Ingredients
- PREFERMENT
- 3/4 c. nonfat milk
- 1 tbsp. instant yeast
- 1 1/3 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
- DOUGH
- 1 tbsp. + 1 tsp. instant yeast
- 1 3/4 c. whole milk
- 5–6 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/3 c. cane sugar (or regular sugar)
- 1 tbsp. + 1 tsp. sea salt
- 1 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
- ROLL-IN BUTTER
- 2 3/4 c. (5 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cool but pliable
- EGG WASH
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1/4 c. heavy cream
- pinch of sea salt
Instructions
- Preferment. In a small saucepan, heat milk until just warm, about 80-90 degrees. Milk should not simmer. Pour into a medium bowl (preferably glass to see rise) and stir in yeast until dissolved. Add the flour and stir together until evenly combined. Dough will be sticky. Cover and allow to rise for 2-3 hours or overnight in the fridge.
- Dough. Measure out ingredients and set aside. In a stand mixer with the dough hook, add the preferment mixture to the bowl as well as the yeast. Mix together on low speed until evenly combined, about 1 minute, scraping down sides if necessary. Increase speed to medium and beat for another 3 minutes, slowly adding half the milk until incorporated. Reduce speed to low and add remaining milk, 5 cups of flour, sugar, salt, and butter. Mix until a loose shaggy dough forms, about 3 minutes. Allow dough to rest for 15 minutes. (A good rule of thumb, work the dough as little as possible. Overworking dough will result in a tough, glutenous, dense croissant. This same rule applies to biscuits, scones, and pie dough.) With the mixer speed on low, mix until dough is smooth and elastic. Dough should be neither sticky nor dry. Add remaining cup of flour 1/4 cup at a time until consistency is reached. You may not use all the flour. If your dough is too dry, add 1 tablespoon of milk at a time. For added visibility, transfer dough to a glass bowl and cover. Allow to rise in a cool place for 1 1/2 hours. Dough should double in size.
- Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface or a Roul’Pat. Press dough out into a rectangle, 2 inches thick. Wrap in plastic and place in refrigerator for 4 hours.
- Roll-in butter. About 3 hours into the chill, prepare the butter. Add butter to stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment and beat butter on medium until malleable, about 3 minutes. Wrap butter in plastic wrap and shape into a square, about 1 inch thick. Return to fridge to chill but not harden.
- Remove dough and butter from fridge to begin laminating. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface or a Roul’Pat. Roll out into a 28″ x 12″ rectangle. With the longest side of the rectangle facing you, add the butter square the the left side and evenly spread over 2/3 of the rectangle. Fold dough in thirds, first folding the right, non-buttered portion over. Then fold the left, buttered portion over that as you would fold a letter. This is considered a plaque. Press the seams together to seal the butter into the plaque.
- Turn the plaque so that the long edge is facing you again. Roll out into a 28″ x 12″ rectangle. Fold dough into thirds once again and wrap in plastic wrap. Return dough to fridge to rest for 2 hours.
- Finally, transfer dough to a lightly floured surface or a Roul’Pat. Again, roll out into a 28″ x 12″ rectangle. Fold into thirds. The dough should measure 9″ x 12″, and about 2″ thick. Wrap again, but this time place into the freezer to chill for 1 hour. If making croissants the next morning, retire dough from freezer to fridge overnight. (Dough can be kept in freezer for up to one week. Thaw in fridge overnight before using.)
- Remove dough from fridge to form, proof, and bake. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface or a Roul’Pat. Roll out into a 32″ x 12″ rectangle, 3/8″ thick. This takes some muscle. Using a pastry wheel, pizza cutter, or chef’s knife, cut long triangles 4″ wide at the base for croissants, or 6″ x 4″ rectangles for Pain au Chocolats.
- Line a baking sheet with a Silpain or parchment paper. To shape croissants, begin with the base facing you and tightly roll towards the point. The point should sit underneath the croissant. You should have 6-7 ridges. To roll Pain au Chocolats, add a chocolate baton or dark chocolate chips in a row and roll tightly placing the seam underneath. Place on lined baking sheet, at least 2″ apart on all sides. In a warm, draft-free room, allow pastries to rise for 2-3 hours, or until doubled in size. The cooler the kitchen, the longer the rise. Pastries should be somewhat firm yet puffy.
- Egg wash. In a small bowl whisk together ingredients until pale yellow. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Using a pastry brush, carefully paint the pastries being sure to cover all sides. Wipe any drippings off the Silpain. Allow the egg wash to dry slightly before baking. Place croissants in oven and immediately turn heat down to 400 degrees. Bake for 10 minutes. Rotate pan and continue to bake for another 6-10 minutes until deep golden. Remove from pan and cool on a wire rack. Serve warm.
- Storage. Keep covered at room temperature once cooled for up to a day. Store up to one week in an airtight container in fridge. Reheat before serving in a 375 degree oven for 8 minutes.
Notes
• Make croissants in a cool, low-humidity kitchen, except for the final rise.
• Give yourself at least 1 1/2 days to make from start to finish.
• Silpains are a great non-stick surface. They also aide in creating a nice crusty exterior for breads. They are a bit different than the Silpat in that they are breathable. It’s not a solid sheet.
• I prefer to use instant yeast over active dry yeast. It doesn’t need to be activated, it just needs to stay out of contact with chilled ingredients. To learn more about the different types of yeast, head over to The Kitchn.
Hi! I just visited tarting and their croissants were amazing! I am going to try making them with this recipe. When I have made croissants in the past, I use European butter. What kind of butter did you use? Do you have any idea what kind of butter they use at Tartine?
I used american butter. I think they may use european but not 100% certain certain. Let me know how it goes!
Thank you! I actually emailed them and they do use European butter. I used Kerry gold and I had a terrible time. I have made croissants many times with Kerry gold and no problems. This was my first time with this recipe. I think maybe my butter was not cold enough when I made the plaque. It ripped through the bottom of the dough every time I rolled it out. I am going to try again later this week.
Do you have any other advice?
Hey Kim! Sorry for the delay. We got hit with a major virus. We’re back in the land of the living. I have the same trouble with Kerrygold. I used it in a pie crust once and needed zero extra liquid to pull it together, it was so wet. Unless I develop a recipe specifically using Kerrygold, I just keep it in my butter bell (because it tastes sooo good). I’ve used other European butters that have a much firmer consistency.
The smell in my kitchen right now as I eagerly wait to pull then out of the over, oh my goodness – Thanks for sharing!
I wish I could partake!
These are so pretty you could find them in a boulangerie. It was worth the hard work. Thanks for the recipe. I have never tried to make puff pastry before. It is intimidating.
Wow! These look to incredible not to try myself. Always thought the art of making croissants would be to daunting to try but after seeing this definitely going to be making these soon
These are insane!!! The photos capture the croissant perfectly. All of those flaky layers! Quite impressive. And I’m sure quite delicious. 🙂
Beautiful! Such pretty, flaky layers.
Sigh! I lack the patience gene, but simply adore croissants. So it’s time to head to my favorite Columbia City Bakery and indulge in some of their fresh-this-morning flakey treats.
Love this post.
STUNNING.
I remember reading about how to make croissants a long long time ago in an old Fine Cooking, and I got all super excited. And then realized patience is key in this endeavor. So I put the magazine down.
I ADORE yours though.
Absolutely beautiful! Totally adding to my bucket list 😉
Not only was this a recipe of love and fortitude, something to say you did kind of like climbing a mountain or running a marathon, but you nailed it my friend. Whoa, nice work.
These look amazing, have been meaning to by Tartine for a while now, this confirms my need to have it now! Thanks.
I could tell these were from the Tartine book by the shape/look. Awesome job! 🙂
How I love croissants!!! I can almost smell the aroma from them baking….Heavenly!!! xoxo
Absolute stunners!
Yum! There goes my waistline.
Wow, Melissa. Just, wow.
oh man. Hugh LOVES croissants and one day I want to make them for him but eish, this looks like a project in all sense of the word. I’m proud of you! Have you ever tried the frozen ones at trader joes (I know, the shame I mention this on your homemade croissant post)? That’s as close as I’ve gotten to “making them 🙂 So impressed with you!!!
Can I tell you how many times I’ve wanted to make croissants (possibly my favorite baked good ever) and just couldn’t bring myself to do it? Well, your post maybe confirms that I should just come over to your house next time you make them 😉 What beauties! You have serious skills. xo
i really want to try to do it. it’s on my list of life goals. yours are absolutely STUNNING and i’m sure they were delicious? understatement?
A flaky buttery croissant is definitely in my top 10 list of favorite foods, but I don’t think I’m brave enough to attempt making them myself 🙂 These look absolutely delicious!
I totally agree 100% with you on your hard work vs. instant gratification recipes. Satisfaction can hardly be compared.
I dared to make home made puff pastry some time ago, and the result was the most perfect buttery crunchy puff pastry ever.
I wanna try croissants soon, will certainly use your recipe. Thanks for sharing! Ciao, Barbara
Gorgeous!! I have to try making them sometimes soon. I can see that they are worth all of the effort (those swirly sides!), but I’m sure the tasting part is even more rewarding 🙂
I want these right now!! Total love right here.
Gorgeous. I love making and working with puff pastry – it’s time consuming, but I love all the turns and movement. I wish I could stop buy and have one! I’m eating a boring bowl of cereal. 🙂
This is not the first time that someone’s blog posted just the recipe I’ve been wanting! When we lived in New York City, there was a French bakery around the corner that made the BEST croissants. I used to love their croissants with chocolate in the center – I’m gonna try your recipe and put a bit of good quality chocolate in the center!! Thanks so much for posting this!!!
When I saw you share making these on instagram I thought you must be wonder woman! Glad to hear they really are as involved (but as good) as I thought homemade would be. Maybe one day … or 1.5 days. 😉 Lovely!
Whoa, looks like all your hard work paid off! This definitely seems daunting, but I have no doubts that it would be worth the time and labor to eat a perfect, fresh croissant prepared in your own kitchen. If I ever work up the courage to do so, I will be re-visiting this post for sure.
They are gorgeous! So many luscious layers…
WOW! These are amazing!