Nutella stuffed croissants, perfectly golden palmiers, chocolate danishes, summer fruit tarts, and the list goes on … think: Paris. Envision yourself sitting at a quaint little café by the Eiffel tower, people watching or reading or even drawing as you soak up Paris and all its beautiful glory with a cup of coffee in one hand and the most delicious pastry in the other. As you begin to savour the very first delectable bite, your alarm goes off… and just like that, poof! That light and flakey piece of puff pastry goodness you once had in your hand has now disintegrated into nothing but the mist of amazing dream.
Photo Credit: Pinterest
Photo Credit: Pinterest
Photo Credit: Pinterest
If this has ever happened to any of you fellow foodies out there, then fear not! While we understand that making your own treats seems incredibly daunting and complicated, we’ve got you covered with a compilation of tips and tricks to unlocking the secrets to making amazing puff pastry from scratch! Think of all the goodies you could make…it’ll be like you teleported (back) to Paris for (another) amazing treat!
Tip #1: Work in a cool environment.
- According to Jamie Oliver, working in a cool environment stops the butter used, from melting and actually merging with the pastry itself.
- Chop the butter into mini cubes and stick it into the freezer for 10 minutes prior to use, according to Mary-Ellen McTague from The Guardian.
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Tip #2: Use a low-gluten (or “soft”) plain flour
- According to Mary-Ellen McTague from The Guardian, one should always use cake or pastry flour.
Tip #3: Don’t overwork the initial dough
- According to both Jamie Oliver and McTague, the initial dough should look rough. One should not overwork it as it will develop gluten and become elastic.
- Using a food processor (pulsing) is best for this job as it’s much faster and minimizes any accidental overwork and gluten development.
- Alternatively, one would just have to rub in the fat efficiently and quickly if a food processor is not available.
Tip #4: Work the dough as little as possible when mixing liquids
- Make sure to bring everything together as gently as possible at this stage, according to McTague at The Guardian.
Tip #5: Rest the dough & keep track of the folds
- According to Jamie Oliver, resting the dough for 60 mins in the fridge before making the turns/folds will make it a much easier process.
- One should also keep track of the number of folds
Tip #6: Cook at a high temperature
- Jamie Oliver recommends cooking the pastries at a high temperature for maximum lift on the puff (at least 200 °C)
