Danish pastry

---------- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.02
  
       Title: DANISH PASTRY
  Categories: Desserts
       Yield: 6 servings
  
       4    To 6 cups flour
       2 pk Dry yeast or 1 ounce fresh
            -yeast
       3 tb Sugar
       1 ts Salt
       3    Whole eggs or 6 egg yolks
       1 ts Grated orange rind
     1/4 ts Ground cardamom seeds
            -(optional)
       1 ts Vanilla
   1 1/4 c  Cold milk (approximately)
       2 c  Butter, firm, but not ice
            -cold
  
   When making Danish pastry it is important to keep the
   dough very cold. In shaping small pastries, it is
   sometimes necessary to re-chill partially shaped dough
   until it is firm enough for the job to be completed.
   When you first make the pastry, be careful to follow
   all the rules. Don't make it in the summertime unless
   your kitchen is air conditioned. After you gain
   experience you may attempt short cuts such as rolling
   out and folding the dough twice in succession without
   re-chilling. Another way of shortening the process is
   by placing the dough in the freezer between rollings.
   Usually 10 minutes in the freezer is suffiecient. When
   you use this short cut, be careful not to freeze the
   dough solid. The shaped pastries can also be chilled
   in the freezer. They can even be baked frozen if extra
   baking time is allowed. Any unbaked yeast pastries,
   however, should never be kept frozen for more than a
   week or so; and it is preferable to bake anish pastry
   within a day or two after it has been shaped.
   
   Place 4 cups flour in large bowl.  Reserve remaining
   flour for rolling. Make a well in center of bowl.
   
   If dry yeast is used, see directions on package.  If
   fresh yeast is used, cream it with sugar and salt to
   make a syrup.  Add egg yolks or whole eggs, grated
   orange rind, ground cardamom seeds, and vanilla.
   
   Pour yeast mixture into well.  Add one cup milk and
   1/4 cup butter cut into pieces.  Mix with finger tips,
   adding more milk if necessary to make a medium-soft
   dough.  Knead dough in bowl for 5 minutes, or until it
   is smooth but not elastic.  Flour it and let rest in
   refrigerator for 30 minutes.
   
   While dough is resting, form remaining butter into a
   flattened brick. Using some of the reserved flour on
   wax paper or pastry cloth, roll out butter into a
   square about 1/3 inch thick.  Use plenty of flour
   under and on top of butter to keep it from sticking.
   Loosen it frequently as you rol. Cut the square in 2
   pieces.  Place in refrigerator between sheets of wax
   paper.
   
   Roll out dough on well-floured cloth to make a
   rectangle 3 times longer than wide and about 1/3 inch
   thick.  Brush excess flour from dough. Place a piece
   of butter in center.  Fold one end of dough over
   butter. Place remaining butter on top.  Fold second
   end over the butter.  Press edges together.
   
   Turn dough, changing its position so that the short
   ends are parallel with the edge of table nearest you.
   Roll out on well-floured cloth, using a firm, even
   motion to spread butter together with dough.  Try to
   work quickly, but check frequently underneat the dough
   to be sure it isn't sticking.  Roll out a rectangele 3
   times longer than wide, about 1/3 inch thick.  rush
   excess flour from surface.  Fold both ends of dough to
   meet in center.  Press edges together, then fold in
   half as if closing a book, which will make 4 layers of
   dough.  Flour dough.  Place on a cooky sheet. Cover
   with aluminum foil.  Refrigerate for 1/2 hour.
   
   Repeat rolling and folding dough 3 more times,
   chilling it 20 minutes between rollings.  Be sure to
   change position of dough each time so that the short
   ends of dough are parallel with the edge of the table
   nearest you when you start rolling.
   
   After the final folding, chill dough at least 3 hours
   before shaping and baking.
   
   From: The Art of Fine Baking Shared By: Pat Stockett
  
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