They were giant, beautiful, flaky, light, and above all, buttery. Mmmmmmmmm.
If you just can't manage another bite, here's what to do with the leftovers: Cut them in half. Brush with brandy-sugar syrup. Fill with almond pastry cream. Smear the top with more frangipane cream and scatter sliced almonds on top. Bake them up again until crispy.
And just like that, you'll be hungry all over again!
I highly recommend Prueitt's recipe. The dough was really easy to work with and rolled out like a dream. The dimensions she gave to shape the croissants left me with croissants that seemed about twice as large as the picture in the book, so you may want to experiment with the dimensions if you end up with the same "issue." but, there are worse things to deal with than a giant croissant.=)
Croissants
Notes: Try to work in a cool kitchen until the final rising. If you choose to let the preferment rise overnight in the fridge, make sure to get started baking straightaway the next morning.
Preferment
¾ cup skim milk
1 tbsp active dry yeast
1 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
Dough
4 tsp active dry yeast
1 ¾ cup whole milk
6 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
4 tsp salt
1 tbsp melted unsalted butter
Roll-in Butter
2 ½ cup unsalted butter, cool but pliable
2 large egg yolks
¼ cup heavy cream
Pinch salt
To make the preferment:
Warm the milk just enough to take the chill off (barely tepid). Pour the milk into the bowl of your stand mixer, sprinkle the yeast over the milk, and stir to dissolve with a wooden spoon. Add the flour, mixing until a smooth batter forms. Cover the bowl with a towel and let the mixture rise until almost doubled in volume, 2 to 3 hours at moderate room temperature or overnight in the refrigerator.
To make the dough:
First measure out all the ingredients and place them near at hand. Add the yeast to your preferment and mixing with the dough hook on low until incorporated (1-2 minutes). Stop the mixer as needed and use a spatula to clean the bottom and sides, folding the loosened portion into the mixture to incorporate all the elements fully. When the mixture has come together into an even, well-mixed mass, increase the speed to medium, and mix for a couple minutes. Slowly add half the milk and continue to mix until fully incorporated
Reduce the speed to low and add the flour, sugar, salt, melted butter, and the rest of the milk. Mix until the mass comes together in a loose dough, about 3 minutes. Turn off the mixer and let the dough rest for 15 to 20 minutes. This resting period helps to shorten the final mixing phase, which comes next.
Engage the mixer again on low speed and mix until the dough is smooth and elastic, a maximum of 4 minutes. If the dough is very firm, add a little milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, to loosen it. Take care not to overmix the dough, which will result in a tough croissant that also turns stale more quickly. Remember, too, you will be rolling out the dough several times, which will further develop the gluten structure, so though you want a smooth dough, the less mixing you do to achieve that goal the better. Cover the bowl with a towel and let the dough rise in a cool place until the volume increases by half, about 1 ½ hours.
Preparation for Lamination:
Lightly flour a work surface. Transfer the dough to the floured surface and press into a rectangle 2 inches thick. Wrap the rectangle in plastic wrap or slip into a plastic bag and seal closed. Place the dough in the refrigerator to chill for 4 to 6 hours.
About half an hour before you are ready to start laminating the dough, put the butter that you will be rolling into the dough in the bowl of the mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until malleable but not warm or soft, about 3 minutes. The butter may start “weeping” moisture at this point; soak it up with a paper or linen towel. Make sure that absolutely no small, hard lumps remain in the butter, or your dough will tear and be difficult to laminate. Remove the butter from the bowl, wrap in plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator briefly to chill but not resolidify.
The first and second turn:
Now you are ready to begin laminating the dough. First, lightly dust a cool work surface, and then remove the chilled dough and the butter from the refrigerator. Unwrap the dough and place it on a floured surface. Roll out the dough into a rectangle 28 by 12 inches. With a long side of the rectangle facing you, and starting from the left side, spread and spot the butter over two-thirds of the length of the rectangle. Once again, make sure there are no hard lumps of butter before you begin your folding. Fold the uncovered right third over the butter and then fold the left-hand third over the center, as if folding a business letter. The resulting rectangle is known as a plaque. With your fingers, push down along the seams on the top and bottom to seal the butter in the plaque.
Give the plaque a quarter-turn so that the seams are to your right and left, rather than at the top and bottom. Again roll out the dough into a rectangle 28 by 12 inches, and fold again in the same manner, like a business letter. Wrap in plastic wrap or slip into a plastic bag and place in the refrigerator for 1 ½ to 2 hours to relax the gluten in the dough before you make the third fold, or “turn.”
The final turn:
Clean the work surface, dust again with flour, and remove the dough from the refrigerator. Unwrap, place on the floured surface, and again roll out into a rectangle 28 by 12 inches. Fold into thirds in the same manner. You should have a plaque of dough measuring about 9 by 12 inches, about the size of a quarter sheet pan, and 1 ½ to 2 inches thick. Wrap in plastic wrap or slip into the plastic bag, place on a quarter sheet pan, and immediately place in the freezer to chill for at least one hour. If you intend to make the croissants the next morning, leave the dough in the freezer until the evening and then transfer it to the refrigerator before retiring. The next morning, the dough will be ready to roll out and form into croissants, proof, and bake. Or, you can leave the dough in the freezer for up to 1 week; just remember to transfer it to the refrigerator to thaw overnight before using.
Shaping:
About twenty minutes before beginning the final turn, place the dough at cool room temperature so the dough will warm slightly and roll without the butter layers breaking. When ready to roll out the dough, dust the work surface again. Roll out the dough into a rectangle 32 by 12 inches and 3/8 inch thick. Using a pizza wheel or chef’s knife, cut the dough into long triangles that measure 10 to 12 inches on each side and about 4 inches along the base.
Line a half sheet pan with parchment paper. To shape each croissant, position a triangle with the b ase facing you. Positioning your palms on the two outer points of the base, carefully roll the base toward the point. To finish, grab the point with one hand, stretching it slightly, and continue to roll, tucking the point underneath the rolled dough so that the croissant will stand tall when you place it on the sheet pan. If you have properly shaped the croissant, it will have 6 or 7 total ridges.
The final rising:
Place the croissants, well spaced, on the prepared half sheet pan. When all the croissants are ready, set the pan in a draft free area with relatively high humidity and let the pastries rise for about 2 hours. The ideal temperature is 75 degrees. A bit cooler or warmer is all right as long as the temperature is not warm enough to melt the layers of butter in the dough, which would yield greasy pastries. Cooler is preferable, and will increase the rising time and with it the flavor development. For example, placing a small pan of steaming water in the bottom of your cool oven and placing the pastries on the racks above is a good way to proof your pastries in an environment with enough humidity to prevent a skin from forming. However, make sure you do not put the pan of steaming water directly under your pastries, or the pan they are on will heat up and all the butter will melt out of them!
During the final rising, the croissants should at least double in size and look noticeably puffy. If when you press a croissant lightly with a fingertip, the indentation fills in slowly, the croissants are almost ready to bake. At this point, the croissants should still be slightly “firm” and holding their shape and neither spongy nor starting to slouch. If you have put the croissants into the oven to proof, remove them now and set the oven to 425 to preheat.
Egg wash:
In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, cream, and salt until you have a pale yellow mixture. Using a pastry brush, lightly and carefully brush the mixture on the pastries, being careful not to allow the egg wash to drip onto the pan. Let the wash dry slightly, about 5 minutes, before baking.
Baking:
Place the croissants in the oven and immediately turn down the oven temperature to 400. Leave the door shut for the first 10 minutes. Then, working quickly, open the door and rotate the pan 180 degrees and close the door. This rotation will help the pastries bake evenly. Bake for 6 to 10 minutes longer. The croissants should be done in 15 to 20 minutes total. They are ready when they are deep golden brown on the top and bottom, crisp on the outside, and feel light when they are picked up, indicating that the interior is baked through.
Enjoying!
(Like you need instructions for this part). Remove the croissants from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool. As they cool, their moist interiors will set up. They are best if eaten while still slightly warm. Enjoy the results of your hard work! You can store leftover croissants in an airtight container at room temperature for one day, and then afterward in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can rewarm them in a 375 degree oven for 5 to 8 minutes to recrisp before serving.
If properly made, each croissant will have a light, distinctly layered, tender, interior.The outside will be crisp and deeply caramelized and make a mess of crumbs when you bite into it. The flavor and aroma should be a combination of excellent butter and the complex organic acids achieved by long fermentation, much like the aroma of fresh warm bread. Congratulations!
