Sourdough chocolate cruffin - recipe Sourdough&Olives (2024)

Sourdough chocolate cruffin - recipe Sourdough&Olives (1)

In 2013, Kate Reid of Lune Croissanterie in Melbourne, Australia invented something special.
She created a hybrid between a croissant and a muffin that got the aptly named Cruffin.
A year later, the small pastry began its journey towards world fame when Ry Stephen and Aaron Caddel of Mr. Holmes Bakehouse of San Francisco started marketing it.
Today you find it everywhere in endless different versions.

I have to admit that I have long been a little hesitant about Cruffins.
I mean, a croissant and a muffin. There are not very many similarities, except that they both contain flour and butter.
One is crispy and delicate and is eaten for breakfast, especially in France, while the other is compact.

As I saw it, one of them had to sacrifice its uniqueness, and I felt it was the croissant that was the loser.

Nobody likes a semi-compact croissant, I said to myself.

Sourdough chocolate cruffin - recipe Sourdough&Olives (2)

However, there are lots of people who believe that Cruffins is the best that has been invented since puff pastry, so I realized that my reasoning perhaps fell short.

There was only one way to find out, so last weekend I baked some Cruffins.

With sourdough starter.

Using a sourdough starter was not my idea. I was inspired by Sylvain Vernay at The Bread Logic.
To make it a bit unique, I added some cacao powder to the butter filling.

Sourdough chocolate cruffin - recipe Sourdough&Olives (3)

A few tips before you start.

  • A pasta machine is not a must. If you don’t have one, an ordinary rolling pin works fine.
  • If the dough feels sticky, don’t be afraid to work in some more flour. Running a sticky and loose dough through a pasta machine is a nightmare.
  • Don’t forget that this is NOT a recipe for a croissant. Just so you remember.

PREPARATIONS

Make sure your starter is lively and mature. I fed mine three hours before it was time to bake.
Cut the butter into thin slices with a cheese slicer. That will make it soft in no time.

MIXING THE DOUGH

Most recipes recommend that you should mix the dough in a dough mixer to get the butter fully incorporated. My dough mixer doesn’t work so well with small quantities like this, so I decided to do it by hand.
And it worked just fine.
The thin and soft butter slices made it easy to combine it with the flour.

After that, I added water, sourdough starter, sugar, and salt.
I kneaded everything into a stiff dough and let it ferment for one hour in room temperature, about 73ºF / 23ºC.

ROLL OUT THE DOUGH

I used a pasta machine for this, but it works with a rolling pin as well.

How thick you want the dough is up to you to decide. Just remember that the thinner the dough is, the harder it is to handle.

Flour the working space regularly to prevent the dough from sticking.

ROLL UP THE DOUGH

Spread the rest of the butter with sugar and Cacao powder, and spread the batter evenly over the dough and roll it from one end to the other to a cigar-formed log.

Cut the log lengthwise with a floured knife, and fold each piece of dough together with the cut side facing outward.

Sourdough chocolate cruffin - recipe Sourdough&Olives (5)

Place the pieces of dough in a muffin cup or pan and let them ferment for about 3 hours.

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TIME TO BAKE

Preheat the oven to 400ºF / 200ºC.
Bake the Cruffins for 20 minutes, or until they have got a nice golden color.

You can eat these Cruffins as they are. I think cacao butter is enough for filling. But if you want something extra, why not add some vanilla custard. Everything that tastes good with chocolate works fine. This was my first meeting with Cruffins, and it was a very pleasurable acquaintance, even if I think that most similarities with a croissant were lost.

But I suspect it may depend on my approach to the mixing of the dough. Perhaps it is necessary to laminate at least some of the butter into the dough to get the right flakiness. This method, however, is quicker and easier, and the result is a delicious little creation, that will cause you to regret that you did not make a bigger batch.

Sourdough chocolate cruffin - recipe Sourdough&Olives (7)

Sourdough chocolate cruffin - recipe Sourdough&Olives (8)

A chocolate filled Cruffin made a quick way, with a pasta machine or a rolling pin.

3 from 2 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course brunch, Dessert

Servings 8 Cruffins

Ingredients

Cruffin dough

  • 150 gram bread flour
  • 80 gram all purpose flour
  • 90 gram water
  • 70 gram sourdough starter 100% hydration
  • 20 gram suger
  • 30 gram butter
  • 4 gram salt

Filling

  • 150 gram butter
  • 20 gram cacao powder
  • 15 gram sugar

Instructions

  • Mix softened butter with flour and add water, starter, sugar, and salt, and knead it into a stiff dough.

  • Wrap the dough in cling-film and let it rest for an hour in room temperature.

  • Divide the dough in 4 equal pieces and flatten them to athickness of about 1/3" / 1 cm.

  • Run each piece of dough through the pasta machine at its thickest setting. Repeat and roll the doug thinner and thinner by decreasing the setting of the pastat machine.Or use a rollign pin and roll the dough to desired thickness.

  • Mix softened butter with cacao powder and sugar. Spread the the mixture on the dough.

  • Roll it from one end to the other to a cigar-formed log. Cut the log lengthwise with a floured knife, and fold each piece of dough together with the cut side facing outward.

  • Place the pieces of dough in a muffin cup or pan and let them ferment for about 3 hours, covered loosely with cling film.

  • Preheat the oven to 400ºF / 200ºC.Bake the Cruffins for 20 minutes, or until they have got a nice golden color.

Keyword dessert, pastry

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Sourdough chocolate cruffin - recipe Sourdough&Olives (2024)

FAQs

How long does it take for levain to be ready? ›

Place the levain in a lightly oiled bowl, cover it, and allow it to ferment overnight at room temperature (65°F to 75°F). It should take the levain about 12 hours to mature. The mature levain will have doubled in size and be domed on top, or just beginning to sink in the middle.

What is the perfect sourdough crumb? ›

Sourdough crumb should be even, meaning there won't be any areas that are super tight or with giant tunnels. The crumb should be light and fluffy - not wet and gummy. The holes inside the sourdough may seem shiny. This is a sign that the gluten is very well developed.

How to get fluffier sourdough? ›

Step 3: Cover and let the dough rise for 10-12 hours. This is called bulk rise or bulk fermentation. Step 4: After 10-12 hours, the dough should be doubled (or even tripled) in size. Many recipes will tell you the dough is over-proofed if it triples in size but I find that it makes deliciously fluffy bread this way!

Why doesn't my sourdough have big holes? ›

One of the most common mistakes is having a dough temperature that's too low for the starter to feed on all the flour in the dough, resulting in a crumb that's dense, with fewer openings. "Starter is happiest and most active at around 75 degrees. If it's a lot colder, the process will be much slower.

How do I know my levain is ready? ›

You want to see a slightly domed top to the levain with lots and lots of bubbles at the sides (see the picture before this section). You'll see and smell significant fermentative activity if you peel back the top. These are signs that your levain is ripe enough to use in your final dough mix.

What are the secrets to open crumb sourdough? ›

1) use a lower protein flour, like all-purpose, 2) push the bulk fermentation time / rise, longer, 3) add a higher percentage of whole wheat flour, 4) de-gas the loaf when shaping. Under-proofing a loaf will also create a more closed crumb but that is undesirable.

What is the secret to good sourdough bread? ›

Top 10 Tips & Tricks for Making Sourdough
  • Use your sourdough starter at its peak. ...
  • Moisten the surface of the dough before baking for more rise. ...
  • Handle with care: be gentle with your dough. ...
  • Use sifted flour to make your sourdough less dense. ...
  • Soak your flour beforehand for a lighter loaf. ...
  • Just add water for softer sourdough.

What happens if you over ferment sourdough? ›

If you over-ferment the dough you run the risk of the gluten structure degrading and the loaf turning into a puddle of goo before your eyes, never to be retrieved and destined for the bin.

What is the Rubaud method? ›

The Rubaud method is a popular method of hand mixing the dough. The Rubaud method develops gluten strength up front in the process. In the Rubuaud method, you gently lift and pull the dough in a bowl, mimicking the motion of a diving-arm mixer (or perhaps the diving arm-mixer is mimicking the Rubaud method!)

What does baking soda do to sourdough? ›

Baking soda or bicarbonate of soda can be used in sourdough bread to create a less sour loaf. Added after bulk fermentation, but before shaping, it can help to create a lighter, more fluffy loaf of sourdough.

Can I bake sourdough in a cast iron skillet? ›

If you are looking to make sourdough without a dutch oven, this sourdough country skillet bread is just the recipe for you. The dough rises and bakes to perfection in a trusty cast iron skillet. With just four simple ingredients, it's a straightforward sourdough recipe, perfect for beginners.

What does overworked sourdough look like? ›

Overworked sourdough can become tough and lose its ability to rise properly. If your dough feels tight and is difficult to shape, it might be overworked. Remember, sourdough requires a gentle touch and should not be kneaded as vigorously as other types of bread dough.

How to get sourdough more airy? ›

Here are some tips to help you make your sourdough bread less dense:
  1. Use a ripe sourdough starter. ...
  2. Knead the dough for the right amount of time. ...
  3. Proof the dough for the correct amount of time. ...
  4. Use the right type of flour. ...
  5. Add the right amount of water. ...
  6. Score the bread properly. ...
  7. Bake the bread at the correct temperature.
Sep 9, 2023

What does underproofed sourdough look like? ›

Underproofed dough is dense and has not increased in volume. This will result in a dense bread with a very tight crumb (holes are very close together) that doesn't have the pillowy texture when you take a bite. The flavor will also be underdeveloped.

How long to let levain sit? ›

According to the instructions, the Levain should take around 8 hours to double. I was planning on using it Wednesday morning to make the dough. But both my Starter and the Levain had doubled in 5 hours.

How long does it take levain to peak? ›

When do Fall Leaves Change Color. Leaves can change their color from as early as mid-September all the way through early November. Typically, the second and third week of October are the peak times, but it shifts depending on where you live and your local weather conditions.

How do you make levain fast? ›

Alternatively, you could make an intermediate, fast levain build. In this case, I'll often make a 100% flour, 100% water, 100% ripe starter (1:1:1 ratio). This levain is equal parts flour, water, and ripe sourdough starter and will ripen in 3-4 hours at 78-80°F/25-26°C.

How do you make levain faster? ›

To speed up the levain just use a different ratio. 1:2:2 for example – 20g starter, 40g flour, 40g water. This will rise at lot quicker and be ready for use in just a few hours.

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