Bakers Formula: June 2015

A new muffin/croissant hybrid recipe is challenging chefs to create a flaky and buttery matcha cruffin that can be dressed up with matcha green tea, jam, vanilla cream or chocolate.

Originally a favourite creation of Mr. Holmes Bakehouse in San Franscisco, the Matcha Green Tea Cruffin can be found in trendy cafes and professional bakeries across North America.

In England this past March, pastry visionary Foxcraft and Ginger debuted the cruffin in a variety of flavours and fillings. Food Blogger offers a variation at www.forktobelly.com/2015/03/29/matcha-cruffins.

Here is a super-simplified version.

Ingredients

• 1 loaf of your favourite croissant dough (even a packaged variety will work)
• Butter or margarine
• Flour
• Whatever topping or filling you wish
• Muffin pan
• Rolling pin or pasta maker
• Pastry icing bag with tips

Matcha Pastry Cream

• Ingredients (Topping or Filling)
• 1/2 cup caster sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• Pinch of salt
• 2 cups whole milk or cream, room temperature (could use whipping cream here)
• 4 egg yolks, room temperature
• 2 tsp matcha powder
• 35 g cubed butter
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

 
Method – Pastry Cream Instructions

1. Gently heat milk or cream on the stove until small bubbles or steam appears.
2. Add eggs to mix and stir well while heating.
3. Add butter, vanilla, and salt and beat mixture gently.
4. Remove from heat and chill in the fridge until cold.
5. Add cornstarch and sugar in small increments while beating on medium speed until stiff peaks form in the same way you make a meringue, though cream filling may be alittle heavier.

Cruffin Instructions

1. Cover your dough and let rise 40-45 minutes (unnecessary with pre-packaged once dough is room temperature)
2. Lightly flour the surface you will be working your dough on. Divide dough into four equal portions. Cover three portions loosely with plastic wrap and use one portion at a time.
3. Roll the dough to 1/3-inch thickness. Feed dough through pasta machine or roll until paper-thin using flour as needed. You may need to cut several strips of the dough as it lengthens on your workspace.
4. Rub softened butter on dough and roll the dough into a tight log, incorporating all the paper-thin strips of dough into logs which you join together end to end. Roll the whole thing a couple of times as you would a log, then cut this in half. Cut side out, twist it into a semi-knot (but not too tight as now it needs expansion room) and tuck ends beneath. Put knot into muffin pan. Repeat for all the rest of the dough.
5. Let proof in pan 2-3 hours (not necessary for packaged dough)
6. Bake at 400 F 25 minutes (15 minutes and check for packaged dough)
7. When golden brown and puffed, remove from oven and cool slightly on a rack. Dust with powdered sugar, add icing, make dent in bottom of cruffin to inject fillings, etc.