Step 1

In a small bowl, combine the yeast, lukewarm milk and sugar. Stir, cover with clingfilm and set aside for 5 to 10 minutes until very frothy and bubbly.

Step 2

Now in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the flour and salt. Pour in the frothy yeast mixture and mix on low to combine, then switch to medium-high speed and let the dough knead for 2 to 3 minutes until it clears the sides of the bowl, and becomes a smooth, slightly stiff mass (this could take more or less time depending on the flour, temperature etc). Poke it with a finger and if the dough slowly bounces back, it's ready to rise. If not, knead it gently with your hands in the bowl itself till it does bounce back.

Step 3

Place the dough on a lightly floured counter, then lightly oil the mixing bowl. Shape the dough into a neat ball and place it back in the greased bowl. Cover the bowl with clingfilm, then place in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 hours until doubled. This is a slow rising dough that develops a deeper flavour and also must be very cold, therefore the rise is all done in the fridge.

Step 4

When the dough has almost doubled, place the butter in a small bowl and mix it with a spoon until smooth, with not even tiny lumps. Spoon it out onto a silicone mat and shape into a 4x3 inch rectangle. Slide the mat onto a tray and place it in the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes, until firm but not hard. If you lift a corner of the butter slab, it should be a little flexible and not break off immediately. If you're having trouble shaping it into the exact size, wait till it's chilled a bit and then even out the edges.

Step 5

Now get out your dough and place it on another lightly floured silicone mat. It will feel quite stiff at this point but don't worry. Use a rolling pin to press it down a few times to flatten, then roll it out into a kind of diamond shape with flaps on 4 ends (see photos below). You don't have to be too precise with the measurement here. What is important is that the flaps are a little thinner than the center and long enough to enclose the butter. The center should also be broad enough to hold the entire butter slab.

Step 6

Place the chilled butter in the center of your rolled out dough. Fold the flaps over it to enclose it completely. Press down with the rolling pin again to flatten the entire mass a bit. At this stage if your dough starts to feel warm, place it in the fridge for 10 minutes. If not, roll it out into a 12x9 inch rectangle. As you're rolling, the dough will start to take an oval shape, so do your best to keep it rectangular by using your hands to stretch and shape it. Now fold the top of the rectangle to the center and the bottom over it, like a letter. You will now have a narrow rectangle of dough. Cover with clingfilm, slide the mat onto a baking tray and place it in the fridge for 1 hour. First roll done!

Step 7

After 1 hour, uncover the chilled dough and slide the mat back onto the counter (see why I love using mats, so easy to transfer the dough back and forth!). Rotate the mat so that the short side of the rectangle is now facing you. Roll it out again, lightly flouring as needed, into a 12x9 rectangle. Repeat the fold as above, cover and chill for 1 more hour. Second roll done!

Step 8

During this roll and fold process, if you see butter leaking out, lightly flour the spot and place the dough in the fridge to firm up again. Alternately, I also find that placing a sheet of clingfilm over the dough and rolling on top of it helps a lot with stickiness. Some butter leaking out is inevitable in a warm kitchen, so don't fret about it, just chill the dough as often as needed. If there are air bubbles in your dough, prick them with a toothpick and continue rolling. If there are creases in the dough, do your best to smooth them over with the rolling pin.

Step 9

Rotate the mat yet again so that the shorter side is facing you and repeat the roll and fold a third and final time. Cover the dough tightly, slide the mat onto the tray and place it in the fridge for an overnight rest.

Step 10

The next day, uncover the chilled dough and roll again into a 12x11 rectangle. I promise we're getting to the end! Trim the edges of the rectangle if needed, to make neat edges. You will only need to trim off a few centimeters so no harm done.

Step 11

Now use your ruler to help cut the dough into 3 equal rectangles (ideally 4 inches wide, but if you trimmed the edges, you'll have to reduce this a bit). Then cut each rectangle diagonally. You will now have 6 triangles.

Step 12

Lift up one of the triangles and slide the mat with the remaining triangles back onto a tray and place in the fridge. Lightly flour your kitchen counter and place the triangle of dough on it. Roll it up tightly starting at the broad end. A personal tip from experience: If you feel the underside of the triangle is neater, flip it over so that when you roll it up, the shaped croissant is smooth and neat.

Step 13

Place the croissant back on the mat and repeat with the rest. Space each croissant out at least 2 inches apart and make sure the triangles are cold when you're rolling them.

Step 14

Now cover the tray with the shaped croissants fairly tightly with clingfilm. It's important to make sure no air can get in, so that a nice warm environment is created. Let them rest at room temperature for 3 to 4 hours until very puffy and almost doubled. When you lift off the clingfilm and shake the tray a bit, the croissants should have a slight wobble. The layers will also be more clearly defined. That's when you know they're ready to be baked.

Step 15

At this stage, I like to place the croissants in the fridge for 20 minutes. Since the room temperature rise takes a while, the butter will soften. Chilling the croissants briefly before baking helps counter this. Remember that cold butter creates the flaky layers.

Step 16

Now preheat the oven to 200 C. Lightly beat the egg in a small bowl, then stir in the salt.

Step 17

Brush the croissants generously with the eggwash, making sure you get it all over the top, sides and any nooks and crannies.

Step 18

Place the tray in the oven (FINALLY!!) and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the croissants are puffed and deeply golden-brown. Some butter may leak out during the baking, but it will get absorbed back in.

Step 19

Allow the croissants to cool at room temperature for 20 minutes. This is important to make sure they're fully cooked inside. Then, break into the still warm, super flaky, deliciously buttery, beautiful batch of croissants you just made! Congratulate yourself and eat them all with jam, it's perfectly acceptable :)

Step 20

Store leftover croissants in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, reheating in the microwave or oven. Have some fun while doing this and let me know how it goes for you. Happy baking!