Puff Pastry
Editor's note: Use this puff pastry to make Francois Payard's Soufflé of Puff Pastry with Orange-Scented Pastry Cream, Candied Pecans, and Caramel Butter Sauce .
This rich, buttery pastry is used to create a variety of pastries and baked goods. I use it in many of my plated desserts, such as for napoleon layers and as the base for multicomponent desserts. This particular recipe is my favorite, because it makes an ultra-flaky, very airy pastry in which you can actually see the layers. I give the dough a total of five turns—two double turns and one single turn—to achieve this lightness.