Seed Oil Free Pain au Chocolat
Few baked goods hit quite like a freshly pulled pain au chocolat — shatteringly crisp on the outside, pillowy and layered within, with pockets of melted dark chocolate tucked into every roll. The magic here comes entirely from real, whole ingredients: cold unsalted butter, whole milk, flour, and good dark chocolate, with zero industrial oils anywhere in the process. That matters more than it might seem, because most store-bought versions and even some bakery pastries rely on vegetable shortening or seed-based fats to cut costs and extend shelf life. This recipe keeps it honest, using a classic laminated dough where a full cup of cold butter is folded and rolled into the dough across three careful turns — that's what creates those distinct, flaky layers without any shortcuts. The process is unhurried by design, with resting periods built in to keep the butter cold and workable, so the lamination stays clean and the final bake puffs up dramatically. Yes, it takes patience across a day or two, but the actual hands-on work is straightforward, and the results are genuinely bakery-worthy. Warm from the oven, with the chocolate just barely set, these are the kind of pastry that make the whole project feel completely worth it.
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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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