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recipe pain au chocolat recipe

Pain au Chocolat Recipe

Catherine Olson
A beautiful and delicious pastry loved the world over, a pain au chocolat recipe creates a buttery soft chocolate croissant.
Prep Time 3 days
Cook Time 25 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine French
Servings 12 croissants

Equipment

  • Rolling Pin

Ingredients
  

Croissant Dough

  • 1 cup water warmed
  • 4 teaspoons dry active yeast
  • ½ teaspoon sugar
  • 3 ½ cups flour
  • 4 teaspoons salt
  • ¼ cup sugar

Chocolate Ganache

  • ½ cup chopped chocolate + 1 tablespoon
  • ½ cup whipping cream

Instructions
 

Croissant Dough

  • Proof yeast with sugar
  • Let sit until bubbly and rising
  • In a large mixing bowl add flour, salt and ¼ cup of sugar
  • Whisk until incorporated and make a well in the center
  • Add in yeast proof
  • Mix with hands and then add
  • 6.5 tablespoons softened butter
  • Mix again with hands until combined and continue to knead on un-floured surface until soft and smooth
  • If using a stand mixer, mix on low speed just until combined
  • Transfer to a clean bowl and let rise for several hours, at least until doubled
  • Remove from the bowl and deflate the dough.
  • Roll into a long rectangle and fold over like an envelope
  • Wrap in plastic and place in the fridge overnight
  • Make a tourrage with 16.5 tablespoons of butter by smashing and rolling the butter inside a quart ziploc bag
  • When the butter is flat and square, place it in the fridge to harden
  • Cut it out of the ziploc bag so it remains the same shape
  • Allow to thaw just until you can create a light indent in the top with your finger
  • Remove the dough from the fridge and roll out to double the size of your butter square
  • Place the square of butter on one side of the dough and fold the other side of the dough to cover the butter
  • Roll the dough out again, until double the length,
  • Fold the dough over itself like a letter, in three folds
  • Place back in the fridge for at least an hour
  • You want to keep the dough cold so the butter stays laminated between the layers of dough
  • Repeat the rolling and folding process three times
  • Each time, make sure to turn the dough, so you are rolling in the opposite direction of the folds
  • Refrigerate between turns, and overnight after the last fold
  • After the dough has chilled, split dough in half and work with half the dough at a time
  • Roll out dough to 1/2 to 1/4 inch thickness
  • Cut out short rectangles, barely longer than wide and place a dollop of chocolate ganache at the top of each rectangle
  • Roll up and cover with egg wash and let rise for a minimum of 2 hours
  • You can add two pieces of chocolate ganache, allowing one roll of pastry inbetween each piece of chocolate
  • Preheat oven to Fahrenheit 400°
  • Wash the croissants again with egg wash as the oven heats to temperature
  • Cook at Fahrenheit 400° for 15 minutes, lower temperature to Fahrenheit 375° and cook for additional 10 minutes

Chocolate Ganache

  • Heat cream until bubbly and pour over chopped chocolate
  • Stir until melted and allow to cool until set
Keyword Pain au Chocolat Recipe