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"The French Croissant" - Origin, Recipe and Method

  • 24 Jul 2016
The origin of the Croissant goes way back into the year of 1683 in Vienna, Austria, a time when the Austro-Hungarian empire was at war with the Turkish Empire. As history goes by, the Turkish army was looking to enter the besieged city of Vienna through tunnels which were being dug under the fortification. But the Turks did not realize that there was a bakery in the basement near the walls, and the noise of digging had alerted the bakers working down there who had informed the Austro-Hungarian army of the approaching Turks ultimately resulting in the defeat of the Turkish army.

In celebration of the victory, the bakers created a small roll in the yeast-leavened sweet dough. The roll was made in the form of the crescent moon; the emblem that still appears on the Turkish flag, and thus the 'Croissant' was born.

From its origins until about 1920, the so-called Vienna croissant was made from un-laminated, non-flaky, yeast-raised sweet dough. Around that time, French bakers developed and began to regularly produce the laminated, flaky croissant which we know as the French Croissant today. The laminated-dough, flaky croissant is thus of French origin, and the fermentation of the dough which contributes to the formation of its flaky layers, represents considerable progress: as a result, the croissants were more voluminous, lighter, delicate with buttery flavour.

Ingredients that make a perfect Croissant.

Making the perfect croissant is more to do with the science of baking rather than the skill of shaping and lamination. Selection of the right quality and grade of ingredients will have a major impact on the final product. Here is how to select the perfect ingredients to make the perfect French Croissant.
 
1. Selection of Flour

Choose a pure wheat flour (not mixed grain) with the strength and baking quality slightly superior to ordinary bread flour: the W value should be at least 220, with a P/L ratio around 0.6, since these qualities result in the extendible dough with good shape retention. The enzymatic activity should be rather weak, with a falling number value equal to or greater than 250 seconds.

2. Selection of Fat for Lamination

The plasticity and stability to the croissants are established by using excellent quality of fats. Fats used for croissants whether butter or margarine must have good plasticity and stability. The moisture content of the butter should be 15 % at most, and the point of fusion of margarine should not be higher than 36ºC. Use of unsalted fat is recommended to get the right flavour & mouthfeel.

SwissBake's product range for French Croissant and European Laminated Dough 

As a leading manufacturer of premium bakery ingredients and convenience products, SwissBake offers a range of products that are ideal for use in making French croissants and other European Laminated dough products. With our state-of-the-art research facility located in Switzerland, we have been successfully fulfilling the evolving needs of the bakery industry and developing innovative tailor-made solutions for high-quality bakery ingredients. Our current range of laminated dough products includes:

1. Croissant 10: A concentrated mix for making the consistent quality of croissants.
2. Crossy Freeze: An Improver for frozen laminated dough
3. T-55 French Style Flour: A French Style T55 flour for all your baking needs
 
Kindly click on the above SwissBake's product name to view the Baker Recipe and Baking Method for baking "French Croissants"

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