Croissant

35g European-style butter
430g warm whole milk
14g instant yeast
10g salt
55g sugar
700g high-gluten flour
(e.g. King Arthur)
340g European-style butter
1 egg
15g water
1 pinch salt

Mix ingredients for the dough until fully incorporated, then keep kneading for about 1min. Let sit at room temperature for 30min. Flatten to about 3cm thickness and refrigerate for 2 hours. Freeze for 30min.

In the meantime, fold parchment paper to form a 20cm � 20cm pocket. Put butter on parchment paper and evenly spread out to precisely fill entire pocket.

Roll out dough to about 42cm � 20cm. Square off edges if needed. If dough is hard to work with, place back into the freezer for another 20min.

Remove butter from parchment paper and place in center of dough. Fold over both sides and pinch the seam together. Turn 90° and roll out to a size of 60cm � 20cm.

Fold in thirds, turn 90° and roll out to 60cm � 20cm. Fold in thirds and let rest in freezer for another 30min.

Again, turn by 90° of previous direction and roll out to 60cm � 20cm. Fold in thirds, refrigerate for 2h and freeze for 30min.

Roll out to 40cm � 45cm. Fold in half (i.e. 20cm � 45cm). Mark each 7.5cm at bottom and top. The marks at the top should be offset by 3.75cm. Cut between marks using a pizza wheel.

After separating the two layers, this will result in triangular-shaped pieces of dough. Make a 2cm incision at the base of the triangle and stretch dough in all three directions. Roll up from base to tip of triangle. Put on a baking sheet and curl edges to form a half-moon shape.

Let sit at room temperature until doubled in size (about 2h to 3h). Alternatively, freeze croissants for up to 2 months; after frozen solidly, croissants can be transferred to a freezer bag.

Evenly coat croissants with egg wash just prior to baking.

Pre-heat oven to 425°F (220°C). Reduce heat to 400°F (200°C) and bake croissants for 15-20min. Rotate cookie sheet after half the baking time.

Let cool on rack for about 15min.

Makes two dozen croissants.