Cornetto
Ingredients
- 500 g flour
- 7 g yeast
- 80 g sugar
- 150 ml warm milk
- 2 eggs
- pinch of salt
- 80 g soft butter (for the dough)
- 250 g cold butter (for lamination)
- 1 egg, for egg wash
- jam, chocolate-hazelnut spread, or pastry cream, for filling (optional)
Sitting somewhere between a brioche and a French croissant, the Italian cornetto uses a dough enriched with milk, eggs and sugar — sweeter and softer than its French counterpart — laminated with butter for flaky layers, then shaped into crescents. It's a café breakfast staple, often filled with apricot jam, chocolate-hazelnut spread, or pastry cream.
Method
Combine flour, yeast, sugar, warm milk, eggs, salt and soft butter into a smooth, only lightly kneaded dough. Chill.
Pound the cold butter into a flat slab and encase it in the dough.
Roll and fold the dough in thirds, chilling between turns, for two to three turns, as with croissant dough.
Roll the laminated dough into a sheet, cut into triangles, and roll each into a crescent from the wide end (adding a spoonful of filling near the wide end first, if desired).
Proof, covered, in the refrigerator overnight, or at warm room temperature for 2-4 hours until puffy.
Brush with egg wash and bake at around 200°C (400°F) for 15-18 minutes until golden.
