Kinda blew my mind that butter temperature matters that much for laminated dough

I was reading this blog from a pastry chef in Chicago and she said the butter has to be exactly 60 degrees when you start folding it into croissant dough. I always just pulled it from the fridge and hoped for the best. Has anyone else messed up a whole batch because the butter was too cold or too warm?

2 comments

2 Comments

jones.anna1d ago

Wait, did you try testing the butter with a thermometer first or just go by feel?

margaretm231d agoMost Upvoted

My buddy's sister once tried to bake cookies without any temp reading and ended up with butter that was basically liquid lava. She swore by the "feel" method her grandma taught her, but the cookies spread into one giant pancake. So yeah, I'm a thermometer guy now after seeing that disaster lol.