Delicious Danish Pastries!

Danish pastries have always been a favourite of mine when browsing the bakery aisle in the local supermarkets - always a dangerous location if you've not had breakfast! Finally, last weekend, I decided to give it my own go. If you want to do the same make sure you give yourself plenty of time, this isn't a quick bake!

I used Paul Hollywood's recipe which you can find here.

Ingredients:

• 500g strong white bread flour
• 80g caster sugar 
• 10g salt 
• 10g instant yeast 
• 2 medium eggs 
• 90ml cool water 
• 125ml lukewarm (not hot) full-fat milk 
• 250g chilled unsalted butter (use a high quality butter)

1. In your mixer bowl add the flour, sugar, salt and yeast - ensuring that the yeast and salt don't touch. Then add in the eggs, water and milk and begin to mix on a medium speed until combined (about 2 minutes) then increase to high speed for 6-7 minutes.
   
2. Shape into a ball, dust very lightly with flour and either pop into a clean plastic bag or wrap loosely in cling film to allow it to raise. Pop it into the fridge for an hour.

   

   High quality french butter is what you need!

3. Roll out the dough to a rectangle 50cm x 20cm. Bash the butter between two pieces of cling film until it is 33cm x 19cm. Then place the butter on top of your rolled out dough. Fold the dough with no butter on over the top of the butter. This should leave some butter exposed. Cut off this exposed butter and place it on top of the dough that you've just folded across. Then fold the remaining bit of dough (that used to have the butter on) on top of the butter. Seal around the butter and place in the fridge for an hour.
   
4. Remove from the fridge and roll out to 50cm by 20cm again. Again, fold over a third of the dough and fold the remaining third back over the dough. Put back into the fridge for an hour. Repeat this twice more.
   
5. Once this is finished leave it in the fridge for 8 hours/overnight. It is then ready to use and can be used in a range of different danish pastries. You can see my dough raised a little more than hoped but you can see lots of layers!
   
6. Preheat your oven to 200c.
7. I rolled out half my dough to 45cm x 15cm and cut into 7.5 squares and formed them into pinwheels - this is video is the simplest to show the technique. I then popped a dollop of creme patisserie on top and a raspberry before coating it in an egg wash.
   
8. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes until a beautiful golden brown colour. I used the remainder of the dough to make lemon and lime pastries, chocolate pinwheels and pain au chocolats.