Pâte Feuilletée

Of all the pastry doughs, pâte feuilletée wins the prize for the most laborious (and perhaps the most satisfying) methodology. This is a laminated pastry in which layers of butter (beurrage) are sandwiched between layers of détrempe (a dough mixture made of water, flour, salt, and vinegar). This is achieved by successively folding and rolling out the beurrage and détrempe.

When pâte feuilletée is baked, the butter melts and releases humidity in the form of steam that is then trapped between the layers of détrempe. This causes the dough to rise and develop its characteristic flaky quality. Millefeuille, palmier, and the savory vol-au-vent are examples of preparations that use pâte feuilletée.