Puff Pastry

Ingredients

• 104g Plain flour
• 104g Strong flour
• 4g salt
• 21g cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 188g unsalted butter shaped into a square 15 x 15 cm
• 83ml ice cold water

Makes 500g Pate Feuilletée (Puff Pastry)

Method

• Make the détrempe: Place the dry ingredients into a clean bowl.
• Add the 50g cubed butter and rub it into the flour until no lumps of butter are left.
• Make a well in the centre of the bowl and add the ice cold water.
• Put your hands under cold water to reduce the body temperature and use your fingers to mix the dry ingredients together until they form a smooth, homogenous mass.
• Knead until the dough becomes smooth and elastic.
• Shape the dough into a ball and cut a cross in the top about 2.5cm deep.
• Wrap in cling film (plastic wrap then put in the fridge for the gluten to rest for  1 hour.
• Take the détrempe out of the fridge and push out and roll each quarter until a cross is shaped.
• Put the 450g square of butter in the centre.
• Fold each of the flaps over to encase the butter within the détrempe.
• Begin to roll and then make 2 turns.
• Wrap the dough and put in the fridge for at least 1 hour, for the gluten to rest.
• Take the dough out of the fridge and make another 2 turns.
• Wrap in cling film and put the dough again in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
• Take the dough out of the fridge and make another 2 turns.
• Wrap in cling film and put the dough again in the fridge for at least two hours. (I personally prefer to leave it until the next day).
• You have now completed 6 turns and Classic Feuilletage is finished.

You can keep this dough in the fridge for 2 days or freeze it for up to 3 months.