Get the best out of "ANGEL MIX 3.0"

To be able to prepare high quality gluten-free Croissants, Parcels, Puff Pastries and Viennese pastries with our Angel Mix 3.0 it is important to carefully follow the recipes provided, and follow all the steps described very carefully.

In addition to these, you will find in this article a whole series of "Chef secrets" that can help you prevent more or less serious "disasters" and bake high-quality gluten-free leavened products, without waste, beautiful to look at and delicious to taste.

Don't be scared, they are not rules to be learned by heart : these "tips" are the result of thousands of tests carried out day after day, and They are offered to you to avoid (re)making the same mistakes we made, while we were perfecting our recipes!

They are in no particular order, as they will be updated as new ones are added, primarily as a result of discussions with our customers.

SO..

• It's important that the water used for the dough is cold from the refrigerator, especially if you're working in a particularly hot environment or during the summer. This ensures a firm, well-hydrated dough that will allow you to absorb and laminate the fat easily.
• It's important that the dough has the right consistency before rolling it out: it shouldn't be hard, dry, or too "dense," but rather compact, firm, slightly sticky, and tenacious, but not soft or mushy. It's better to increase the hydration and adjust with generous amounts of flour, rather than adding too little water and ending up with a stiff or inelastic dough that tears easily!
  This is why it's important to do initial tests with small amounts of product, so you can check the hydrating capacity of the ingredients you're using and make any necessary adjustments.
• Professional margarine for puff pastry is the best solution for obtaining a well-rolled dough, but excellent products can also be obtained with "combat" margarines like those found in the refrigerated section of large-scale retailers. The main difference is that the former tolerates temperature changes much better and, more importantly, doesn't cause major problems even when used in very hot environments. Meanwhile, non-professional margarine—when used in such conditions—must be refrigerated for a few minutes. This, along with the cold water used for the dough, will ensure the right temperature and the rolling can be carried out without any particular problems.
• The non-professional margarine you use MUST NOT be the "spreadable" type and must have at least 80% fat. We've noticed that products rich in rapeseed oil yield lower results than other types. This means the product will develop less well during the rising and baking stages.
• The product is "up to standard" when, at the end of cooking, it leaves the baking tray dry and has not lost any fat.
• To dust the work surface—to prevent the dough from sticking to the table while kneading—use rice starch, or alternatively tapioca starch, potato starch, or cornstarch, in that order of preference. Avoid using flours of any type or grain size, as they dry out the dough and hinder its development.
• Avoid the automated leavening programs found in some professional ovens: these types of programs are designed for "normal" leavened products, while gluten-free products are in a completely different class. The moisture required to develop a "glutinous" leavening is likely to suffocate the gluten-free product, compromising the final result, which will be underdeveloped and with large "cracks" on the surface, causing fat loss and a poorly leavened, flaky, and heavy final product.
• The rolling process is done without resting between each round, but in a single session. The dough does not need to rest in the refrigerator or be made the night before for the next day. The only exception is when making croissants with butter, which, under certain environmental conditions, require a brief refrigeration period between each round to ensure proper rolling.
• The best way to proof croissants, parcels, etc. is to use a proofer at 42°C, making sure to cover the products with lightly greased plastic wrap. This will create the ideal microclimate for the product to develop, allowing it to rise optimally. Alternatively, you can place a tray of water in the proofer, but it's essential to avoid excessive humidity, which would inhibit the proofing process. The recommended humidity is between 50% and 60%.
• The leavening phase is perhaps the most critical: if it is not carried out properly, the products will not develop their characteristic flakiness and will remain dense, flat, and very "bready."
• Our recipes are designed to be personalized by you. However, this doesn't mean improvising substitutions or modifications to the procedures, leavening times, or baking temperatures . If a given recipe includes a certain type of starch and a certain amount of water, randomly altering these ingredients could lead to a poor final product.
• If pastry making is "chemistry," gluten-free pastry making is "nuclear engineering," so paying attention to weights, temperatures, times, etc. is even more crucial!
• It's difficult to get the perfect dough right the first time, so at least initially do small tests with modest amounts of dough and, if possible, perform the rolling phase by hand. Touching the dough, recognizing its texture, feeling how it reacts to manipulation, and so on will allow you to predict and prevent future mistakes and will help you gain confidence in the process.
• Recipes are important, it's true. BUT it can happen that certain ingredients you have on hand yield differently than those (although numerous) we tested. A starch that requires slightly more hydration, a sugar with a lower grinding degree than regular sugar: this alone, for example, could affect the recipe's success, resulting in a yield that's below expectations. So, again: yes, the recipe is important, but also pay attention to the ingredients you use, which may require extra care. And if you have any doubts, we're here to help. Always.
• It's important that the dough is prepared correctly, but it's not essential that it be made as described in our recipes. For example, if we say to mix the ingredients in the mixer using the dough hook, but you only have the dough hook, that's fine. What makes the difference is that the resulting dough is well-worked, smooth, even, and elastic, without lumps or apparent irregularities.
• Our recipes for croissants, pain au chocolat, and so on have been tested with many different margarines, both professional and "homemade," the kind found in the refrigerated section of the supermarket. The results have always been excellent, regardless of the product used, but it's undeniable that some margarines perform better, both in terms of flavor and in terms of product development, leavening, and baking. If you're not satisfied with the results, try a different margarine!
• All these observations also apply when laminating with butter, respecting the temperatures and times indicated in the relevant recipes.
• The best results - to date - we have obtained with Corman "Ambient Chaud" Butter, a specific product for working in hot environments.