Fruit Preserve Danishes

Grate your butter into a large mixing bowl being careful not to crush it. Put it in the freezer for at least 10 minutes.

Make the starter by combining the milk, yeast and sugar together in a small bowl and allow to bloom.

Dough

Add the flour, sugar and salt to the grated butter and mix together with your fingertips. Try not to work in the butter too much as we want some chunks of butter through the dough. If the butter is starting to melt place the bowl into the fridge or freezer for 5 minutes.

To the mixture add in the egg and milk and mix by hand until just combined, cover with plastic wrap and place back into the fridge to rest overnight.

Custard

To make the custard, in a small saucepan add half of the milk, vanilla essence and sugar, place over a low-medium heat, induction level 4. Place the remaining milk in a small bowl, mix together with the egg and cornflour and whisk until smooth. Once the milk is hot add in the cornflour slurry and whisk until the mixture becomes very thick. Transfer into a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap and leave it in the fridge for later.

The next day remove your dough from the fridge and on a lightly floured benchtop shape the dough into a rough rectangle about 30cm x 45cm using a rolling pin with a height no greater than 10mm. Then fold the dough like a letter in thirds. Repeat this process another 3-4 times, as this will give us our layering. Cover the dough in plastic wrap after the final fold and allow it to rest at least an hour in the fridge.

Give your dough the final roll on a lightly floured bench and shape it into a 30cm x 40cm rectangle. It is better to over roll the dough than under as you will need to cut the edges regardless. Using a ruler mark out a grid of 3 x 4 squares into your dough.

Preheat your oven on CircoTherm to 190°C with the Steam Jet turned on.

Shape your Danishes by folding the edges into the centre of the squares and pressing firmly into the centre. Using a tablespoon, make an indentation for your custard and fruit preserve. Transfer the Danishes onto two oven trays lined with baking paper, then fill the indentation with custard followed by the fruit preserve and lastly a berry of your choice. Combine the beaten egg and water together in a small bowl to make an egg wash. Brush the Danishes with the egg wash.

Activate the Steam Jet function by pressing the steam symbol and place the two trays of Danishes on shelf levels 3 and 1. Cook for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and transfer onto cooling racks. Once cool drizzle with the sugar glaze by combining the icing sugar and water together in a small bowl. Serve on a large platter.