Croissants with Taryn

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My friend Taryn rocks.

Not once, but twice, she has come to Bend to hang out with me when I’ve found myself injured and Zach is out of town.

We’ve got in down to a routine. We bake, watch movies, drink wine, and laugh a lot. I cannot express in words how great it is to have a friend like this!

On this particular visit we decided to bake croissants, amongst other things. We both have a love for all things bread, so croissants were a natural choice. And, we had plenty of time 🙂

18 T butter (1 c + 2 T), frozen, then warmed to room temp.

1 c milk (I used 2%)

1/2 c boiling water

1 T active dry yeast

1/4 c sugar

3 3/4 c all purpose flour (NOTE: we ran out of AP flour and used 3 c AP and 3/4 c whole wheat)

1 t salt

Instructions:

1. Combine milk + boiling water in a bowl. Stir in the yeast and sugar, and rest for 5 min until frothy.

2. Add flour + salt and incorporate it into a shaggy ball.

+++++Watch 1 episode of Gilmore Girls+++++

7. After 30 min, roll the dough into a 16″ x 10″ rectangle on a floured surface.

8. Unwrap the chilled butter and place in the centre of the dough rectangle. Fold the dough into thirds over the butter and seal the edges.

9. Rotate the dough 90 degrees and roll into a 15″ x 10″ rectangle (or something like that).

10. Fold into thirds again, wrap the dough in cling wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hr. 

+++++Watch another episode of Gilmore Girls+++++

11. Remove the dough from fridge, unwrap and repeat steps 9 & 10. Re-wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for 1 hr.

+++++Watch another episode of Gilmore Girls+++++

See a pattern here?

12. Repeat steps 9 & 10 two more times (4 turns total)

At this time you might need to switch it up to episodes of House of Cards or something

13. Cut the dough into quarters. Wrap the quarters tightly in cling film and refrigerate for 8-12 hr (overnight). You can also freeze the dough at this point.

Shaping the dough

The next morning, remove one rectangle of dough from the fridge, unwrap it and roll out into a 16″ x 6″ rectangle on a floured surface.

Cut into thirds, making 3 smaller rectangles. Cut each of these rectangles in half diagonally forming 6 triangles.

Take one triangle and cut a small slit in the base of the triangle, stretch it, then roll the dough up towards the top.

Place the tip side down on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Repeat with the rest of the triangles.

Cover loosely with cling wrap and allow to rise for 2 hours.

+++++Drink coffee and watch a movie while trying to be patient+++++

To Bake: 

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Brush the croissants with beaten egg and put into the oven. Immediately lower the temp to 400 degrees, and bake for 10 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and bake for another 10 min until slightly browned.