Winter Days

Croissant

A croissant (UK: , US: , French: [kʁwasɑ̃] (listen)) is a buttery, flaky, viennoiserie pastry of Austrian origin, but mostly associated with France. Croissants are named for their historical crescent shape and, like other viennoiseries, are made of a layered yeast-leavened dough. The dough is layered with butter, rolled and folded several times in succession, then rolled into a thin sheet, in a technique called laminating. The process results in a layered, flaky texture, similar to a puff pastry. Crescent-shaped breads have been made since the Renaissance, and crescent-shaped cakes possibly since antiquity. Croissants have long been a staple of Austrian, Italian, and French bakeries and pâtisseries. The modern croissant was developed in the early 20th century… more »