It is 7, isn't it?


We're regressing. This batch wasn't as good as some earlier ones.


We started with the Esther McManus recipe in _Baking With Julia_. The
only substitution we had to make was using active dry yeast instead of
fresh compressed. We put the yeast in the mixer along with the flour,
sugar and milk. Right there I'd made a mistake. With fresh yeast, it
shouldn't matter. With dry, it would have made sense to dissolve it in
the milk first. All during the 1st 2 rises, I could see yeast flecks.
They did dissolve in the butter eventually.


Then we totally screwed the timing of the rises. I did the first 2
okay, but I wasn't looking at the clock. By the time it was time for
the turns, it was also time for bed. We refrigerated the dough and
slept. Next day (yesterday), we hung out in the morning, went out in
the afternoon (saw _The Duchess_ with Keira Knightly) and kept turning
and refrigerating the dough without keeping track of how long it had
been in the fridge. It shouldn't matter too much, but it does continue
to rise at 40 degrees. By the time we got home last night, we decided
we'd wait until morning so we could have fresh croissants then. Except
that this morning was my yoga class, and you get the idea.


The dough was bursting out of its plastic. With the need to bat it down
so much to do the folds, we ended up incorporating the butter instead of
getting perfect buttery layers. I made 4 with Piave cheese rolled up in
a croissant shape, 4 with Coastal cheddar rolled up in them, 2 big
rectangular braids with almond filling, and 2 big rectangular braids
with almond filling and dark chocolate. (I know, I know, I have got to
try Prociutto, but this time I didn't even remember to make some with
cassis jam.)


They puffed so much in the oven that my careful braids sprang open. The
croissant shaped ones look okay, but the braids are distinctly
unbraidlike. That's not necessarily a bad thing. The bad thing is the
lack of layers. They're not bad, but they're doughy in the middle from
too much incorporated butter.


Moral: When making croissants, make all the mistakes in the world.
You'll still end up with edible bread.


--Lia