Veracruz Cream-Filled Banderillas

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Rolling pin
• •Bench scraper
• •Rimmed baking sheets
• •Parchment paper
• •Wire cooling rack
• •Heavy saucepan
• •Whisk
• •Pastry bag with plain tip, optional

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the dough

   Mix the flour, salt, and 1 tablespoon sugar in a large bowl. Stir the cold water with the lime juice, then add it to the flour a little at a time until a rough dough forms. Knead only until it holds together. It should look plain and a little stubborn, not smooth like bread dough. Wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

2. 2

   Shape the butter

   Place the cold butter between two sheets of parchment and pound it into a 6-inch square. Keep the edges straight. This matters because crooked butter makes crooked layers. Chill the butter block until firm but still bendable, about 20 minutes.

3. 3

   Lock in the butter

   Roll the chilled dough into a 10-inch square. Set the butter block in the center like a diamond. Fold the dough corners over it so the butter is fully sealed. Pinch the seams closed. If butter escapes now, it will escape in the oven, and the banderillas will fry themselves flat on the sheet pan.

4. 4

   Fold the hojaldre

   Roll the packet into a rectangle about 8 by 18 inches. Fold it in thirds like a letter. Turn the dough 90 degrees, roll again, and fold again. That is two turns. Wrap and chill for 45 minutes. Repeat the rolling and folding two more times, chilling 30 to 45 minutes whenever the butter feels soft. You need six turns total for clean, crisp layers.

   Flour the table lightly, not heavily. Too much flour dries the dough and dulls the layers. Brush off extra flour before each fold.
5. 5

   Cook the cream

   Heat the milk with the scraped Papantla vanilla seeds and pod until the milk is hot and smells deeply of vanilla. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks, 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch, and 1/4 teaspoon salt until pale. Pour in half the hot milk slowly while whisking, then return everything to the pot. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thick enough to hold marks from the whisk, 2 to 4 minutes.

6. 6

   Finish the cream

   Take the pot off the heat. Remove the vanilla pod and whisk in the butter until glossy. Scrape the pastry cream into a shallow dish and press plastic wrap directly onto the surface. Chill until cold, at least 2 hours. Warm pastry cream will soften the hojaldre. A panadera in Veracruz would not forgive that.

7. 7

   Cut the strips

   Heat the oven to 400F. Roll the chilled hojaldre into a rectangle about 12 by 16 inches and 1/8 inch thick. Sprinkle the table and the top of the dough with some of the rolling sugar so the sugar presses into the surface. Cut twelve long strips, each about 1 inch wide and 12 inches long. Use one clean downward cut. Do not saw at the dough.

8. 8

   Sugar and bake

   Lay the strips on parchment-lined baking sheets with space between them. Brush lightly with egg wash and scatter more granulated sugar over the top. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, rotating the pans once, until the banderillas are deep golden, puffed into visible layers, and crisp along the edges. Let them cool completely on a rack.

9. 9

   Fill the banderillas

   Whisk the cold pastry cream until smooth. Split each cooled banderilla lengthwise with a serrated knife, opening it carefully without crushing the layers. Pipe or spoon a thick line of vanilla cream inside, then close it gently. Dust with powdered sugar just before serving. Recetas probadas y garantizadas.

Chef Tips

• •Use real vanilla from Papantla if you can find it. Vanilla extract works in emergencies, but it is a compromise. The black seeds in the cream tell you the truth before you even taste it.
• •The butter must stay cold. If the dough starts feeling greasy, stop and chill it. Panaderia hojaldre is discipline, not strength.
• •Do not overfill the banderillas. The cream should show when the pastry is opened, not spill out like a mistake. The pastry is the structure and the cream is the reward.
• •These are sweet, not spicy. Do not add cinnamon, chile, or orange zest because you feel nervous about a Mexican pastry without chile. Cada estado, su propia cocina.

Advance Preparation

• •The hojaldre can be made one day ahead and kept refrigerated, tightly wrapped. Roll, cut, and bake the next day.
• •The pastry cream can be made up to two days ahead and kept refrigerated with plastic wrap pressed directly on the surface.
• •Bake the banderillas the day you plan to serve them. Fill them no more than 2 hours before eating so the sugar-crisp layers stay clean.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 120g)