Frozen butter trick saved my croissant attempt from total disaster

I tried making croissants last weekend and my butter got way too warm during the lamination process. It was melting into the dough and making a huge greasy mess (I was about to cry honestly). On a whim I stuck the whole dough slab in the freezer for 8 minutes instead of the fridge. The layers actually held together after that and I got some decent puff. Has anyone else used a quick freeze to fix butter issues mid-rolling?

3 comments

3 Comments

victorb1723d ago

8 minutes in the freezer?? That is ABSOLUTELY insane to me. I would have been terrified the butter would shatter or get rock hard and ruin the layers completely. But you're telling me it actually WORKED and saved your croissants? I have ruined so many pastry batches because my butter got too soft and I just sat there watching it melt into a greasy puddle. Now I am seriously tempted to try this next time I feel the dough getting warm and sticky.

grant_foster7923d ago

I read somewhere that professional bakers do this all the time to control temperature...

simon71719d ago

Yeah, the "greasy puddle" bit REALLY hits home for me. I've lost count of how many batches I've turned into butter soup just because I got impatient.