small 1/2-inch line in the middle of each triangle.
- Working from the wide end, use your other hand to slightly stretch the narrow end of the dough, making the triangle longer and skinner. Roll the croissants from the wide end without applying pressure so that you have six or seven ridges of dough across each one.
Rise and Bake
- Place the finished croissants with their narrow tip pointed down onto a tray lined with baking paper. Leave enough space between the croissants so that they can rise without touching.
- Leave at room temperature for 1 1/2-2 hours. The croissants will rise and double in size.
- When the croissants are doubled, beat an egg in a small bowl and brush them gently on all sides.
- Place in a preheated 370 degree oven for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Keep an eye on the bottoms to make sure they don't burn.
- Allow to cool before serving.