The Croissant, or croissant as we know it; that popular bun with a thousand extra crispy layers but so light at the same time, with that airy dough; delights everyone. Who can resist a freshly baked croissant, with that powerful smell and taste of butter? Considered the king of pastries, and one of the most consumed sweets, the Croissant celebrates its day every January 30, will you join us to celebrate it?
If you remember our Gastronomic Calendar 2023, every January 30 is celebrated the Croissant Day. A bakery product that, although closely linked to France, is actually of Austrian origin.
This crescent-shaped pastry is made with flaky dough and, above all, lots of butter. Moreover, as we said, it is very versatile. It is delicious for breakfast, a great brunch, or even perfect as a snack or dinner. It admits all kinds of fillings, both sweet and savory.
But before we begin, do you know the origin of the Croissant?
Although many claim that it originated in France, as it is deeply rooted in this gastronomy, the croissant was born in Vienna, Austria. Let’s learn about its history, a perfect way to celebrate Croissant Day.
To find the origin of the Croissant we have to go back to the year 1683, in Vienna. There, Ottoman soldiers were besieging the city, which, after Constantinople, was the first major conquest of Europe.
After several unsuccessful attempts by the Turks to storm the city, they decided to attack by surprise. They wanted to enter avoiding the walls by digging tunnels underground, and thus, pass under the walls. Since they wanted to do it by surprise, they decided to wait until nightfall so as not to be discovered.
The early bird catches the worm
However, they did not count on the fact that the bakers had to get up early in the morning to have the bread ready first thing in the morning. They immediately heard strange noises. They raised the alarm discreetly in order to catch the Turks by surprise. And so it was. The city of Vienna was once again victorious in this last attack attempt, forcing the Ottoman army to retreat.
The Emperor decided to decorate the bakers for their invaluable help and importance in this victory. The latter, returning the gratitude, prepared two breads: one with the name of ’emperor’, and another with the name of ‘Halbmond’, which in German means crescent moon, ancestor of the current croissant, as a mockery to the crescent moon that waved in the Ottoman flag.
Celebrate Croissant Day by making your own homemade croissant
Every January 30 is celebrated Croissant Day to commemorate, and give more popularity to this piece of pastry. Although there are places where it does not need it, well, did you know that in France it is the most consumed bun? And in Spain it is also among the top 5.
A great way to celebrate this day is to prepare your own homemade croissant. And, the truth is, it’s not as complex as you might imagine. Let’s take a look at the recipe:
Homemade Croissant Recipe
Ingredients
- 500 g Flour
- 75 g Sugar
- 2 eggs
- 250 g Butter
- 25 g Fresh yeast
- 5 g Salt
- 75 ml Water
- 75 ml Whole milk
Instructions
- We begin by sifting the flour into two bowls. In one of them, we will put the fourth part of the flour, which we will mix with the yeast. We make a hole in the middle of the flour and add the warm water. Mix until you get a homogeneous dough and let it ferment in a bowl with water.It has to be like a sponge.
- In the remaining flour, which we will have sifted in another bowl, we add the rest of the ingredients except the butter. Mix well and add the previous dough once it has obtained a fluffy texture.
- Knead well for 10 minutes, until the dough is elastic and slightly moist. It should come off smoothly from the table and your hands.
- Make two cuts in the shape of a cross and let stand for 10 minutes.
- After this time, add the butter. To do this, give your dough a four-pointed star shape, and put the butter in the middle.Close the dough by bringing the two horizontal points to the middle until they meet. Do the same with the vertical ones. Now, with a rolling pin, flatten the dough and stretch it so that it ends up being three times longer than it is wide.
- Now, we fold from one of the ends to a little more than the middle. The same with the other end of the dough. Repeat this process a couple of times.
- When we have finished kneading, we will form a "plate" with the dough about 40 centimeters wide and as long as it will give you.
- Cut the dough in two pieces, in half, and make triangles of about 8-9 cm base. At the base of the triangle, make a cut of about 2 cm. And open it slightly. We roll each triangle from the base where we have made the cut, to the tip. We will obtain cylinders.
- Fold the croissant peaks inwards, giving them their characteristic shape, and place them on the baking tray. Let them rest until they double in size.
- When the dough has rested, brush with egg and bake at 225ºC for 10-15 minutes.Your delicious homemade croissants are ready.
Croissant Day has been celebrated since 2006, when we found the first references to this celebration. Although we have not managed to find its creator or know the reason for this celebration, it is a perfect excuse to prepare or taste a great croissant, either just to not hide its powerful buttery flavor, or with our favorite filling, both sweet and savory. Either just to not hide its powerful buttery flavor, or with our favorite filling, either sweet or savory. How do you prefer it?
Do you know why we love croissants so much?
The croissant, like other baked goods, thanks to its ingredients, such as sugar, becomes irresistible to us. And this is because it causes our body to release dopamine and beta-endorphin, which are responsible for the sensation of pleasure.
That’s why practically all of us are crazy about a good croissant. Even just the smell of it when it is toasted or baked makes us feel happy.
In addition, being a light and not very cloying bun, that we can take both sweet and salty, makes it have a good acceptance.
Some curiosities about Croissant Day
In addition to the story told above, there are other versions about the origin of the Croissant. One of them claims that it is inspired by the Austrian Kipferl. Be that as it may, what seems to be clear is that this pastry comes from Austria.
This bread was brought to France when the Austrian officer August Zang opened a bakery in Paris. There, the Kipfler had great success, so they soon began to imitate it in other French bakeries, but using their typical flaky dough.
Did you know that Croissant means crescent? It refers to the crescent of the moon, the same shape as the bun.
Other names for Croissant: It is also known as crab, horn, cachito or factura.
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