Pain aux raisins
Raisin custard swirl pastry
Pain aux raisins: French spiral pastry of laminated dough with pastry cream and raisins
FrenchPain aux raisins, called escargot in some bakeries for its snail-shell spiral, is the third great pastry of the French breakfast counter, alongside the croissant and pain au chocolat. Croissant dough is spread with vanilla crème pâtissière, scattered with plump raisins, rolled up and sliced into spirals, then baked and brushed with syrup until glossy. The common mistake is spreading the cream too thick, so it oozes out and the spirals open. Chef's tip: soak the raisins in hot tea or orange juice for 30 minutes so they are juicy and do not burn.
- Total time
- 680 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the dough
- 1 ⅛ lb strong white bread flour
- 2 oz caster sugar
- ⅓ oz salt
- ¼ oz instant dried yeast
- ½ cup cold milk
- ½ cup cold water
- 1 ⅜ oz unsalted buttersoft
- 9 oz cold unsalted butterfor laminating
For the filling
- 10 ½ oz crème pâtissièrechilled
- 5 ½ oz raisins
- ¾ cup hot tea or orange juice
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Soak the 5 ½ oz raisins in the hot ¾ cup hot tea or orange juice for 30 minutes, then drain.
30 minStep 2: Mix the 1 ⅛ lb strong white bread flour, 2 oz caster sugar, ⅓ oz salt and ¼ oz instant dried yeast with the ½ cup cold milk, ½ cup cold water and 1 ⅜ oz unsalted butter and knead for 5 minutes. Flatten, wrap and chill for at least 2 hours.
10 minStep 3: Laminate with the cold 9 oz cold unsalted butter as for croissants: beat the butter into a 17 cm square, enclose it in the rolled dough, then give three letter folds, chilling 30 minutes between each and 1 hour after the last.
40 minStep 4: Roll the dough to a 30 x 45 cm rectangle. Spread thinly with the 10 ½ oz crème pâtissière, leaving a 2 cm strip bare along one long side, and scatter with the raisins. Roll up tightly towards the bare edge and chill for 20 minutes.
10 minStep 5: Cut into 12 slices 3 cm thick, lay them flat on lined trays and tuck the loose end underneath. Brush the sides with 1 egg and prove for 1½–2 hours until puffy.
120 minStep 6: Heat the oven to 375°F (350°F fan) and bake for 18–20 minutes until golden. Boil the 1 ¾ oz sugar and 3 ½ tbsp water for 1 minute and brush over the hot pastries.
20 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 360 kcal
- Protein
- 7 g
- Carbs
- 44 g
- Fat
- 17 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pain aux raisins take?
- About 680 minutes in total: 660 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of strong white bread flour?
- Plain flour, same amount (the dough will be softer and rise a little less).
- What can I use instead of caster sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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