How to make Flaky, Delicious Puff Pastry | Recipe for Homemade Puff Pastry Dough

Puff pastry is one of the most delicious, fragrant piece of pastry around. Classic puff pastry begins with a basic dough called a détrempe that is rolled out and wrapped around a slab of butter. The dough is then repeatedly rolled, folded, and turned. This aims to distribute the butter evenly in sheets throughout the dough. When the pastry bakes, the moisture in the butter creates steam, causing the dough to puff and separate into many layers. Here’s how you can get your own puff pastry at home 🙂

Yield: 2 pounds (1 kg)

Ingredients:

• 390 g all-purpose flour

• 1-1/2 tsp (7 ml) salt

• 90 g unsalted butter, cold

• 210 ml water, cold

• 300 g unsalted butter, softened

Steps:

1. Sift the flour and salt together in a large bowl. Cut the cold butter into small pieces and then cut the pieces into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal.

2. Make a well in the center of the mixture and add all the water at once. Using a rubber spatula  mix the flour into the water until all the flour is incorporated. Do not knead. The texture of the dough should be  sticky.

3. The dough can also be made in a food processor. To do so, combine the flour, salt and pieces of cold butter in a food processor bowl fitted with the metal blade. Process until a coarse meal is formed. With the processor still turned on, slowly add the water. Turn the machine off as soon as the dough comes together to form a ball.

4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough a few times by hand, and form it into a ball. Wrap tightly in plastic and chill overnight.

5. To roll in the butter, first prepare the softened butter by placing it between two sheets of plastic wrap. Use a rolling pin to roll the softened butter into a rectangle, approximately 5 inches by 8 inches (12.5 centimeters by 20 centimeters). Try to have the dough and butter of almost the equal consistency. If the dough is too stiff and cold, let it sit at room temperature to soften.

6. On a lightly floured board, roll the dough into a rectangle approximately 12 inches by 15 inches (30 centimeters by 37.5 centimeters). Use a dry pastry brush to brush away any flour from the dough’s surface to prevent the formation of gray streaks and to allow the puff pastry from rising properly.

7. Peel one piece of plastic wrap from the butter. Position the butter in the center of the rectangle and remove the remaining plastic. Fold the four edges of the dough over the butter enclosing the butter completely. Stretch the dough if necessary; it is important that none of the butter be exposed.

8. 

9. With the folded side facing up, press the dough several times with a rolling pin. Use a rocking motion to create ridges in the dough. Repeat until all the ridges are doubled in size and keeping all entire dough in a rectangle shape.

10. Use a dry pastry brush to remove any loose flour from the dough’s surface. Fold the dough in thirds. If one end is damaged or in worse condition, fold it in first; otherwise, start at the bottom. This completes the first turn.

11. Rotate the block of dough 90 degrees so that the folded edge is on your left and the dough faces you like a book. Roll out the dough again, repeating the bridging technique. Once again, the dough should be in a smooth, even rectangle.

12. Fold the dough in thirds again, completing the second turn. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes. Repeat the rolling and folding technique for a total of five turns. Do not perform more than two turns without a resting and chilling period. Cover the dough completely and chill overnight before using.

Puff pastry sheets may be frozen. Fold finished rectangles in thirds and wrap tightly before freezing. Defrost in the refrigerator before using.