Why it works: Butter and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,516 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Real Puff Paste
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Wash and work out the salt from the butter until smooth.
Prepare several pounds of butter and keep in a cool place.
Mix cold water with salt if using saltless butter.
For every 2 pounds of butter, mix ¼ ounce of cream of tartar with double its weight of flour.
Add a whisked egg white or lemon juice to the water for added flavor and texture.
Combine
Ensure the dough and butter are of equal stiffness for even rolling.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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Flour + creamtop 20% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together30,481 recipes
Shared aroma: acetaldehyde (pungent, ethereal).
Butter and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Butter
- Forms the flaky layers that separate the dough and steam to lift it as it bakes.
- Medium strong flour
- Provides the structure that holds the layers together after rolling and baking.
- Cold water
- Hydrates the flour to form the dough that wraps the butter.
- Cream of tartar
- Acidifies the dough, helping to keep the gluten tender and workable during rolling.
The step that matters
Ensure the dough and butter are of equal stiffness. If the butter is softer than the dough, it squeezes out or blends in during rolling, destroying the distinct layers. If it is firmer, the dough tears. Matched firmness lets the layers stay separate so the pastry rises flaky.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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