Black Pepper Free Pain au Chocolat
Few baked goods hit the way a freshly pulled pain au chocolat does — shatteringly crisp on the outside, pillowy and layered within, with pockets of melted dark chocolate tucked into every bite. The lamination process here is the real magic: cold butter gets folded into the dough through a series of careful turns, building those impossibly flaky layers from scratch. Because the ingredient list is clean and straightforward — flour, butter, milk, yeast, sugar, salt, and chocolate — there's nothing hidden to worry about, and every element is exactly what it says it is. Spice-sensitive cooks will appreciate that this recipe is naturally free of any pepper or unnecessary seasoning; the flavor comes entirely from good butter and quality dark chocolate. Yes, it takes patience across a couple of days, but most of that time is hands-off chilling in the fridge. The result is a bakery-worthy pastry that genuinely rivals anything behind a glass case — warm, golden, and deeply satisfying straight from your own oven.
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Learn more →Ingredients
8 servings
For the dough
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 2 tsp instant yeast
- 3 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tsp fine salt
- ¾ cup whole milk, cold
- ¼ cup water, cold
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
For the butter block
- 1 cup (2 sticks / 225g) unsalted butter, cold
For the filling
- 16 dark chocolate batons (or 4 oz dark chocolate, cut into 16 short sticks)
For the egg wash
- 1 large egg
- 1 tbsp whole milk
Instructions
- 1
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the flour, instant yeast, sugar, and salt. Add the cold milk and cold water, then mix on low speed until a shaggy dough forms, about 2 minutes. Add the 2 tbsp softened butter and increase to medium speed, mixing until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 5 minutes. The dough should be slightly tacky but not sticky.
- 2
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, shape it into a flat rectangle roughly 6×8 inches, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.
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