What is puff pastry

In the oven, the water in the dough and in the butter produces a burst of steam that lifts the layers. The separation of hundreds of layers gives the pastry its light, flaky texture. It's not difficult to make puff pastry, but it's a painstaking process. It takes an elaborate rolling technique to form those hundreds of layers, and because the butter must be cold, it takes considerable pressure to roll the dough flat.

Also, the dough needs to chill between each round of rolling and folding. The effort is physically demanding and time-consuming. Both contain the same ingredients and use layering techniques, but phyllo and puff pastry differ. Phyllo is stretched and stacked rather than rolled and folded. When phyllo dough bakes, it becomes airy and crispy, but since it contains less water, it does not rise to the same height as puff pastry.

Widely available frozen puff pastry lets home cooks use puff pastry without making it from scratch. It comes in sheets, which must thaw in the refrigerator overnight, or pre-formed cups or shells. The sheets come folded usually in thirds or in half and if you try to thaw them at room temperature, you risk unfolding the sheets too soon and breaking them, or thawing them to much the point that they become too sticky to work with easily.

Puff pastry can be used for sweet and savory foods. Big sheets work for larger foods such as beef Wellington or baked brie. For smaller items, such as pastry puffs , palmiers , or miniature hors d'oeuvre shells, simply cut the sheets of puff pastry to the right size or purchase a pre-cut variety. You can use puff pastry scraps to garnish a dish such as beef Wellington; cut them into decorative shapes and use an egg wash to glue them to the outside of the pastry.

Beyond thawing it overnight in the fridge, there are two important tips for working with puff pastry:. Keeping the dough cool prevents stickiness and makes it easy to cut. Leave it in the fridge until you're ready to use it or bake it. Before being baked, croissants are brushed with a beaten egg so the baked croissant looks golden.

During baking the dough rises a little more, as bread does during breadmaking. This is called ovenspring. The moisture in the dough puffs up the pastry when it converts to steam. The steam is trapped between the layers of fat, turning the fat and dough laminations into flaky layers so the croissant looks like a cross between bread and puff pastry.

All sorts of fillings can be added; popular ones include almond paste, fruit, nuts or custard. Like croissants, danish pastries are then put on a baking tray and left to rise until about double in size.

Toppings such as chopped nuts may be added and a beaten egg may be brushed on the surface just before baking. Danish pastries rise up and form flaky layers like croissants.

After baking, the pastries are usually glazed to make them look attractive and to add flavour. Usually the glaze is diluted apricot jam, which is brushed on while the pastry is still hot. When cool the pastries may also be iced. Lemon icing is a delicious and popular icing. It is important to use the correct ingredients and the right pastry making techniques to make a good puff pastry.

The main ingredients are flour, water, salt, dough fat and fat. Some protein becomes gluten when wet and this makes the paste elastic and strong and capable of forming layers when cooked. Cool water must be used to prevent the fat from becoming oily. The water must also taste good, i. Salt is added to strengthen the gluten and improve the flavour.

Fat is the second most important ingredient when making a good pastry. Butter is tastiest, but there are some excellent pastry margarines specially produced for making pastry products.

Fat must be kept cool so that it does not become soft and oily and mix into the dough. Other ingredients are sometimes added to give the pastry a distinctive look and taste.

Eggs improve the colour of the pastry, and a little raising agent such as baking powder strengthens the gluten and increases the height of the pastry. When making puff pastry it is important to rest the pastry.

During resting, gluten relaxes and become elastic again, making rolling easier and preventing the pastry from shrinking and becoming misshapen during baking. Correct rolling is essential. The edges of the pastry must be straight and the corners square.

The terms full, three-quarter and half are used when describing the amount of fat in the pastry. Full has equal weight of fat and flour, three-quarter has three-quarters of the weight of fat to flour, and half has half the weight of fat to flour.

More fat makes the pastry softer to eat but reduces its height. First a dough is made using a little dough fat and then more fat is added between the dough layers. The dough and fat are then laminated, which involves folding and rolling the dough and fat a few times to make many layers of dough and fat. The fat stays as separate layers and does not mix into the dough. The quickest way is the Scotch or Blitz method. It is suitable for making pastry for pies, sausage rolls and pasties.

Flour, salt, cold water and dough fat are mixed together in a mixing bowl. Walnut-sized lumps of fat are then added to the bowl and are mixed in a little, to ensure large lumps of fat are left whole in the dough. The fat is distributed throughout the dough in flat discs, rather than a continuous sheet as with the other methods. As a result this pastry does not always rise evenly and so is not suitable for products that must look exceptionally good.

In the English method the flour, salt, water and dough fat are mixed together. This dough is rolled into a long rectangular shape, three times as long as wide. Two-thirds of the dough is covered by dabs of butter. The third without butter is folded into the middle first then the other end is folded on top.

The French method — The main feature of the French method is that a square layer of fat is wrapped in the basic dough. After testing it is rolled into a square, making each side half the distance between opposite corners of the dough. The fat is placed in the centre of the doughs in the diagram below and the corners folded into the centre so they meet and cover the join.

The paste is then folded again. Making puff pastry from scratch is the hard part — cooking with it is easier than you would think! And it's an easy way to add something new to weeknight dinners.

Read on for our tips on how to work with frozen puff pastry. Frozen puff pastry sheets come in a long rectangular box in the frozen section of most grocery stores; sheet sizes will vary, so check the dimensions on the box. Puff pastry is often found next to the pie crust and other frozen doughs. You may also be able to find packaged puff pastry cups for savory appetizers and delicate desserts.

Keep a package of frozen puff pastry in your freezer at all times for easy last-minute baking. Store-bought puff pastry should be stored in the freezer until use.

To use, follow the thawing instructions on the box. Homemade puff pastry can be refrigerated for a couple days or stored in the freezer for up to a month. Be sure to rewrap what you don't use tightly in plastic wrap.

You can also store uncooked pastries in an airtight container in the freezer for up to two weeks. When you're ready to cook them, they can go straight from the freezer to the oven.

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