Description

This Croissant Bread loaf combines the flaky, buttery layers of traditional croissants into a convenient, sliceable loaf format. The recipe involves a yeast dough enriched with butter, followed by a careful lamination process to create tender layers. After rising, the dough is shaped into rolls, placed in a loaf pan, and baked until golden brown with a soft, airy crumb reminiscent of croissants.

Ingredients

Scale

Dough

1 cup whole milk, warmed to about 110°F (43°C)
2 and 1/4 teaspoons instant or active dry yeast (1 standard packet)
3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1 and 1/4 teaspoons salt
3 Tablespoons unsalted or salted butter, softened to room temperature and cut into 3 equal pieces
3 cups all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), plus more as needed and for lamination

Lamination

3/4 cup salted butter, slightly softened

Egg Wash

1 large egg
1 Tablespoon water

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Instructions

Prepare the dough: Whisk the warm milk, yeast, and sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Cover and let sit for about 5 minutes or until foamy. Add salt, butter, and 2 cups of flour. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed. Add remaining flour and beat on low until a soft dough forms that pulls from the bowl sides.
Knead the dough: Beat dough in mixer for 5 minutes or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 5 minutes until dough is soft but slightly tacky. Add flour in small doses if too sticky.
1st rise: Lightly grease a large bowl and place dough inside, turning to coat. Cover and allow to rise in a warm place for 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours until nearly doubled.
Flatten dough: Punch dough down, place on a silicone mat or floured surface, and gently flatten into a 10×14-inch rectangle. Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
Prepare lamination butter: Slice salted butter into 1/4-inch slices, ensuring it is pliable but not overly soft.
1st lamination: Remove dough, place softened butter down the center third, fold sides over butter like a letter, pinch ends to seal. Rotate dough, lightly flour, and roll to a 9×12-inch rectangle. Fold dough edges over like a letter, cover, and refrigerate 20 minutes.
2nd & 3rd laminations: Remove dough, rotate, lightly flour, and roll to 9×12 inches. Fold edges over like a letter. Rotate horizontally, roll again to 9×12 inches, fold similarly. Cover and refrigerate 20 minutes.
Final lamination & shaping: Remove dough, rotate, flour, roll out to 9×12 inches, and fold edges over. Rotate horizontally, roll out again. Roll the dough from a 9-inch side into a log. Cut log into 5 even rolls.
2nd rise: Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan, place rolls seam side down inside. Cover tightly and let rise for 45 to 60 minutes until slightly puffy.
Preheat oven and apply egg wash: Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Whisk egg and water, then brush the risen rolls generously.
Bake the loaf: Bake for 1 hour, loosely tenting with foil after 25 minutes to prevent over-browning, until an instant-read thermometer reads 195°F (90°C) at the center.
Cool the bread: Remove loaf pan from oven, cool for 30 minutes in pan on a wire rack. Run a knife around edges, remove from pan, and cool at least 15 more minutes on rack before slicing to avoid crumbling.

Notes

Overnight Dough: After shaping rolls, cover and refrigerate up to 15 hours. Remove 3 hours before baking and allow to rise 1–2 hours before baking. Alternatively, do the first rise overnight in the refrigerator for up to 12 hours, followed by 2 hours at room temp before continuing.
Freezing Dough: Freeze shaped dough loaf after final lamination for up to 3 months, thaw in refrigerator at least 3 hours, then let rise 1–2 hours before baking.
Butter for lamination should be pliable around 60°F (15°C), neither too hard nor greasy soft, to laminate properly.
Use salted butter for lamination and either salted or unsalted for dough.
You may add dry fillings like cinnamon sugar, chopped nuts, or chocolate chips before rolling; avoid wet fillings like jam to prevent sogginess.
Whole milk is preferred; avoid nonfat milk. Lower-fat or non-dairy milk can be substituted.
Stand mixers with dough hooks simplify kneading but hand kneading with a wooden spoon is effective if needed.
Do not halve or double the recipe; make dough batch as is and freeze extra bread if desired.
Use a silicone baking mat for rolling dough to prevent slipping and facilitate lamination.
Monitor dough stickiness carefully, adding flour sparingly to maintain a soft, slightly tacky dough.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 slice (about 80g)
Calories: 250 kcal
Sugar: 5 g
Sodium: 180 mg
Fat: 12 g
Saturated Fat: 7 g
Unsaturated Fat: 4 g
Trans Fat: 0 g
Carbohydrates: 29 g
Fiber: 1 g
Protein: 6 g
Cholesterol: 50 mg