Croissant

Method

1. Combine flour, salt, sugar and yeast. Pour in the cold milk; mix to a shaggy dough. Knead 5 minutes by hand or 3 minutes in a stand mixer to a smooth ball.
2. Shape into a flat rectangle 20cm by 15cm; wrap and chill 1 hour.
3. Prepare the butter block: pound the 300g butter between two sheets of baking paper into a 15cm square. Chill until firm but still pliable.
4. Roll the chilled dough into a rectangle twice the size of the butter block (about 30cm by 15cm). Lay the butter on one half; fold the dough over to enclose. Pinch the edges shut.
5. Roll out to a 45cm by 20cm rectangle, keeping the butter inside an even sheet. Fold in thirds (a letter fold). Wrap; chill 1 hour.
6. Repeat the roll-and-letter-fold twice more, chilling 1 hour between each turn. You have done three turns total.
7. Roll the laminated dough into a long 50cm by 25cm rectangle, 5mm thick. Trim the edges square.
8. Cut into 8 long isosceles triangles (12cm base, 25cm tall). Roll each triangle from base to tip, stretching the tip gently as you roll. Curve the ends into a crescent.
9. Place the croissants on a lined baking sheet, point underneath. Cover loosely; proof at room temperature 2 to 3 hours until visibly puffed and jiggly. They should grow by half again.
10. Brush with egg wash twice (once at the start of proofing, again before baking).
11. Heat oven to 210°C. Bake 16 to 18 minutes until deeply amber and the bottom is crisp.
12. Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes before eating; the crumb sets as it cools.