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Barb's Special Sweet Breads Part I

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Submitted by rwscouler

Barb’s special sweet bread dough Part I. A laminated yeasted dough folded with butter in three turns, the master base for danishes, kringles, and filled pastries. Family recipe from 1850s tradition.

YIELD

1 servings

PREP

20 min

COOK

20 min

READY

40 min

Barb’s special sweet bread dough is a homestyle take on classic Danish pastry, the kind of recipe handed down through three generations of Sunday morning bakers. The magic is in the laminating step. Three rounds of rolling, buttering, folding, and chilling build dozens of paper-thin layers between the yeast-leavened dough and the butter, which is what gives the finished pastries their flaky shatter when you bite in.

This is Part I, the master dough. Other parts in the series cover fillings like vanilla cream and almond butter, plus shaping methods for the various pastries you can pull from this single base.

Keep the butter cold but pliable. If it’s too hard it will tear through the dough. If it’s too soft it will smear into the dough instead of staying in distinct layers, and you’ll lose the lamination. The 20-minute chill between turns is what lets the gluten relax so the next roll doesn’t fight you.

Pro Tips

  • Use bread flour or unbleached all-purpose. Cake flour will give a tender pastry but won’t hold the layered structure.
  • The damp cloth wrap during chilling keeps the dough surface from drying out and forming a skin that cracks when rolled.
  • Square the corners of the dough with the rolling pin between each turn. Even thickness is what makes the lamination uniform.
  • Make the dough up to 24 hours ahead and finish the final turn before shaping. The cold rest improves the flavor.

Variations

  • Use this same dough for cinnamon rolls if you want a flakier alternative to a standard enriched roll.
  • Cut into squares, fill with jam, and fold for quick fruit Danish.
  • Brush the finished pastries with egg wash and sprinkle with pearl sugar before baking for a Scandinavian finish.

Ingredients

1
X OTHER RECIPE
5229, to taste *
1
X OTHER RECIPE
5230, to taste *
1
X OTHER RECIPE
5228, to taste *

Directions

BARB DAY- 3 pk Yeast 1 cup -Water; lukewarm 1 Egg; slightly beaten 4 cup Flour; sifted 3 tablespoons Sugar 1½ cup Butter 1 teaspoon Salt

SEE OTHER RECIPE PARTS FOR VARIATIONS AND FILLINGS

Vanilla cream - Almond butter - Plumped currants or - raisins - Egg wash - Icing For the dough:

Put the water in a mixing bowl and sprinkle the yeast over it. Stir until the yeast has dissolved. Beat the egg into the yeast mixture, and set aside.

Sift together the flour, sugar, and salt. Add the yeast mixture. Knead until the mix forms a ball- if too moist add a bit more flour. Knead 10 minutes more.

Roll out to an 11” square. Spread ½ cup butter over the surface of the dough. Fold the dough into thirds and wrap in a damp cloth. Refrigerate 20 minutes. Repeat this process beginning from rolling out the dough, two more times.

While the dough is in the refrigerator the last time, you should prepare the fillings, icings or other recipes you will need for the finished pastries.

The following parts will give you the variety of pastries made with this dough, and the methods. They will be followed by additional recipes needed to prepare the pastries.

Source: Vera Stevens (my mother)

* not incl. in nutrient facts Arrow up button

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