Medialunas de Manteca Recipe — Argentinian Sweet Croissants

A medialuna is what you order with coffee in any Buenos Aires café. Smaller, sweeter, and more tender than a French croissant. They take a day to make. They are gone in two bites.

Medialunas ("half moons") are the Argentinian take on the French croissant. The shape is the same, but the texture and flavour are different: softer, sweeter, glazed with a light sugar syrup. They come in two varieties: de manteca (butter) and de grasa (lard), with butter being the more popular modern version.

The technique is similar to French croissants, laminating butter into a yeasted dough through folding, but simplified for home cooking. True French croissants have 27 or more butter layers. Argentinian medialunas typically have 9 to 16, which produces a more tender, less flaky pastry.

This recipe makes 20 medialunas. The process takes about 4 hours including rises, but most of that is waiting time. Plan to start in the morning for an afternoon bake.

Ingredients

Method

Read through the whole recipe before starting. Time management is the key to medialunas.

1. Make the dough.

   Dissolve yeast in warm milk with 1 tsp of sugar. Stand 5 minutes until foamy. In a large bowl, combine flour, remaining sugar, and salt. Make a well, add yeast mixture, beaten egg, and cooled melted butter. Mix until a dough forms. Knead for 8 minutes until smooth. Cover, rest 30 minutes.

2. Prepare the butter block.

   While dough rests, place the 200 g of cold butter between two sheets of baking paper. Pound with a rolling pin to soften, then roll into a 15 x 15 cm square. Refrigerate until firm but pliable (about 20 minutes).

3. First roll.

   Roll the dough into a 30 x 20 cm rectangle. Place the butter square in the centre. Fold the dough over the butter like an envelope, sealing the edges. You now have a butter-filled rectangle.

4. First fold.

   Roll the package gently into a 40 x 20 cm rectangle, keeping the butter from breaking through. Fold into thirds like a letter. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

5. Second fold.

   Repeat: roll to 40 x 20 cm, fold in thirds, refrigerate 30 minutes.

6. Third fold.

   Roll out one more time, fold in thirds, refrigerate 30 minutes. You now have 27 layers of butter.

7. Roll and cut.

   Roll the dough to 30 x 50 cm, about 4 mm thick. Cut into long triangles with a 10 cm base.

8. Shape.

   Starting from the wide base, roll each triangle toward the point. Curve the ends inward to form the classic crescent shape.

9. Final rise.

   Place shaped medialunas on a lined baking tray, spaced apart. Cover loosely and prove at room temperature for 60 to 75 minutes until doubled and puffy.

10. Bake.

    Preheat oven to 200°C. Brush with beaten egg. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until deeply golden.

11. Make the glaze.

    While baking, combine sugar, water, and vanilla in a small pan. Simmer for 4 minutes until slightly thickened.

12. Glaze.

    Brush hot medialunas with warm syrup as they come out of the oven. Let the glaze set for 5 minutes.

Chef's notes.

Temperature is everything. Butter that is too soft melts into the dough. Butter that is too cold cracks and breaks through. Ideal is firm but pliable. You should be able to bend the block slightly without it breaking.

Chill between folds. Do not skip the 30-minute fridge rests between folds. They relax the gluten and firm the butter, which is essential for proper lamination.

Sharp knife for cutting. Dull blades compress the layers and prevent rising. Use a pizza cutter or sharp knife.

Glaze while hot. The syrup needs to melt into the surface. Cold medialunas do not take the glaze properly.

Frequently asked questions