Lizzy -when she was working in Paris after college- kept telling us about this unbelievable sweet, soft yet crispy pastry with a caramelized  bottom. It originated outside Paris, in Brittany, and she swore we’d never had anything like it. And, Lizzy said, only one shop in all of Paris offered the real deal. For the life of me though, I couldn’t remember the pastry’s name. It didn’t sound French. And when I asked her to spell it, that confused me even more.

One late December afternoon when we were walking down the Rue de Rivoli near our vacation apartment in the Marais, Lizzy did an about-face and ran back to the store behind us. It was Larnicol, an outpost of the famous Boulevard Saint-Germain shop that single-handedly brought the elusive Breton treat, kouign-amann, to the capital. And inside the window was tray after tray of small, spiraled pastries neatly displayed beneath signs labeled, Rhum-Raisins, Cerise and Praliné.

Finally I’d get to try the pâtisserie!

Mais no! It was too late in the day, Lizzy said. We needed to come back early morning, when they were fresh from the oven.

Who am I to argue with such a forceful professeur? So we waited. And eventually one morning before class, Lizzy arrived on the landing of our flat with a bag full of kouign-amann or kouignettes, as the individual sized pastries are known. She spilled the contents onto the kitchen counter –pistache, framboise and her favorite, salted butter caramel.

And were they as good as Lizzy and the legions of French foodie fans say?

We took our first bite…The kouign-amann was a delicious, addicting and complicated combination of crunchy, soft, sweet and buttery, much like a croissant, maybe even better. Yes, better. So it’s true… the pastries are as good and unique as everyone says.

By the way… kouign-amann, means “butter cake” in Breton, a Celtic language which is most closely related to southwest Britain’s Cornish. And now that I’ve tasted these treats both in France and stateside,  I never, ever forget their pronunciation. It’s “queen ah-mahn.”

After enjoying kouign-amann in Paris, of course we wanted to make them at home. You can find recipes from several sources on the internet, but all look a bit intimidating. Honestly, though, this is an easy recipe. Granted it is time-consuming and takes about 4 hours to complete the rolling and turning which creates the myriad layers of butter, sugar and pastry. Plan this as a fun project for a cold, rainy afternoon or for that special brunch with family over the holidays. The results really are worth it.

We call this “Kitchen Pantry Kouign-Amann” because you shoul look through your pantry and fridge for your favorite jams, jellies, nuts, chocolates, etc. to flavor the pastries. We’ve experimented with the following from our kitchen: apricot Trinquelinette jam and pecans; raspberry jam and almonds; raspberry jam , white chocolate and almonds; dark chocolate; and our favorite (just as in Paris) salted caramel.

A few things to keep in mind as you’re making kouign-amann:

1. The basic concept of this recipe -or any other puff pastry- is to create layers, in this case layer upon layer of  butter, dough, and sugar cinnamon. You accomplish this by spreading butter, then cinnamon sugar on top of the dough. You multiply the layers by folding them one on top of the other. This is known as “turning the dough.” (Yes, you actually rotate the dough 90 degrees every time you “turn,” thus the name.)  For those who aren’t familiar with “turning,” we describe it below both in the recipe and in pictures. It really isn’t hard at all!
2. Keep the butter cool. If the butter gets too mushy, stick the “project” in the fridge for a few minutes.
3. Keep your counter and rolling pin sufficiently floured during while “turning.” That will probably be obvious!