It is that time of the month again, the time where I have to bake a new type of Bread for an amazing group that I am a part of called “Knead to Bake”.
Being surrounded by super talented people can keep you grounded as you are always aware that you are around people who are good at what they do. It makes you realize that you have a long way to go to even become talented, to even cook like some people do. And every day I thank my stars for embarking on this journey for I am learning something new.
Last month I had made a Garlic and Cheese Pull apart Bread which turned out really well and I was really looking forward to this month’s challenge till I found out it was “Croissants”. This French beauty is gorgeous and soft and buttery which melts in your mouth with the first kiss. However she is not easy to conquer. She comes in various flavors from plain Butter Croissants, Chocolate Croissants (pain au chocolate) and Almond Croissants. Out of the 3 the Almond one is my absolute favorite.
I remember eating my first Almond Croissant in a lovely Coffee shop in Melbourne on “Flinders Street” and fell in love with the first bite. I loved it so much that it became a part of my daily ritual while going to work to stop at the Coffee shop for a Coffee and a piece of the gorgeous Croissant. I don’t think counting calories has ever been my top priority. So when we had to bake it ourselves I almost shuddered at the thought. Because I knew they were not easy to make. Especially because “Aparna” the blogger who organised this event had given us an 8 page step by step recipe which required 3 days of kneading, rolling, laminating and proofing the dough before one actually got to baking it.
I read the recipe saw a few videos and thought I am going to sit this one out. There was no way in hell that I could make this. The last day of the entry was the 24th and as each day came closer and I saw the pictures of the Croissants made by other bloggers, I was thankful that I did not attempt it. Till I mentioned that to Anshie, who as usual pulled me up and told me to try. So I attempted it.
The amount of Butter that one needs to use for the recipe is a health conscious person’s worst nightmare. Plus one had to ensure that the Dough and Butter must always be cold or the Butter would start to melt and destroy the dough and there was no way of salvaging it.
Unfortunately the weather in Perth was more than 40 degrees and with no air conditioning it seemed like a futile attempt to me. At one stage I actually thought of throwing the dough and pulling out my name from the entry. But I somehow kept going. And I guess it was meant to be. On the third day the weather in Perth suddenly became cold and windy. As I rolled out my dough, the Butter stayed intact and did not leak. I even managed to shape the Croissants. I followed all the timings as per the recipe and watched the dough proof like a hawk.
Again I know these are not great and I need to persist and keep trying but for a first attempt I think it was not a bad job at all. Maybe this was god’s way of keeping on track and I really thought that changed weather was a sign for me to remember that as long as I tried things will turn out fine.
The Croissants baked well even though I burned them a little. The crust was flaky and buttery melting in our mouth. At that moment I felt terribly proud of myself then I have been for a very long time and thought that even though these are not the best Croissants in the world, I must blog about this.
I know this post has been long, so I won’t even bother typing the recipe. Here is the link to the recipe and the video for you to use if you are adventurous to try this.
Video: How to bake Croissants
Recipe : Classic Croissants
Trust me this is a true labor of love.
Lovely post…..Gr8 Croissants!!
Thanks Deepika.
This is all very impressive. Croissants are HARD! And demanding–time, temperature, and texture all come into play. Even good bakeries now use laminators to get the layers right. Good for you for sticking with it. Me, I’ll buy mine from a great bakery and stay with making sourdough at home. (I know my limits.)
Ken
Thanks Ken. I love Baking breads and this was a challenge. Thank you for stopping by. Really appreciate it.
great croissants.. love the color and texture
Thank you veena
Beautiful croissants…Nice post..
Thank you.
Great effort, they have come out so well…
Thanks Sangeetha
labour of love indeed; looks swell
Priya thanks for stopping by
you said it! all the effort and detail are telling so much1 these are truly lovely.
Thanks Lata
Look how beautiful these are! I am really impressed that you made them in such hot weather and still managed to get these impressive looking croissants.
Thanks Anshie. If you had not pushed me I would have not even bothered. They r still not as good as yours
I echo your thoughts! True labor of love! Your croissants look flaky & pretty!
Thanks Kavitha.
Thanks Kavitha