On New Year’s Day, I learnt how to fraisage a dough.
Fraisage is a French pastry making technique used to create flakiness in a finished pie crust. I watched Joanne Chang working her dough on Simply Ming, and raced straight into the kitchen to try it out. I’d always wanted to make flaky pastry, but hadn’t known how to go about it before.
My first attempt was a little dodgy, so I rang our friend Craig the baker for some advice. Craig generously gave me both his recipe and some tips on handling the dough. The results were sooo exciting – Pete came into the kitchen when he heard me squealing with delight!
Fraisage is the technique of smearing cold butter inside a loose dough to form it into sheets. The butter melts on baking, creating layers within the finished pastry. In order to do this successfully, the butter needs to be very cold (but not frozen rock solid), and handled reasonably briefly.
Craig uses a 3 – 2 – 1 pastry formula as follows:
- 300g (2 cups) plain (AP) flour
- 200g (7oz) unsalted butter
- 100g (3½oz) cold water
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 Tablespoon sugar (optional – for sweet doughs only)
1. Cut the cold butter into rough 2½cm (1″) cubes and measure out the water. Craig’s tip is to pop both the butter and the water into the freezer to chill while you prepare the board and measure out the dry ingredients (give it about 10 minutes or so).
2. In a stand mixer, combine the flour, salt and sugar (if using) and add the butter, beating on a medium speed just until the butter is reduced to pea-size pieces (some bits will be a bit larger). Quickly add the cold water and mix just until the water is incorporated. The dough will be very shaggy.
Turn the dough out onto a well floured work surface…
3. Using the palm of your hand, push sections of the dough outwards. The aim is to flatten the dough and smear the butter into long streaks…
4. Continue working the dough a section at a time, pressing down and flattening it onto the work surface. It helps to have cool hands…
5. When you’ve flattened all the dough, gather it together with a spatula or pastry tool…
6. Form the dough into a ball, wrap it in cling film, and let it chill in the fridge for at least an hour and up to three days. The dough can also be frozen for latter use.
I turned half of my dough into a sweet pie filled with boysenberries and raspberries from the freezer. The crust was egg washed and sprinkled with demerara sugar before baking…
And the end result was…flaky!
I think learning a brand new technique on New Year’s Day is a very auspicious way to start 2013. I need a lot more practice of course, but I’m so chuffed with how my second attempt turned out that I’m off to buy more unsalted butter!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
Awesome post! You know, I’ve seen Anne Burrel use this technique on her show, and always wanted to try it, but wimped out…
I will give it a go next time I make a pie or other concoction like this.
Thanks for the lesson!!!! and the push on the right direction….
Sally, don’t wimp out, this was great fun! I didn’t have the butter cold enough the first time, so I ended up with more shortcrust than flaky, but all the subsequent attempts have worked well! xx
Clever you, Celia. That looks simple enough to do, but also looks pretty deadly for the hips. Do I really need another way to get more/better fat into pastry? On the other hand, I’ll bet it tastes just divine.
Amanda, you’re not wrong! I’ve now tried it six times (have to practice!) and now feel like I’ve got it down pat. Last night I made meat pies which the boys loved. But that’s enough for now – it will make all of us (and the neighbours) fat! :)
I love the hearts :) The pastry looks great! Good job! Happy New Year :D
Thanks Nic! Happy New Year to you and the Stud too! :)
Well done, Celia and yes, amazing how you set yourself the task of learning something new on the first day of the new year. Just a question…with this technique requiring the butter to be at a certain temperature do you think this would be easier to do during cooler weather? Looks very pretty and I’m sure the pastry was very light and flaky xx
Thanks Charlie, although I didn’t set myself a task really, I just got a little excited when I saw it on tv. :) This definitely needs the butter to be cold, and would be better in winter, although it hasn’t been too bad in the kitchen over the last few days. Definitely not something to try when the weather gets hot next week though!
Morning Celia, Happy New Year, that looks very delicious. I have posted my In My Kitchen for January for you to add to your side list. Thanks again Shirley :)
Thanks for playing Shirley! Happy New Year!
Great technique! It sure looks terrific too- yummo. Happy New Year sweetie, I hope it brings more lovely surprises and successes xox
Happy New Year to you too, darling! This was great fun to make!
Ooo Celia! I love this. It’s so tricky getting an all butter crust to come out light and flaky. Yours looks divine! How did you manage in your Sydney heat?!
Em, I don’t know why I’ve never read about this technique before! It works so well! The heat wasn’t too bad last week (at least not in my kitchen), but Craig’s tip about chilling down the butter and water first made a big difference!
Oh wow. What a revelation! I must try this, Celia!
Misky, you’d love this! Have fun! :)
Good job Celia!
Thanks Glenda! :)
How perfect would that be for Valentine’s Day? Or Thursday!
I’m going to get the cutters out and try different shapes on the pies – the dough is very robust! Hope you and Katherine are having a great 2013 so far, Greg!
Oh I had no idea that it was called fraisage! I did a puff type recipe like that and it turned out deliciously. Oh and thank goodness for baker friends! :P
Lorraine, this is just like a puff pastry, I’m sure. And yes, thank goodness for friends with knowledge who are willing to share! :)
“Auspicious” start to the year is right. Well done, Celia! I give you credit for tackling this technique. I accept that some things will remain outside of my grasp. Fraisage is one such thing, I’ll stick with pasta. :)
John, I reckon if you can make pasta, you can make this! I always thought I couldn’t make pasta, but we got over that hurdle, so maybe you can make fraisage too! :)
Oh yum Celia, congratulations. May I come to your house for pastry lessons one day? :)
Jane, I’m hardly in a position to give lessons! Maybe Craig will come over and teach us both.. :)
Always learn something from you Celia. This is a bit like rough-puff pastry – less time-consuming that proper puff. Great step by step guide. Happy New Year
Sally, hope you get a chance to try this, although it’s hard in a hot kitchen! I’ve never tried a proper puff pastry – I don’t seem to have the patience for laminated doughs! Hope you’re having a great New Year! :)
I certainly don’t have the patience for proper puff – and my last attempt was an unmitigated disaster. Rough puff is my limit :)
I wonder if everyone is thinking like me and wishing to have done something auspicious as learn something new on New Years Day! Oh well, each day is a new one and I’ve learnt by reading your post – love those flaky hearts!
Craig, you are a great teacher and friend, thank you! Look at all the people we’ve passed this onto now! :)
Your excitement and enthusiasm are so infectious Celia! My Mum used to make a rough puff pastry using frozen and grated butter – I think, she, like me, always had hot hands.
Jan, the frozen grated butter is an interesting idea! I reckon it would melt while I was grating it though! :)
Love the pastry but didnt know that was the name. That tart looks gorgeous
Thanks T, it was fun to mess around with! :)
Hi Celia,
Your enthusiasm in this post is contagious and has me so excited to try this, but I think it will have to wait just a little bit longer. I’ve got a herniated disc in my neck (&back) and still doing PT. Wonderful post and I love the pictures, they’re clear and so up close. Can’t wait to see what else you make w/ your flaky pastry:)
XOX
Mel
Mel, I’m so sorry to hear you’ve been out of commission! I hope you’re on the mend soon! Hope the New Year brings pain relief and good times!
So pretty! Happy new year, darling! x x
Thank you dear friend, all the best to you and your Pete for a fabulous 2013 as well! xx
When I was young and sassy, and working my way into the world of food, pie crust was a world of mystery, and the domain of the granny bakers – novices weren’t supposed to do well there – it was just a given. I remember well that in those days one of the cardinal rules was to use as little water as possible, but when novices attempted to apply that rule, the inevitable result was overworked dough and a bready crust. But what they weren’t telling us was that in the world of pastry, there are many kinds of pastries (Wikipedia says 5 basic kinds), and they all have rules and sub-rules – practice is the answer, but I fear we’d all weigh twice what we do, were we to achieve that level of practice!
Case in point – look at this application of the 3/2/1 pastry formula (Culinary Institute of America) and note that there is no mention of ‘smearing’, yet it is another ‘flaky’ pastry – just another tiny variable in the world of pastry. http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2012/06/28/155929769/afraid-of-pie-crust-you-shouldnt-be-its-as-easy-as-3-2-1
Doc, I’ve read heaps of baking books, and this is the first time I’ve come across “fraisage”. I feel like it’s a secret they’ve been keeping from us. God bless Joanne Chang, and our mate Craig! :)
Happy New Year, Celia! May you learn many new things this year to add to your gigantic stores of knowledge. I tried your roasted chestnut recipe last night. Came out great!
Big hugs, Maz
Happy New Year to you too, Maz! I’m so glad you liked the chestnuts! :)
This sounds delicious! I can’t wait to give it a try!
Claire, easy too! Have a go! :)
That sure looks delicious. Love your heart shape cut outs. You make everything so perfect and look so easy.
Norma, that’s a big compliment, thank you! I think it turned out a bit more rustic than perfect, but it was really fun and quite easy to make! :)
Oh yes, absolutely, cold, cold, and cold, then quick, hard to make in a heatwave! I love flaky pastry! This is a great tutorial.. good pics too! c
Thanks Celi! I reckon with the temps you’re getting over there, you wouldn’t even need to put the butter in the freezer to chill! :)
I have a recipe that calls for flaky pastry so as soon as I know I can eat nuts I’m going to use this one for the pastry!
Tandy, it’s a tried and tested formula, although the dough handling takes just a little bit of practice. Hope you like it!
I love the first pic with your hand just coming into shot, like it’s itching to get going… what fun to learn a new technique, it looks like a much easier method than making rough puff with all its folds and back to the fridge things. I am going to try this out too, thank you!
Dearheart, I hope you love this! I’ve practiced it a few times now, and it’s been a little better each time. I wish I could find you a clip of the Joanne Chang segment!
Btw, did you like my new pastry board? It’s been surprisingly useful for kneading doughs on! :)
Much love, hope you’re having a wonderful 2013!! xx
Waw! I loved those step-by-step pictures a lot! :) What a great & tasty pastry! I love the lovely filling too!
Did you recieve my e-card that I sent you a month ago???
Thank you, Sophie! I hope you’re having a wonderful New Year! No, didn’t get the e-card, sorry, my firewall doesn’t generally let those through, as they can occasionally contain viruses. But thank you very much for thinking of me! xx
:)
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