German Puff Pastry
This German puff pastry is built the slow way, with a block of butter wrapped inside a plain dough and folded again and again. The overnight rest in the fridge keeps the butter firm, so it stays in separate sheets instead of blending into the dough. Each simple tour adds layers, and you decide how many, up to five. The result is a base for pies, turnovers and pastries.
Instructions
Mix the flour, the water and 50 g of the butter into a dough, then knead it well until it is smooth.
Shape the dough into a ball. Cut deeply through the middle, then make a second cut at a right angle to the first, again through the middle. Roll out the four resulting ends to about half the thickness of the center, so the dough forms an even cross.
Beat the remaining butter until soft and spread it over the middle of the cross, shaping it roughly into a cube.
Lift each arm of the cross and fold it over the butter, wrapping it up like a parcel. Cover the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate it overnight.
Roll the dough out in one direction only, until it is about 10 cm long. Use as little flour as you can, and brush away any excess gently.
Give the dough a simple tour. Fold one end two-thirds of the way along the dough, then fold the other end over it from the opposite side, so you have three layers.
Roll the dough out again, running the rolling pin along the folded sides, which means turning the dough 45 degrees first.
Repeat the folding and rolling up to 5 times. More repetitions give more layers, and the baked pastry will rise higher.
Make it personal.
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