How to make truly delicious puff pastry at home

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Cooking yeast and yeast-free puff pastry is not very easy, but baking from it turns out to be magical. It's definitely worth a try.

What to make puff pastry

To make your homemade puff pastry really tasty, use premium flour. Be sure to sift it before using it. Flour saturated with oxygen produces more airy products.

The liquid component of the dough is milk or water. Milk makes baked goods sweeter, while water makes the dough elastic. If you prefer a compromise, use a mixture of water and milk in equal proportions.

Milk and water can be replaced with egg yolks: they will make the dough fluffy. 1 cup water or milk equals ½ cup beaten egg yolks.

The peculiarity of puff pastry is that you need a lot of butter or margarine to create it (choose to your taste). These ingredients should be at room temperature. If you take them straight out of the refrigerator, the dough can break.

Moreover, the fatter the butter or margarine, the more tender the baked goods.

How to make yeast puff pastry

This type of dough is ideal for desserts: rolls, rolls and croissants. Baking with yeast turns out to be soft, tender and very light. Attention: by feeling, not by calorie content!

Ingredients

• 1 ½ teaspoon dry yeast
• 2 tablespoons of sugar;
• 1 ½ cups of warm milk;
• 1 egg;
• 4 cups flour;
• 2 tablespoons of powdered milk;
• 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil;
• 100 g butter.

If you wish, you can substitute milk for water or egg yolks in the recipe, and butter for margarine.

Preparation

Remove the butter from the refrigerator. Dissolve yeast and ½ teaspoon sugar in a glass of milk. Wait 10 minutes until foam appears. Add the remaining sugar, beat in the egg. Mix thoroughly and leave at room temperature for 10-15 minutes.

Pour the flour into a bowl, make a well. Pour milk powder into this depression, add vegetable oil, yeast mixture and milk residues there. Knead the dough well and cover with a towel. Leave in a warm place for 90 minutes, then knead again and let it brew for another hour.

Place the softened butter between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Roll the butter into a layer 5 mm thick and place in the freezer for 5-10 minutes.

Roll out the dough into a layer 5–8 mm thick. Place the prepared butter in the center.

Fold the edges of the bed so that the oil is inside.

Roll out the dough into a long, 5–8 mm thick layer, pressing down on the rolling pin with equal force. The oil should be evenly distributed.

Divide the dough into 3 parts mentally. Fold it ⅔ from one narrow edge and cover with the rest of the dough. It should be folded in 3 layers.

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 20 minutes. Then roll out the layer again, fold it into 3 layers and put it in the freezer for another 20 minutes. Repeat this procedure 2-4 more times.

How to make yeast-free puff pastry

Yeast-free (unleavened) dough is prepared much faster. It is suitable for hot appetizers, vegetable, meat and fish pies, pasties, pizzas. You can also make a dessert from it, but teach that such a product will turn out to be flat, thin, very crumbly.

Ingredients

• 1 glass of warm water;
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg;
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 3 ½ cups flour;
• 200 g butter.

Preparation

Dissolve salt and sugar in water. Add egg and vinegar. Stir well. Add flour gradually and knead into an elastic dough. Roll it into a layer and oil in the same way as with yeast dough.

How and how much to store homemade puff pastry

Puff pastry can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. It is enough to wrap it in cling film and put it on the middle shelf.

The dough will stay in the freezer for up to six months. After defrosting, use it within 24 hours.

What to cook from puff pastry

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