Palmiers, from Kenny Hilburn of Feral Dough Co.

Most palmier recipes call for store-bought puff pastry, but if you want to make this mouthwatering French pastry (also known as Elephant Ears or Butterfly Wings) truly delicious (and nutritious!) try this recipe from Kenny Hilburn, baker & owner of Feral Dough Co. in Oklahoma City.  He created this recipe specifically for Janie's Mill flours, and encourages everyone to "learn your dough and keep practicing."

Yield: 40 Palmiers

Equipment: Rolling pin, Knife, Bench scraper, Timer

Ingredients

for the Dough:

• 270g Janie’s Mill Organic Silky Smooth Pastry Flour
• 150g water
• 2 pinches of salt

for the Butter Block:

• 130g Janie's Mill Organic High-Protein Flour

• 400g very cold butter (preferably 85% butterfat)

for the Filling:

• 100g sugar

• 10g cinnamon
• 1 egg

for the Simple Syrup (topping, post-baking)

• 50g water

• 50g sugar

Instructions

Make the main dough: With bare hands, make a well in the Silky Smooth Pastry Flour on a cool countertop. Pour in the water and two pinches of salt. With your fingers mix it until a shaggy dough forms, then wrap in plastic and refrigerate, preferably overnight.

Make the butter block: Measure out the High-Protein Flour for the butter block. Dump it onto the counter, but do not make a well. Dice the very cold butter into small pieces, and dump on top of the flour. Coat each piece of butter with flour then begin massaging the butter and flour against the work bench. After a few minutes the butter will begin to melt slightly. It will first become pliable then it will begin to absorb flour. Continue rubbing and massaging until a thick putty-like texture is formed. Using a bench scraper, pick up the dough mass and place it on plastic wrap. Form it into a thin loose rectangle shape. Wrap and refrigerate, preferably overnight.

Roll out the dough & butter block: Take both the dough and the butter block out of the refrigerator. Let the butter block warm until it is pliable, then roll it out until it is approximately 20-24 inches long and 6-7 inches wide.

Roll out the dough to approximately half the length of the butter block and almost the same width. Place the butter block on the end of the dough closest to you, and pull the other half of the dough up and over the butter block. Crimp the edges then push them together with a bench knife to lock in the dough. Once locked in, refrigerate for 20 minutes exactly.

The Turns: The first turn is a double turn. Roll the dough (with the locked-in butter block) out to 24 inches long, taking care not to widen it as you lengthen it. Pull both ends into the middle, then fold them over each other completing the first turn. Refrigerate for exactly 20 minutes.

Repeat, rolling out the dough to 24-28 inches. Perform the same fold again. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Perform the final turn with a trifold. Roll out the dough to 24 inches then fold the end furthest from you towards you passing the center line. Fold the end closest to you over it making sure the edges are straight and clean. This is the final turn. Then, refrigerate overnight. (At this point the dough can be frozen for 3 weeks or refrigerated for two days. If using immediately, refrigerate for 20 minutes.)

Prepare the cinnamon-sugar filling. Place the sugar and cinnamon in a glass bowl and stir with a fork. Separately, lightly beat an egg for wash.

Prep the Palmiers: Roll out the dough to 9x24 inches and coat the sheet of dough with the egg wash. Straighten the edges and dump the cinnamon-sugar onto the center. With the side of the palm of the hand rub the sugar towards both ends coating the entire sheet. Wait for the egg to absorb some sugar then do it again. Brush off any remaining sugar with your hands (there will be some left over).

Now, mark a midway line horizontally on the dough sheet. Fold the top and bottom into this center line. Then fold the edges onto themselves into the center again. Take a rolling pin and place it on the midline. Press down gently to create a subtle ditch the entire length of the dough. Then, fold the two halves on top of each other. Roll it up in parchment and then wrap in plastic. Freeze overnight.

Cutting and baking: The next morning, place the dough into the refrigerator. Go about your life. That evening fire your oven to 374 degrees Fahrenheit and line two half sheet pans with parchment paper. Cut the thawed tube into 1/2 inch portions and place onto the pans in rows of 4x5.

Bake for 18 minutes. Remove from the oven and working quickly flip the palmiers, then put back into the oven for approximately 10 minutes or until dry and lightly carmelized.

Making and brushing with Simple Syrup: While baking make a simple syrup of 50g of water and 50 g of sugar. Once you pull the palmiers from the oven, brush this liquid on them immediately.  Allow them to cool and enjoy!

Kenny's Tips for Success

• The turns should take no more than 2 minutes. If the butter begins to melt, do not add flour. Gently scrape it up and put it in the refrigerator for five minutes to cool before continuing.
• Do not machine mix or the dough will over-mix and the butter will be chunky and not incorporated fully. The temperature of your hands and bench is crucial to being able to get the right consistency with the butter block. There should be no visible chunks of butter in the flour.
• During turns, use bench flour very judiciously.
• Do not use anything other than 85% butterfat butter as you’re setting yourself up for a very very messy day.
• For the egg wash, duck eggs are preferred if you have a source for them.
• The first 500 of these that you make may turn out questionable. But, over time you will learn to feel the dough, the right amount of pressure etc… keep practicing!
• And of course, this recipe was designed specifically to use Janie’s Mill flours. Any other flour, I cannot guarantee success or a tasty pastry!