Easy Layer Bread: Croissant!

After trying many recipes, I still want to have the easy one. I didn't say that this is the best recipe for croissant (and it's not a traditional recipe, I add the egg in the dough). The ingredients are similar to the danish bread but I shaped the dough into the croissant shape.

This recipe is an adaptation from many cookbooks and my own experience. I found it very easy too make, the rolling process is very easy and don't take too long. Due to the sticky dough, the leakage of the butter is less (but you might have to you a lot of flour to sprinkle the work surface in the first or second roll).

You can use this dough to make danish bread too. So, if you shy away from the laminated dough, start making an acquaintance now. You may find it's not hard to make and open the door to other kinds of laminated dough too.
Note: This bread is not very rich, the percentage of the butter block to flour is only 50 %, but I found it's easy to eat, haha.

Easy Layer Bread: Croissant
Makes 10

Dough
160g	Bread flour
40g	Cake Flour
2g	Instant dry yeast
30cc	Water
4g	Salt
80cc	Milk
10g	Sugar
60g	Egg (about 1 egg)
20g	Unsalted butter
Butter Block
5g	Cake flour
100g	Unsalted butter
Egg Wash
1	Egg yolk
2 tbsp	Milk

Put the flours, the sugar and yeast in a bowl, whisk to combine, add and salt whisk again. Pour the egg, milk and water mixture into the bowl.
Use large spoon (or pastry scraper) to mix everything together, and knead briefly to bring all the ingredients together. Add the butter and knead to combine.
The dough will be very sticky.
Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 6 hours (or overnight).

Making the butter block:

Mix the butter together with the flour until smooth.

Shape into a 13cm square and refrigerate until firm.

Take the dough out of the fridge, the dough will be very puffy.

Sprinkle the work surface with flour.

Pull the corners of the dough out to make the dough square-shaped.

Roll the opened dough out to a square slightly thicker in the center than on the sides and slightly larger than the butter block (about 30x 30 cm).

Place the butter block diagonally within the square so there are 4 triangles around the sides. Fold the dough triangles in so they meet in the center. Pinch the edges together to seal in the butter block.

Start by pressing down the dough with the rolling pin before rolling the dough into a rectangle 1.2 cm thick (-this is my method to prevent the leakage if the butter You can see the picture here). Do not roll the dough wider than a sheet pan is long (about 40x30).

Give the dough the first single turns by fold the bottom third of the rectangle up toward the center, carefully aligning the edges. Brush off any flour. Fold the top third down to make a neat square and brush off any flour.

Give the dough another 2 single turns, refrigerating it for approximately 30 minutes between each turn. Be sure the dough is well covered at all times (I cover the dough with the wax paper then put the pan in the plastic bag).

After the last turn, refrigerate the dough for 1 hour before shaping the croissant.

Prepare the pan by lining with baking paper or silpat.

Roll the dough out to square about 55x30 cm. If this is difficult to do, refrigerate the dough for a few minutes to relax the gluten.

Cut the rim of the dough out into 50x25 cm.
Cut the dough into rectangular about 10x25cm/ piece.

Cut the center of the base of the dough and roll the dough into croissant shape. Then place the croissant in the baking pan.

Preheat the oven to 200°C

Making the egg wash:


Mix the yolk with milk, the strain the mixture.

Let the croissant raise until almost double in size (about 1 hour). Brush the croissant with the egg wash before baking.

Bake the croissant until golden brown, about 20 minutes.
Then let the croissant cool on the wire rack.

Easy Layer Bread: Croissant!