Classic Butter Croissants

Instructions

1. 1

   Mix the dough

   Whisk the flour, sugar, salt and yeast together in the bowl of a stand mixer, keeping the salt and yeast from sitting directly on each other in a dry clump. Add the cold milk, cold water and softened butter, then mix on low with the dough hook for about 4 minutes, until no dry flour remains. Raise the speed one notch and knead for 3 to 4 minutes more. You want a firm, slightly rough dough that holds together in a ball — stop before it turns smooth and stretchy. Over-kneading now makes the dough fight you during lamination.

2. 2

   Shape and chill overnight

   Press the dough into a flat 6-inch square, wrap it tightly in plastic, and refrigerate at least 8 hours or up to 16. This long cold rest does three jobs at once: it relaxes the gluten, chills the dough to the same temperature as your butter block, and lets the yeast build flavor slowly instead of puffing the dough up.

3. 3

   Build the butter block

   Lay the cold butter on a large sheet of parchment, cover with a second sheet, and pound it flat with a rolling pin, then roll it into an even 7-inch square. Square the edges with a bench scraper, folding any trimmings back onto the slab and rolling again. Chill the block for 20 to 30 minutes. The ideal butter is cool but pliable — bend a corner and it should curve rather than crack or smear.

4. 4

   Lock in the butter

   Roll the chilled dough into a 10-inch square on a lightly floured counter. Set the butter block in the center at a 45-degree angle, so it sits like a diamond inside the square. Fold each corner of dough over the butter to meet in the middle, then pinch the seams closed so no butter is exposed. You should have a sealed package with butter and dough at the same firmness.

5. 5

   First and second turns

   Roll the package into a rectangle roughly 8 by 20 inches, always rolling away from and toward you rather than side to side. Fold it like a business letter: bottom third up, top third down. Wrap and refrigerate 45 minutes. Repeat the rolling and letter fold a second time, then chill another 45 minutes. If butter ever starts to break through the surface, dust the spot with flour and get the dough back into the fridge.

6. 6

   Third turn and final rest

   Give the dough a third letter fold exactly as before, wrap it well, and refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight. Three letter folds give you 27 butter layers — the sweet spot where the interior still opens into big, irregular honeycomb rather than collapsing into pastry dust.

7. 7

   Roll and cut the triangles

   Roll the dough into a long rectangle about 24 by 12 inches and a scant 1/4 inch thick, letting it rest a few minutes whenever it resists. Trim all four edges square with a sharp knife so the layers are open at the cut faces. Mark the long edges every 4 inches, offsetting the top row by 2 inches, then cut on the diagonal between the marks to get 12 long triangles. Cut a 1/2-inch notch in the center of each wide base.

8. 8

   Roll the croissants

   Working with one triangle at a time, gently stretch it lengthwise until it is about a third longer, then roll it up from the notched base toward the tip, keeping steady but light pressure so you do not crush the layers. Set each one on a parchment-lined sheet with the tip tucked underneath, curving the ends inward slightly. Leave 3 inches between them — they nearly double.

9. 9

   Proof until wobbly

   Cover the sheets loosely with plastic and proof at cool room temperature, ideally around 75°F, for 2 to 3 hours. Do not use a warm oven or a proof box above 80°F; the butter will melt out and pool on the pan. They are ready when they look visibly inflated and jiggle like set custard if you gently shake the sheet, and the layers on the cut ends are clearly separated.

10. 10

    Egg wash and bake

    Heat the oven to 400°F near the end of proofing. Whisk the egg with the milk and brush a thin coat over the curved tops only, avoiding the cut layers on the sides so they can still rise. Bake 18 to 22 minutes, rotating the pan at the halfway point, until deeply bronzed — pale croissants are underbaked and taste doughy inside. Cool on a rack at least 20 minutes before eating; the interior is still setting.

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Baker's Tips

• 1.

  Temperature beats technique here. If the dough feels soft or slippery at any point, stop and refrigerate for 20 minutes — you can always pick up where you left off, but you cannot un-melt butter.

• 2.

  European-style butter with 82% or more butterfat contains less water, so it stays pliable when cold and is far less likely to crack into shards inside the dough.

• 3.

  Save the dough scraps from trimming. Twist them, proof them alongside the croissants, and bake them as cook's treats — do not knead them back into the dough, which destroys the layers.

• 4.

  Shaped, unproofed croissants freeze beautifully. Freeze solid on a sheet, bag them, then thaw overnight in the fridge and proof as usual for fresh pastries on a weekday.

• 5.

  Butter pooling on the pan almost always means the proof was too warm. A puck-like, bready interior means the opposite — they went into the oven underproofed.

• 6.

  Roll in one direction at a time and rest the dough whenever it springs back. Forcing it stretches the butter layers unevenly and gives you a lopsided honeycomb.

Equipment

• Stand mixer with dough hook
• Rolling pin
• Bench scraper
• Ruler or tape measure
• Pizza wheel or sharp chef's knife
• Two rimmed baking sheets
• Parchment paper
• Pastry brush
• Cooling rack

Storage