Experimental variations



I tried with all combinations of:

Amount of butter: 50%, 30% and number of layers: 9,27,81

I then made 4 types of bread

"Unformed" which is simply the laminated pastry cut into squares and baked. Danish pastry (spandauer), which is the most common type of pastry. Pain au chocolat Croissant.

So in all, I tested 24 variations of lamination.

However the results are valid for all kinds of laminated bread. Whether it's pastry, cream buns, croissant, etc.

There are pictures of all the results at the bottom of this recipe.

When you look at the pictures at the bottom so you should look at

The crust

whether it is nice and smooth.

How much it bubbles up.

Whether it peels of in flakes.

Whether there is clearly visibly separated layers where the dough ends.

how many layers you can see.

The crumb

Whether there are distinct layers or it just looks like a bunn.

how many layers you can see.

How thin the layers are.

Whether the air bubbles are large or small

Whether they are uniformly distributed.

What method you should end up using is a matter of taste, and should be decided by what kind of bread you want to end up with.

Perhaps you want a very "cakey" airy croissant for filling with sweets, or perhaps you want a croissant that is more bread like for serving with a creamy soup.

You must also take into account that the more folds, the harder it is to accomplish a good result. For beginners, it is probably a good idea to start with 9 (3x3) or 18 (3x3x2) layer.

Now I'm not a professional baker who bakes croissants every day, so individual variations in the result below can easily because I'm not consistent enough from time to time.

Specifically, I wonder about the uneven, bubbled crust on the "50% folding butter - folded into 27 layers". I suspect that it has been kept a little too long in the refrigerator between folds. And so dried out a bit.

Otherwise I think I got pretty consistent results.

Conclusion





Number of layers

The main difference is the difficulty of folding the dough, the time spent in forming the final texture and the appearance of the bread.

It goes without saying that it is harder to fold to 81 layers than 9 layers, and with the resting between the folds it also take somewhat longer to do.

Many layers and only a little folding butter gives the most bread-like result.

Few layers and a lot of butter results in very flaky crust and a looser crumb. But they are definitely worth eating, so it can be recommended as a starting method.





Taste

It makes no difference in taste how many times you fold.

It does, however, cause a distinct difference in taste how much butter you fold in.

If there is 30% folding-butter the crumb is the most like bread. Best suited to filling with something salty like ham, cheese, meat, etc.

If there is a 50% folding-butter, the crumb is moister, softer and more cake-like. With a distinct flavor of butter. 50% is the best quantity for croissants to be filled with sweets such as jam, nutella, etc.

The difference is not very significant though, and both quantities of butter are very well suited for both sweet and savory use.

An important notice is, that the last 5 minutes you bake them have very large impact on the texture and flavor of the finished result. When you think they are ready, you should just give them three more minutes to get a more crispy crust with nice flakes flakes and a stronger flavor.





Difficulty

It's a little easier to fold the dough when there is more butter, but as soon as you get some practice in handling the dough, 30% butter is fine too.

The fewer folds you make the easier it is to do.

If do the recommended cooling/resting of the dough between each fold, it is considerably easier to achieve a great result. The dough is also easier to work with.

The best croissant

It turned out that I did not like the result of one single method better than other, There was no one amount of butter and number of layers that gave the best overall result. So from now on I will alternate between 27 and 81 layers and 30% and 50% rolling-butter. Depending on usage.

The ones I want to make and put in the freezer for general purpose use though will be 30% rolling-butter in 27 layers. Easy, flexible and suitable for all occasions. Well ok. Now I write "easy". I mean "easy for a croissant".

Notes

It is important with the last rise before baking. It can make a big difference in the fluffiness and crumb structure that it gets to rise for 1 or 2 hours as needed. make sure not to over-rise them though, as they will collapse when you brush and bake them

They must be brushed with egg wash if you want to end up with a nice brown crust.

Be very careful not to push or pull the dough with the cake roll. It is easy to tear a hole in the dough then. You must only press down and roll.

For that reason, a solid French rolling pin without separate handles is also better suited than a classic rolling pin with an axle inside and the separate handles.

If you find it difficult to roll it out in a perfect square you can cut of the most uneven end and put it inside the middle of the fold. I demonstrate this in my croissant video.

Laminated bread is very suitable for freezing. just freeze down after the last rise. Just when should have baked it. you can either thaw it or put it directly into the oven. Thawing first makes it marginally better.

Examples below

30% rollingbutter - folded in 9 layers



30% rollingbutter - folded in 27 layers



30% rollingbutter - folded in 81 layers