Cheater Kouign Amann Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the fattest French pastry? ›

The Legend & History of the Kouign Amann

This queen hails from Brittany, a region in western France. It is a specialty from the town of Douarnenez in Finistère, Brittany, and originated around 1860. “Kouign Amann” is Breton for “butter cake” (simple, straight, and to the point — we like it).

Slide to a serving platter with the cross side down. Serve the kouign-amann in wedges while still warm.

Timing is key when rolling, folding and letting your kouign amann rise. If you do want to make these ahead of time to freeze and bake later, make the dough, do the first 2 folds and then freeze, well wrapped, for up to 3 months. Thaw the dough overnight in the fridge before continuing with the folds that use sugar.

Most are also waiting to purchase one of the kouign-amann, dubbed 'the fattiest pastry in Europe', which sit in stacks behind the counter, their laminated pastry glinting as they're picked up and slipped into a greaseproof paper bag.

whose name is also typically Breton, "kouign" meaning cake and "amann" meaning butter. In order to make the most of its soft interior and its crunchy exterior made crunchy by the caramelisation of the sugar, it is advisable to taste the warm kouign-amann with a good glass of chouchen or a few pieces of apple.

Eater notes that croissant dough contains milk and butter, but kouign amann dough does not. It is, rather, a “simple mixture of yeast, flour, salt, and water, with no fat or sweetener,” according to Eater. Kouign amann means “butter cake” in Breton, a Celtic language spoken in Brittany.

Chez Ty Kouign à Minihy-Tréguier and on the markets on the Pink Granite Coast, kouign-amann is enjoyed at any time of day!

A good kouign amann is all about contrast: a crispy crust (with at least one super-caramelized side) versus a soft interior that's sweet but not too sweet. There should be a lick of salt, too, and some yeasty complexity from the dough itself.

According to one story, the invention of the kouign-amann was a fortuitous accident. Around 1860, in the Finistère town of Douarnenez, a baker named Yves-René Scordia ran out of desserts and improvised with leftover bread dough.

Kouign Amann are best served fresh from the oven. Unfortunately, they are not the same pastry after they go cold. However, I found that you can reheat them in a toaster oven to restore them pretty closely to their original glory. They would make an excellent addition to a breakfast table or afternoon tea.

How to store kouign amann overnight? ›

The shaped kouign amann can also be covered, refrigerated overnight, and baked the next morning.

Kouign-amann are best the day they're baked, but if you have leftovers, store in an airtight container at room temperature. Reheat in a 300° oven 5 minutes.

The name comes from the Breton language words for 'cake' (kouign) and 'butter' (amann), and in 2011 the New York Times described the kouign-amann as "the fattiest pastry in all of Europe."

So where does puff pastry come from. Well it comes from France, where it is called pâte feuilletée. It was invented in 1645 by Claudius Gele, a pastry cook apprentice.

For some pastry chefs, butter is the obvious choice. “My preferred fat for pie crusts will always be butter. To me, it is all about flavor, and no other fat gives flavor to a crust like butter does. Other fats, even though they have great pros, lack flavor,” De Sa Martins said.