Gluten Free Puff Pastry Recipe

Ingredients:

For the Butter Block:
• 1-1/2 cups (3 sticks) cold, unsalted butter (or palm oil for dairy free)
• 3 tablespoons Carla's Gluten Free All-Purpose Flour Blend recipe
For the Dough:
• 3-1/2 cups Carla's Gluten Free All-Purpose Flour Blend recipe
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon gluten free baking powder (omit for Baklava and Flaky Croissants)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, very soft
• 2-1/2 Tablespoons instant yeast
• 6 tablespoons water, heated to 105 - 110°F
• 1 cup cold milk
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• Potato starch, for dusting

Instructions:

To Make Butter Block:
1. Combine 1-1/2 cups of butter and 3 tablespoons of flour using the paddle attachment of your mixer. Beat on low speed until creamy. (Use the whisk attachment, if that is all you have and your mixer can withstand the effort.)
2. Wrap in plastic and form into a rectangle, about 7 x 5-inches. Freeze for 5 minutes, turn over, freeze an additional 5 minutes, and then refrigerate until ready to use.
To Make the Dough:
3. While the butter block is chilling, sift together the flour blend, sugar, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of a clean mixing bowl.
4. Add 4 tablespoons of butter. Using the paddle attachment, mix on low speed until the butter is evenly distributed and small pebbles form, about 2 minutes. (Again, use the whisk attachment, if needed.)
5. In a cup, add yeast to warm water, stir, and allow to sit until small bubbles begin to appear, approximately 2 minutes.
6. Lightly whisk together the yeast mixture, milk, and eggs. Add them to the mixing bowl. Mix on low speed just until blended, 20 - 30 seconds. (If there is a little flour stuck to the bowl, it is alright. You do not want to over mix the dough.)
7. Heavily dust a silicone baking mat or sheets of plastic wrap with potato starch. Scoop the dough onto to it, shaping it into a rectangle. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate 20 minutes. (Do not knead. It is okay if it the dough is not smooth.)
8. Remove the butter block from the refrigerator and unwrap. Heavily dust a rolling pin and silicone baking mat (or sheets of plastic wrap) with potato starch. Dust the butter with potato starch. Using the rolling pin, pound the butter, keeping its rectangular shape. Roll it out to a 9 x 9-inch square. Place the butter on a sheet of plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, 10 - 15 minutes.
9. Remove the dough from the refrigerator, remove the plastic wrap, and place a glass of water nearby for sealing any cracks. Heavily dust a silicone baking mat or sheets of plastic wrap with potato starch and transfer the dough to the rolling surface.
10. Roll No. 1: Dust the dough with potato starch and roll out to 20 x 10-inches, dusting with potato starch as needed. Dip your fingers in the water and dab onto any cracks in the dough, around the edges, or elsewhere. (Do so throughout the recipe.) Place the chilled butter 1/2-inch from the edges of one-half of the dough. Using a pastry brush, dust away any excess potato starch. Fold the dough in half, over the butter, and pinch the edges closed with cold water. Dust the entire block with potato starch. Refrigerate for 20 minutes. At any time that the dough becomes cracked or dry, baste with cold water. (Keeping ice in the glass helps.) Just be sure to dust heavily with potato starch afterwards.
11. Roll No. 2: Roll the dough out to a 22 to 24-inch rectangle. While attempting to roll it out length-wise, it will become wider than 10 inches, but this is okay. Fold it into thirds, towards the center. Pinch the edges closed with cold water, dust the entire block with potato starch, and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
12. Roll No. 3: Repeat step 11. Be sure to pinch the edges closed with cold water and dust the outside of the dough.
13. Roll No. 4: By now the width is very wide. Instead of rolling it in the same direction as you have been, turn the dough sideways, and roll it out in a different direction, repeating step number 11.
14. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap. Store in a resealable storage bag or 9 x 13-inch baking dish covered with plastic wrap or a lid. Using the dough immediately is recommended. However, you can refrigerate it for up to 1 day or freeze up to 2 weeks. Defrost in your refrigerator overnight prior to using. Then leave it at room temperature, 5 - 10 minutes or until it is soft enough to pound with a rolling pin and roll. Roll as instructed in your recipe.
15. After rolling out the dough, trim the edges so that the dough is uniformly shaped. In addition, the edges tend to be without butter; therefore it is preferable to remove them. Use this pastry dough in recipes such as Danish, croissants, or savory dishes. Commercial, pre-rolled puffed pastry is about 1/8-inch thick. Use this as a guide when substituting this dough for traditional puff pastry.

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