Kefir puff pastry for Napoleon cake
12 servings
120 minutes
Kefir puff pastry for the 'Napoleon' cake is an unusual and refined version of classic puff pastry, giving the dessert unique softness and elasticity. The kefir used in the recipe makes the dough tender, while its lactic acid replaces traditional vinegar, adding a slight tanginess. This dough serves as a wonderful base for the famous 'Napoleon' cake, valued for its layered structure and rich creamy flavor. The preparation process requires patience and precision: the dough is rolled out and chilled multiple times to create airy layers. This version of the dough is perfect not only for the classic recipe but also for various baking variations that require a delicate texture and pronounced flavor.
1
Take 360 g (2 packs) of creamy margarine (of which 50 g is for the dough), 1 egg, 1 teaspoon of salt, 500 g of flour, and 1 tablespoon of cognac. Use kefir or buttermilk to make a total of 250 ml - a cup, along with melted margarine, egg, salt, and cognac. Kefir gives the dough incredible elasticity, and the lactic acid in it, in my opinion, replaces vinegar.
- Margarine: 360 g
- Chicken egg: 1 piece
- Salt: 1 teaspoon
- Wheat flour: 500 g
- Cognac: 1 tablespoon
- Kefir: 200 ml
2
Let's work with margarine. We will separate 50 g for the dough. The remaining 310 g will be used for the 'sides'. It is not in the freezer but in the refrigerator. We place the margarine on wax paper, slightly soften it, hide it in a 'envelope' made of paper, roll it out to a thickness of 1 cm and put it in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Meanwhile, we prepare the dough.
- Margarine: 360 g
3
Take a 250 ml glass, break an egg into it, add salt, cognac, melted and cooled margarine, and bring it to 250 ml with cold kefir (almost to the brim). Then mix everything well until the salt is completely dissolved and gradually pour it into the sifted flour. Knead joyfully and energetically for about 10 minutes. The dough should not stick to the table or hands. It should become very pliable, like wax. Make small cross-shaped cuts and let it 'rest' for 20-30 minutes.
- Chicken egg: 1 piece
- Salt: 1 teaspoon
- Cognac: 1 tablespoon
- Margarine: 360 g
- Kefir: 200 ml
4
Then the most interesting part is rolling out the dough. The trick is to keep the layers of our dough intact and not tear them during rolling. The dough and butter should have the same consistency, feeling soft in a similar way. We roll the dough into a square, place the margarine inside, seal it like an envelope and roll it out into one layer. Then we fold it into 4 layers and put it in the fridge for 30 minutes. We repeat this process 3 more times. Overall, the rolling techniques are standard; I didn't discover America here but learned to distribute margarine evenly across the dough. The result was worth it.
- Margarine: 360 g