Black ink/food coloring for laminated dough

[Sussan Estela Olaya]

Hi Salma.

Welcome to the Scoolinary community! Thank you for your question.

To color your croissants with diamond black according to Chef Antonio Bachour’s recipe, I recommend using edible food coloring suitable for baking. These types of food coloring are designed to maintain the vibrancy of the color even when exposed to the heat of the oven.

Recomendación:

Gel or powder food coloring: I suggest using gel or powder food coloring specifically formulated for baking, as these tend to resist heat better.

Recommended brands:

AmeriColor Soft Gel Paste: Excellent for baking, easily mixes into the dough, and maintains the vibrant color during baking.

Wilton Color Right Performance Color: Also suitable for baking, doesn’t lose intensity with heat.

Quantity: To achieve a deep black, start with a small amount (like a pinch) and add more gradually until you reach the desired shade. Avoid using too much at once, as it could affect the dough’s texture.

Milk: I recommend avoiding the use of milk if you want to maintain the color’s intensity, as it may affect the result. You can opt for water or another liquid that won’t alter the color, depending on your preferred texture and flavor.

As a recommendation, I suggest doing a small test first to ensure the results you get match what you’re looking for, or to make any adjustments in your next batch of croissants.

I hope this information helps you achieve the perfect diamond black croissants.

Best regards.

[Salma Sali]

Thank you so much for your reply. As always it’s pleasure to see your advices.

The only issue I face with food coloring is that I’m not sure what is the limit to avoid when adding food coloring, for example in Bachour’s recipe for strawberry mascarpone croissant he uses 8g of red gel and that’s only for 300g dough, so what I thought I can use 8g of food coloring for every 300g of dough 🤦🏻‍♀️ forgetting the fact that this dough is not base and that much of coloring would not affect the overall dough. Anyways to make it short I end up with colored tongue, and “inner organs” also got affected 🙈

I have lots of Chefmaster gel food coloring so I’m using that brand to dye my croissants. Any suggestions in terms of limits to not exceed when coloring the dough? (1350g of dough per Bachour’s recipe)

Again many thanks 🙏❤️❤️❤️🌺

[Sussan Estela Olaya]

Hi Salma.

Welcome to the Scoolinary community! Thank you for your question.

When it comes to food coloring, it’s important to remember that each dough reacts differently depending on its ingredients and base, so the colorant is distributed in various ways. In general, I would suggest using a maximum of 1-2% of colorant in relation to the weight of the dough, especially if you’re working with a dough rich in fats, like croissant dough, as it doesn’t absorb as much as a basic dough.

For Chef Bachour’s recipe, if you’re using 1350g of dough, a good range would be between 13g and 27g of colorant (depending on the intensity you’re aiming for). It’s always best to start with less colorant and adjust, as some gel brands are more concentrated than others. Also, remember that mixing colorants like red and yellow can affect the hue, so keep in mind the shades you’re trying to achieve.

I hope this information helps, and that your croissants turn out spectacular next time!</div><div>Warm regards, and thank you for sharing your experience.

[Salma Sali]

Thank you Sussan!

Also can you please advise on how to properly preserve croissants to keep them fresh? Like my croissants are getting dry and harder next day and losing the crispness. Is there any additional “secret ingredients” that bakeries use in order to keep their croissants fresh at least 3-4 days? In general is it possible?

[Sussan Estela Olaya]

Hi Salma.

To keep croissants fresh, it’s best to store them in a dry place at room temperature. You can wrap them lightly in parchment paper or a paper bag to retain some moisture without making them too soft. Avoid the fridge, as it can cause them to dry out even more. How do you usually store them?

Bakeries sometimes use dough enhancers to improve the texture and freshness of croissants, allowing them to stay soft longer without losing quality. One of the most common enhancers is ascorbic acid (vitamin C), which helps maintain the crumb structure, or emulsifiers like soy lecithin. These help the croissants retain moisture for a longer period.

If you decide to try an enhancer, I would recommend using around 0.1% to 0.3% of the weight of the flour. For example, if you’re using 1 kg of flour, you should add between 1 and 3 grams of the enhancer. However, you can also achieve great results by controlling the humidity and baking time carefully.

I hope this information helps!

Best regards.