From time to time, my food blogger friends and I talk about how much fun it would be to all live in the same neighborhood (or at least within a short drive of one another), as opposed to spread out around the country. Food blogging friends are a special breed – among other things, they don’t think it’s weird that you have 10 pounds of butter stashed in your freezer, and they understand your odd obsession with taking pictures of almost everything you eat π I know we’d have a blast if we had the opportunity to spend time together in the kitchen, but until that’s possible, we spend a lot of time baking virtually, usually texting and sometimes tweeting one another as we work. These chocolate danish were a project I tackled with my friend Di a few weekends ago.
The basis of these danish pastries is a laminated dough, which just means that it has alternating layers of dough and butter, which are made through a series of folds and turns. When the thin layers of butter hit the heat of the oven, the water in the butter turns to steam, the pastry puffs, and you’re left with the lightest, most flaky treat. It’s like magic! This lamination is typically achieved by wrapping dough around a block of butter, then completing lots of folds and turns, and though I’ve used that method twice – first to make traditional croissants, and then chocolate croissants – this recipe’s technique is referred to as “rough” and is decidedly less fussy. You don’t need a mixer to make the dough and there’s no kneading required. You also get to skip the butter block; if you’re ever tried to shape 3 or more sticks of butter into a square, you’ll understand why this is a very good thing!
The best part is that this method produces results that are just as fantastic as the other recipes I’ve tried! Just looking at the danish you can see the flaky layers that have been created. These were buttery and rich, everything you’d want from a decadent breakfast treat. I filled my danish with chocolate, of course, but the world is really your oyster here. The recipe’s author included a raisin danish and Di made a raspberry-filled braid, to name a few. Just be sure you have friends to share with because resisting the temptation of these pastries is nearly impossible π
The recipe comes from Dan Lepard and can be found in The Guardian here. Just a few notes:
-Only weights are given, so you’ll need a scale to make this recipe. I prefer it this way anyway, I think it’s far more accurate.
-Some of the ingredient names may seem a little unusual. Quick translation – fast-acting yeast = instant yeast, strong white flour = bread flour, cold double cream = heavy cream, caster sugar = granulated sugar (technically, superfine I think, but regular works). Also, I subbed bread flour where the recipe calls for 00 flour without any problems.
-If you need help figuring out the folds, I included step-by-step pictures in the croissant posts linked above. Also, don’t worry if the dough is a rough mess for the first few turns, it will get better!
-The recipe doesn’t specify a range of time for rising after the croissants are shaped. Mine took about 45 minutes to double in size.
-You can freeze the danish after shaping, but before rising and baking. See the comments below the recipe for detailed instructions.
OMG! These are my #1 guilty pleasure – if I’m ever at a coffee shop (or anywhere, really) and they have chocolate danish… I’m a goner. I love them! I’ll have to try these ASAP!
I’ve always wanted to make these but never had the guts to. This recipe is really tempting me!
You are a girl after my own heart!! Love this!
I’m seriously tempted to make another batch of this dough while I’m on vacation this week. I even bought some 00 flour so I can try it with that. =) We should definitely bake something else together this week.
I went weak at the knees when I saw those chocolate chips peaking through. My goodness, this looks so good! But then again anything flaky and filled with chocolate is bound to be delicious, right?
love this and having food blogger friends, both those you only know online, and those who live close enough to meet up with…such a special gift. We “get” each other π
Holy danish! These look AH-mazing! That melted chocolate squeezing out from the lovely, light, warm layers of puffy and buttery dough…*drool* I’m in heaven! I’ve got to try these π Thanks for the recipe and have a wonderful weekend!
Thanks for sharing this. The only ones i’ve ever had were the frozen ones from Kroger. One day I’ll try this recipe.
Yum! Wow! Your chocolate danish looks out of this world!!! This would go so good with a cup of coffee!!
I love that you can actually see each layer in that amazing dough. I’m curious as to how the texture compares to a croissant. Looks amazing!
I’ve never tried the “rough” method for laminated dough, but I’ve only seen good reviews of recipes that use it. I’ve got some chocolate sticks for chocolate croissants languishing in my cabinet; maybe a quicker dough would be the push I need to use them.
Wow, it’s perfect. Just perfect!
Definitely worth trying! Love the flaky dough, and usually prefer to fill it with zaatar!
Drooling over your pictures- so beautiful.
Oh goodness – I have been so scared of danishes (and all laminated dough!) but I think you’ve convinced me to try this. These look too good to resist.
Oh wow this looks so good. So fun to bake along, virtually at least, with a friend!
Sounds like this will be my next project Tracey! We love chocolate croissants, but it takes forever to make. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
These were unbelievable! Flaky chocolatey goodness that was impossible to resist! People at work raved about these and said they were the best they ever had! We all thank you for sharing.
Your dough looks so well laminated. I love seeing all the layers in it!
These look amazing!! I love pain au chocolat (which I assume is about the same thing!!) Yours look so amazing that I might want to tackle this project for sure when I’m feeling brave!