CROISSANTS

Now that you’ve folded and rested the dough for your croissants, it’s time to shape them, bake them, and eat them! Once you’ve shaped your croissants, you can store some in the freezer for a few weeks. When you’re ready to use them, place them in the fridge overnight, then early next morning leave them somewhere warm and moist to prove for 2–3 hours, then bake as normal.

Makes 18

1 quantity Croissant dough

EGG WASH

2 eggs

15 ml (3 teaspoons/ ½ fl oz) milk

Take the rested dough from the fridge and roll it out into a rectangle measuring about 25 x 100 cm (10 x 39½ inches). This may take quite a lot of energy, as the dough may keep springing back to its original size. If this happens, rest the dough in the fridge for about 10 minutes, then resume rolling. This resting process may need to be done a number of times. If the dough is becoming too large to fit in the fridge, simply fold it over and place on a tray before chilling it.

Cut the dough into 18 triangles, each with a base 9 cm (3½ inches) wide, and two sides that are 21 cm (8½ inches) high — you may wish to prepare a template by drawing the dimensions onto a piece of cardboard and cutting out a triangle to use as a guide. Place the triangles on baking trays lined with baking paper, cover with a clean tea towel and rest in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes.

Along the base of each tail, halfway along, cut a 2.5 cm (1 inch) slit. Working with one triangle at a time, gently stretch it out slightly. Starting from the base, roll up towards the tip, to form a croissant shape. Press the tip on to secure it.

Place the rolled croissants back onto the lined baking trays, at well-spaced intervals. Cover loosely with a damp tea towel or damp muslin (cheesecloth). Set aside in a warm room (about 26–28°C/79–82°F) for 2–3 hours, or until almost doubled in size. (It takes a little longer to prove croissants made from overnight dough, but you will end up with a better-flavoured croissant.) Spray the cloth with water occasionally if it becomes dry.

Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Put the egg wash ingredients in a bowl and whisk using a fork until combined.

Lightly brush the top of each croissant with the egg wash and place in the oven. Turn the oven down to 180°C (350°F) and bake for about 15 minutes, or until deeply golden.

Cool slightly on the trays before devouring.