For best baking results, make puff pastry the day before shaping and baking it.
Weigh the flour. This is your best chance for duplicating the recipe successfully since the balance of flour to water is important. If weighing is impossible for you, accurate volume measurements are given in each recipe.
Regardless of the method, prepare the dough package at least 12 hours before rolling in the butter. This initial rest relaxes and mellows the dough, making it easier to withstand the repeated rollings.
Butter temperature and consistency are two of the most important elements in making successful puff pastry. It should be cold but not so firm that it is brittle so it will film between the dough layers smoothly. Pound the cold, firm butter with the end of a rolling pin until it is malleable enough so that it can be folded on top of itself without breaking. The process should take only about 30 seconds so the butter remains cold. Even a temperature change of 10 to 15 degrees will change its consistency drastically. Too firm, and it will form broken fragments while rolling between the layers; too soft, and it will integrate with the dough layers, making it impossible to build structure. (Butter that is softer than the dough is the worst.)
Every brand of butter contains some liquid. How much depends on the quality. The liquid can weep during the rolling process, mix with the thin layers of dough, overdevelop the gluten and toughen the pastry. To get rid of the excess, wash the butter, or pound it on a towel, or add flour to it before rolling it into the dough package.
Finish making the puff pastry after forming the butter block, since the consistency of the butter is just right at that point.
The dough package and butter block, though separate, should be at similar consistencies for successful rolling and layering. If the butter block breaks through the dough, lightly flour to patch, forming a sort of Band-Aid over the area; then brush away the excess flour. No matter what happens, continue rolling and layering. You will be surprised at your success, even if the butter does not behave perfectly.
Always roll the dough on a smooth surface that provides comfortable leverage. Roll from the center of the dough, stopping just short of the edge; if you roll over the edges, you could squeeze butter from between the layers. The goal is to extend not stretch the dough, never applying too much pressure on the rolling pin. Lightly flouring the dough and work surface as necessary makes rolling and layering the dough efficient.
Unlike most puff pastry recipes, the dough in my recipes is rectangular in shape, from the beginning when the butter block is incorporated, to its finish, making it easier to keep corners square and the butter evenly distributed.
When rolling the dough to create more layers, it’s easier to extend the width of the rectangle before rolling its length. While layering the puff pastry, roll in alternating directions, lengthwise and width-wise. As you extend the dough, you create tension on that side. Then, when the alternate side is rolled, it will give more easily.
Rest the dough between turns to resolidify the butter layers and relax the dough, giving the gluten strands time to adjust to their new dimension. The rest is important, but if refrigerated too long, the butter may become so cold that it is brittle.
Some puff pastry recipes are more difficult to extend than others. This does not mean the puff pastry will not be perfect. Don’t force the pastry if it resists rolling, no matter what the recipe directs. Rest the dough in the refrigerator for a while, then proceed to roll as you can. (If it continues to be impossible, then consider changing the protein content of the dough next time.)
