Recipe: Kouign Amann Pastries

Kick your laminated dough skills up a notch as you learn how to make Kouign Amann, which translates to “Butter Cake.” It is a sweet flaky delicacy from the Brittany region of France traditionally baked as a round cake, but more recently is being served as an individual pastry.

Join master pastry chef and instructor Colette Christian as she takes you step by step through the process of making a laminated dough, where the butter is slowly worked into the dough through a series of folding and rolling (called “turns.”) Colette shares her clever trick for making sure your butter block is the exact size and temperature you need and offers advice on every stage from initial butter incorporation and first turn to rolling out the final dough in sugar and shaping. Along the way, Colette shares tips for choosing the right ingredients and equipment giving you the necessary information to make perfect sweet yeast dough every time. As this dough bakes up, all of those flaky layers start to rise and the sugar caramelizes quickly to a beautiful golden brown color. Be sure to take Colette’s advice on how to save your rolls from getting too brown in the oven too fast! Eat these pastries fresh from the oven or top them with fruit preserves, curds, caramel, or anything you can think of for a tasty treat.

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