Flaky Buttery Croissants with Fresh Milled Flour

5 from 2 votes

Flaky Buttery Croissants with Fresh Milled Flour

There’s something almost magical about fresh croissants straight from the oven—the delicate layers breaking apart with a gentle touch, revealing a buttery, flaky interior that melts in your mouth. Fresh milled flour adds a subtle complexity that makes these delicious croissants a special treat worth the effort. If this is your first time baking croissants, this recipe gently walks you through the process without rushing, so you can enjoy that lovely aroma filling your kitchen without the kitchen chaos. Don’t worry if your first attempt isn’t perfect—the process itself is part of the joy, and every buttery, flaky bite is a celebration of homemade goodness. So go ahead, give your kitchen a little bakery magic.

Course Breads

Cuisine American

Keyword croissants

Prep Time 2

Cook Time 15

Rise Time 1 30

Total Time 2 1 45

Servings croissants

Calories 333kcal

Ingredients

Dough:

2 ¼ cups freshly milled hard white wheat flour finely milled (292 grams)
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 ½ teaspoons instant yeast
2 tablespoons softened butter
2 tablespoons honey
½ cup warm whole milk 126 grams
⅓ cup warm water 72 grams

Butter Layer:

¾ cup butter 173 grams

Egg wash:

1 egg
1 teaspoon water

Instructions

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the flour, salt, and yeast and mix.
Cut the 2 tablespoons of butter into a few pieces and mix it into the flour using your hands to pinch it together, or a fork to work it into the dough into small pieces.
Add the honey, milk, and water and combine.
Let the dough rest for 20 minutes.
Knead the dough for 5 minutes. It should pull away from the sides of the bowl. When you poke it, it should spring back just a little. The dough should be somewhat wet, but not really sticky. It will not look like normal bread dough.
Once kneaded, place in a greased bowl, cover tightly, and place in the fridge overnight.
Freeze the butter, then grate it, and freeze it again.
The next day, the dough will have risen just a little bit but not much. Turn the dough out on a lightly floured work surface. Roll the dough into an 8 x 12 inch rectangle, about ½ inch thick.
Place the grated butter on the right half of the dough and press it down, leaving a little bit of room from the edges. Then fold the left side of the dough over top of the right side, like a book, and pinch the seams together.
Turn the dough 90 degrees, then roll into an 8 x 15 inch rectangle. Take the right side and fold it into the middle, then fold the left side and fold it over top, creating a letter fold.
If at any point the dough starts to warm up, place it in the fridge for 20 minutes. It is important that the dough does not get warm during the this process or you will not get flaky layers.
Rotate the dough 90 degrees, then roll it out again in an 8 x 15 inch rectangle and perform a letter fold.
Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 25 minutes.
Remove the dough, roll out in a 7 x 15 inch rectangle, and perform a letter fold. Wrap up and chill for another 25 minutes.
Remove dough from fridge, roll out into a 6 x 15 inch rectangle and perform a fourth letter fold for the last time. Wrap well in plastic wrap and chill for at least 4 hours, but overnight is best.
The next day, remove the dough from the fridge and place on a lightly floured surface. Roll out into an 8 x 16 inch rectangle. Cut the dough into 4 equal, smaller rectangles. Then cut those rectangles diagonally to create 8 triangles.
Take each triangle and roll it out just a little bit. Then take the back end of the triangle and roll it up to the tip. Gently pinch the tip into the dough and make sure it’s on the bottom when you place them on the pan.
Place the croissants on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, cover and let rise for 1 ½ hours at room temperature (they will not rise too much, should just look puffy).
Prepare the egg wash and brush it on the croissants thoroughly.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. and brush the croissants a second time with the egg wash before placing in the oven.
Bake for 15-17 minutes until a deep golden brown, or until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F.
Best served warm!

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