Foolproof Homemade Puff Pastry Recipe
Homemade Puff Pastry, like choux pastry and shortcrust pastry, is a typical basic pastry in French pastry-making, though it has now become a classic in American pastry-making as well. Often called pâte feuilletée due to its appearance and extreme lightness, it is characterized by its neutral flavor, making it ideal for both sweet and savory recipes.
Ingredients
Instructions
Cut the butter, cold but workable, into cubes, then transfer them to the bowl of the stand mixer.
Add the flour, fit the leaf hook and knead briefly until the ingredients are combined.
Transfer the mixture onto a sheet of baking paper and cover it with another sheet of paper.
Proceed to roll it out with a rolling pin to obtain a uniform rectangle, about 1 cm thick.
Fold the baking paper over the dough, so that it completely envelops it, then put it in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Take care of the pastry: pour the flour and salt into the bowl of the stand mixer.
Start kneading with the hook, pouring in the water little by little.
Work the ingredients until you obtain a rough mixture.
Roll out the pastry to give it a rectangular and rather elongated shape, then fold one of the two edges towards the center.
Cover it with the other flap and slightly stretch out the resulting rectangle.
Then wrap it in cling film and let it rest in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Once the resting time has elapsed, take the pastry out of the fridge and roll it out with a rolling pin to form a rectangle about 1 cm thick, wide enough to contain the dough inside.
Close the edges of the pastry on the dough and seal the edges carefully, pinching them with your fingers.
Flatten everything with a rolling pin, then proceed with the fold turns.
Roll out the dough to obtain a long rectangle, then fold one of the flaps towards the center.
Overlap the other flap, so as to form a 3-fold. Wrap the resulting rectangle in cling film and refrigerate for 1 hour. Resting is essential because it allows the butter to firm up and the dough to relax.
After this time, take the dough and roll it out again on the surface dusted with flour.
Make a long rectangle and proceed with a 4-fold.
Fold the first flap, reaching about 1/3 of the puff pastry rectangle.
Take the other flap and fold it so that it reaches the first one.
Fold the puff pastry over itself again to obtain 4 layers. Wrap the rectangle in cling film again and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Repeat both operations: first make a 3-fold, then back in the fridge for 1 hour.
Proceed with a 4-fold. After this final fold, let the puff pastry rest in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours, or even better, overnight.
Your puff pastry will be ready to use. Enjoy as you prefer!
