I was surprised to see in UK/Australian cooking shows that they make the humble pain aux raisins using what they call an "enriched dough". They underline it has to be crunchy outside and feature multiple buttery layers inside. Once again, I have to protest!!
Having lived in the North East of France for some years, I consider that a traditional pain aux raisins should be made with a brioche dough, which is not puffed whatsoever (no crunch either). I've recently discovered the existence of "PLF" (pâte levée feuilletée) in French. There you go, "enriched" dough. It seems it's the dough professionals use the most to make pains aux raisins these days. The origins of this particular pastry are unclear, and many names have been used for it: escargot, couque, brioche aux raisins and even "pain russe" in Lyon ("Russian bread").
Here are the ingredients you need for a pâte briochée (about 16 pains aux raisins):
700 g de farine T45 / pastry flour
100 g de beurre doux / unsalty butter
20 g de levure de boulanger fraîche / baker's yeast
250 ml de lait tiède / warm milk
2 oeufs / eggs
80 g de sucre en poudre / caster sugar
2 pincées de sel fin / pinches of salt
You mix everything and you're in for a long proof. The dough must rise to double (one hour in warmish conditions but overnight in the fridge). This is a question of practice, which is not my point here. Cooking time: 20mn at 180°C.
Let's compare with the "PLF" ingredients (12 to 15 pains aux raisins):
300 g de farine T45 / pastry flour
200g de farine T55 / baking (all purpose) flour
50 g de beurre mou / soft butter
250 g de beurre (84 % M.G) / butter ( NB: this butter is used to enrich the dough)
20 g de levure fraîche ou 9 g de levure sèche / baker's yeast or dry yeast
265 g de lait entier froid / cold whole milk
45 g de sucre / caster sugar
10 g de sel fin / salt
You will mix your ingredients, then long proofing, then "tourage" in French, which is lots of folding (this will take approx. 40mn for these quantities). Cooking time: 14-17mn at 190°C approx. Again, the method is not my point here, you can find recipes all over the Internet for details.
In both cases, you will use the same filling: a crème pâtissière (not crème pâtisserie as I often hear on shows, but crème pâtissière) and macerated raisins :
500 ml de lait entier / whole milk
2 œuf / egg
60 g de sucre / sugar
40 g de Maïzena ou farine / corn starch (or flour)
1 gousse de vanille / vanilla pod
80 gr raisins / raisins (NB: Corinth are less treated than Sultanas) and a few drops of rum or just warm water
Personally, I like my pain aux raisins with lots of cream, so I would always make a bit extra.
When I moved to Provence, I could never find a pain aux raisins to my taste. They look sad, dry, overbaked. I don't say they taste bad, they're just not to my liking. I think they look best when made with a pâte briochée, generously filled with crème pât and the right amount of raisins. The raisins shouldn't be too dark and they shouldn't be floating on top only.
Bottom line: The only viennoiserie I like is pain aux raisins, as I've never liked butter.
Comparing the two versions, I see that the "briochée" one contains a third of the butter, but more flour, sugar and there are eggs.
With this dough, a pain aux raisins has no crunch and/but a better harmony with the cream, in my opinion. It's close to the Swedish "lussebullar" (saffron buns).
Technically, it seems it's easier and quicker to go for this recipe than the one with the "pâte levée feuilletée" aka enriched dough.
So why is it so hard to find "my" pain aux raisins?
It's not the hardest of viennoiseries to make (chausson aux pommes, for example, is more difficult)... but it's really hard to find a good one! What a shame...
For the real amateurs, it's worth it to make both versions at home and compare. Indeed, you will also need a beautiful table cloth, nice china cups and a high quality tea.
Photo d'illustration: to the left pâte briochée, to the right PLF.