French bakers fold butter into dough exactly 81 times to create croissants' 729 flaky layers—one fold less ruins everything.
Croissants
Get ready to indulge in the flaky, buttery goodness of homemade croissants! This foolproof recipe yields 10 golden pastries, featuring layers of rich butter and the perfect touch of yeast for that signature rise. With a bit of patience and a few simple techniques, you'll have your kitchen filled with the irresistible aroma of fresh-baked croissants that are sure to impress!
Prep
150
min
Cook
23
min
Serves
10
people
Level
advanced
📝 Ingredients
Serves 10🥬Fresh Produce(2)
- 150 ml kaltes Wasser (5.07 fl oz)
- 50 g Wasser (1.76 oz)
🥛Dairy & Eggs(4)
- 50 g kalte Butter (3.5 tbsp)
- 3 g kalte Butter (0.21 tbsp)
- 250 g kalte Butter (17.5 tbsp)
- 100 ml kalte Milch (3.38 fl oz)
🫙Pantry Staples(6)
- 7 g Trockenhefe (oder 20 g frisch) (0.25 oz)fresh yeast
- 250 g Mehl Typ 00 oder 550 (2 cup)
- 250 g Mehl Typ 405 (2 cup)
- 10 g Honig (0.35 oz)
- 60 g Zucker (0.3 cup)
- 50 g Zucker (0.25 cup)
🧂Spices & Seasonings(1)
- 10 g Salz (0.35 oz)
📦Other(2)
- 175 g vom Hauptteig (6.18 oz)
- Lebensmittelfarbe
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Combine all ingredients for the main dough except for the butter for laminating in a bowl and knead slowly for 3 minutes, then about 8 minutes at medium speed until a smooth dough forms.
- 2
Take 175 g of dough, knead with butter and color.
- 3
Roll out both doughs roughly, let rest for 20 minutes, wrap, and chill for at least 12 hours.
- 4
Open the window to achieve a cool temperature in the kitchen. Roll out the butter for laminating between baking paper to about 15 × 27 cm and chill well.
- 5
Laminate the dough directly from the refrigerator. The dough should be twice as long and the same height as the butter. Fold in the butter. Completely seal the dough and lightly press the seam with your fingers. Always roll the dough in the direction of the seam when rolling out. One double fold, chill for 30-45 minutes, then one single fold and chill again.
- 6
Place the colored dough on the lightly moistened, well-chilled base dough and chill again.
- 7
Roll out the dough to about 30 × 40 cm with a thickness of at least 4 cm, cut into 10 triangles of 8 x 30 cm, and roll into croissants.
- 8
Place croissants on a baking sheet with at least 5 cm spacing, lightly spray, and place in the turned-off oven with a hot water dish (oven light on, keep the door slightly open for the first 20 minutes).
- 9
Then close the oven door and let rise at 24-26 °C for about 2.5 hours (max. 28 °C).
- 10
Bake at 170-180 °C for 20-23 minutes and brush directly with sugar syrup.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Maintain butter and dough at exactly 15-18°C during lamination - use a thermometer to check both, as temperature differential greater than 2°C causes butter to break through or become too hard to roll.technique15-18°C, max 2°C difference
- ✓Roll laminated dough to exactly 4mm thickness for final shaping because thinner dough tears the butter layers while thicker dough creates dense, under-proofed croissants.technique4mm thickness
- ✓Proof croissants at 24-26°C with 75-80% humidity until they increase by 50% in size and jiggle slightly when shaken - this takes 2-3 hours and ensures proper butter layer separation.timing24-26°C, 75-80% humidity, 50% size increase
- ✓Use European-style butter with 82-84% fat content for lamination because lower fat American butter (80%) contains more water, causing steam that destroys delicate layers.ingredient82-84% fat content
- ✓Bake at 375°F (190°C) for first 10 minutes, then reduce to 350°F (175°C) to finish - high initial heat creates steam for lift while lower heat prevents burning the exterior before interior cooks.timing375°F then 350°F, 10 minutes
Share this recipe
Prep
150
min
Cook
23
min
Serves
10
people
Level
advanced
Share this recipe
French bakers fold butter into dough exactly 81 times to create croissants' 729 flaky layers—one fold less ruins everything.
Croissants
Get ready to indulge in the flaky, buttery goodness of homemade croissants! This foolproof recipe yields 10 golden pastries, featuring layers of rich butter and the perfect touch of yeast for that signature rise. With a bit of patience and a few simple techniques, you'll have your kitchen filled with the irresistible aroma of fresh-baked croissants that are sure to impress!
📝 Ingredients
Serves 10🥬Fresh Produce(2)
- 150 ml kaltes Wasser (5.07 fl oz)
- 50 g Wasser (1.76 oz)
🥛Dairy & Eggs(4)
- 50 g kalte Butter (3.5 tbsp)
- 3 g kalte Butter (0.21 tbsp)
- 250 g kalte Butter (17.5 tbsp)
- 100 ml kalte Milch (3.38 fl oz)
🫙Pantry Staples(6)
- 7 g Trockenhefe (oder 20 g frisch) (0.25 oz)fresh yeast
- 250 g Mehl Typ 00 oder 550 (2 cup)
- 250 g Mehl Typ 405 (2 cup)
- 10 g Honig (0.35 oz)
- 60 g Zucker (0.3 cup)
- 50 g Zucker (0.25 cup)
🧂Spices & Seasonings(1)
- 10 g Salz (0.35 oz)
📦Other(2)
- 175 g vom Hauptteig (6.18 oz)
- Lebensmittelfarbe
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Combine all ingredients for the main dough except for the butter for laminating in a bowl and knead slowly for 3 minutes, then about 8 minutes at medium speed until a smooth dough forms.
- 2
Take 175 g of dough, knead with butter and color.
- 3
Roll out both doughs roughly, let rest for 20 minutes, wrap, and chill for at least 12 hours.
- 4
Open the window to achieve a cool temperature in the kitchen. Roll out the butter for laminating between baking paper to about 15 × 27 cm and chill well.
- 5
Laminate the dough directly from the refrigerator. The dough should be twice as long and the same height as the butter. Fold in the butter. Completely seal the dough and lightly press the seam with your fingers. Always roll the dough in the direction of the seam when rolling out. One double fold, chill for 30-45 minutes, then one single fold and chill again.
- 6
Place the colored dough on the lightly moistened, well-chilled base dough and chill again.
- 7
Roll out the dough to about 30 × 40 cm with a thickness of at least 4 cm, cut into 10 triangles of 8 x 30 cm, and roll into croissants.
- 8
Place croissants on a baking sheet with at least 5 cm spacing, lightly spray, and place in the turned-off oven with a hot water dish (oven light on, keep the door slightly open for the first 20 minutes).
- 9
Then close the oven door and let rise at 24-26 °C for about 2.5 hours (max. 28 °C).
- 10
Bake at 170-180 °C for 20-23 minutes and brush directly with sugar syrup.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Maintain butter and dough at exactly 15-18°C during lamination - use a thermometer to check both, as temperature differential greater than 2°C causes butter to break through or become too hard to roll.technique15-18°C, max 2°C difference
- ✓Roll laminated dough to exactly 4mm thickness for final shaping because thinner dough tears the butter layers while thicker dough creates dense, under-proofed croissants.technique4mm thickness
- ✓Proof croissants at 24-26°C with 75-80% humidity until they increase by 50% in size and jiggle slightly when shaken - this takes 2-3 hours and ensures proper butter layer separation.timing24-26°C, 75-80% humidity, 50% size increase
- ✓Use European-style butter with 82-84% fat content for lamination because lower fat American butter (80%) contains more water, causing steam that destroys delicate layers.ingredient82-84% fat content
- ✓Bake at 375°F (190°C) for first 10 minutes, then reduce to 350°F (175°C) to finish - high initial heat creates steam for lift while lower heat prevents burning the exterior before interior cooks.timing375°F then 350°F, 10 minutes