Feather Bread Croissants (pains Au Chocolat) Pt 1

INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

Do not use bread flour.  Add the yeast, flour, salt, dry milk solids,
sugar, and water to the  bread machine pan and place in the machine.
Process the ingredients  on the dough setting until well incorporated,
with no dry ingredients  clinging to the sides of the pan, about 10
minutes on most machines.  After the dough ahs been mixed, turn off the
machine and let the  dough rise in the machine until doubled, about 1
1/2 hours.  Meanwhile, place the stick of butter between 2 layers of
plastic wrap  or waxed paper. With your fingers, flatten and shape the
butter into  a 6-inch square that is about 1/3 inch thick. Chill for at
least 15  minutes. The butter must be the consistency of vegetable
shortening  when you use it. If it is too hard, it will tear the dough;
if it is  too soft it will ooze out the sides. Warm it or chill it
accordingly.  When the dough has doubled in volume, turn it out onto a
well-floured  surface. With floured hands, press the dough into a
13-inch square.  Unwrap the chilled butter and place it diagonally in
the center of  the dough square. Bring the corners of the dough over
the butter to  meet in the center (it will look like an envelope).
Press the center  and edges of the dough to flatten and seal in the
butter.  Using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough into an 18
x 9  inch rectangle. Do not press too firmly. If you do, the butter
will  ooze out or the dough will tear (if it does tear, just pinch to
patch). Fold one 9-inch end of the dough rectangle over the center
third of the dough. Fold this over the remaining third. Roll the  dough
out again into an 18 x 9-inch rectangle. Fold it as before to  form the
3 layers and place in a plastic bag or wrap loosely in  plastic wrap.
Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes and then repeat  the rolling,
folding, and chilling process twice more. Refrigerate  the dough
overnight after the last folding.  To cut and shape the croissants, cut
the dough in half. Wrap one half  in plastic and return it tot he
refrigerator while you work with the  other half. Roll the dough out on
a lightly floured surface to a  13-inch circle. Cut it into 6 wedges.
Gently pull the base of each  wedge to a width of about 6 inches and
the length of each wedge to  about 7 inches. Starting from the base,
roll up the wedge. Place the  croissant, top-point underneath, on a
heavy-duty baking sheet. Curve  and bring the base points toward the
center to form a crescent. Roll  and shape all the croissants, placing
them 2 inches apart on the  baking sheet.  Brush the croissants lightly
with the egg glaze. Then, allow them to  rise in a warm place until
light and puffy, about 1 1/2 hours.  Meanwhile, preheat the oven to
400F. Brush the croissants with the  egg glaze one more time right
before putting them in the oven. Bake  for 15 minutes, or until they
are golden brown. Remove the croissants  from the baking sheet to cool
on a rack. Serve warm, with jam or your  favorite sandwich filling.
PAINS AU CHOCOLAT (Chocolate Croissants)  Chocolate Croissants are a
Parisian variation of plain croissants.  Sweet and simple.  Prepare the
croissant dough as directed.  After you cut it in half, roll each half
into a 14 x 12-inch  rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Cut each
half into six 7 x  4-inch rectangles. Break apart three 1.45-ounce bars
of semisweet or  dark chocolate to make 12 rectangles, each about 3 x 1
1/2 inches.  Place one piece of chocolate lengthwise along one short
end of each  piece of dough. Roll to enclose the chocolate completely
and press  the edges to seal. Place the croissants, seam side down, on
a large  baking sheet. Proceed to glaze and bake as directed.  Notes:
When we began to make croissants, our goal was to make the  flakiest,
lightest roll ever created. Naysayers insisted, "No way in  a bread
machine, the machines will overknead and develop the gluten."  Well,
hadn't they ever heard of the on and off button? With  croissants, we
use the machine only to mix the dough, not to knead  it. Then we turn
the machine off and let the dough rise in the pan.  With croissants,
less is more. Add as little extra flour as possible  to keep the dough
manageable and, other than the folding process,  handle it as little as
possible. You will be rewarded with a most  sublime pastry, full of
blistered, buttery bits that flake and are  crisp. continued in part 2

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