Laminated Corn Bread
Popped corn processed into a paste with hot water builds a dough with roasted corn flavor that cornmeal cannot match. The Maillard reaction happens during popping and locks into the paste. It stays in the finished loaf. This is new to us, and we wanted to share our creation. The current field of yeasted cornbreads runs entirely on dry grinding popcorn blended to flour as a cornmeal substitute, a method that goes back to World War II. The paste method is something different. It is what the lamination system made possible.
Fat in the base dough is a trade off with the butter block. After a certain point, the layers do not separate cleanly and the block weeps. So the cream comes out and water goes in at the same weight, one for one. The paste technique is identical. The corn flavor survives the swap completely. What changes is the structure: the dough is now lean, and a lean dough holds a butter block the way it is supposed to.
This is a long bake. Two and a half to three hours at 350°F. The crust goes very dark gold. That is correct. Pull it when the internal temperature reads 200 to 205°F.
Each batch of popcorn uses 113g of kernels and 60g of corn oil and yields 140 to 150g of popped corn. Run two batches and weigh. You need 154g for the dough.
| Ingredient | Grams | Baker's % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Dough | |||
| All-Purpose Flour | 768 | 100.00% | |
| Water | 607 | 79.04% | |
| Popcorn (popped) | 154 | 20.05% | |
| Instant Yeast | 17 | 2.21% | |
| Salt | 16 | 2.08% | |
| Lamination Block | |||
| Butter (lamination) | 384 | 50.00% | |
| Total | 1,946 | 253.38% | |
Mix the dough the day before you plan to bake. It needs overnight refrigeration to firm up enough for lamination. On bake day, the butter block and the dough need to be the same temperature; cold but pliable, around 60°F. If the butter cracks when you bend it, it is too cold. If it squishes out during rolling, it is too warm. Butter temperature is the single variable that determines whether lamination works.
Pop the corn on mixing day. Run two batches, weigh, and confirm at least 154g before you start the paste. Set the oven to 350°F when you are ready to bake. Line the 15×4.75×4.75 pan with parchment and set it on a sheet pan. The butter block will render during the long bake and pool in the pan.
Pour the water over the popped corn in a food processor or stand mixer bowl. Process until the corn breaks down into a thick, spreadable paste — fine hull flecks are fine. No heat gets near the yeast.
Add the cooled paste to your mixing bowl. Add the flour, yeast, and salt. Add the remaining water on top.
Mix on low until combined, then increase to medium and mix 8 to 10 minutes until the dough is smooth and pulls from the sides of the bowl. The dough will be tacky. Do not add flour.
Mix until no dry patches remain. Cover and rest 30 minutes. Stretch and fold once. Cover again.
Pat the dough into a flat rectangle roughly the width of your loaf pan. Wrap tightly in plastic and refrigerate overnight, minimum 8 hours.
Butter block: beat 384g of cold butter flat between two sheets of parchment to approximately 6×8 inches and about a half inch thick. Wrap and refrigerate alongside the dough.
Roll the cold dough on a lightly floured surface to about 8×16 inches. Place the butter block on the center two-thirds. Fold the bare third over the butter, then fold the remaining third on top. Press the edges to seal. Rotate 90 degrees, roll out to 8×16 again, and repeat the letter fold. Wrap and refrigerate 20 minutes. Repeat for a total of three folds. Brush off excess flour between every fold — trapped flour creates dry pockets. After the third fold, refrigerate at least 30 minutes before shaping.
Roll the laminated dough into a rectangle the width of the pan and about 12 inches long. Roll it toward you into a tight log and place seam side down in the parchment-lined pan. Or divide into quarters, roll into tight balls, and place on their sides in the pan for a pull-apart crown.
Cover loosely with plastic wrap and rest at room temperature until the dough crowns 1 inch above the rim. At 72°F plan 2 to 3 hours. The dough should feel light and jiggly when you nudge the pan. Do not rush the proof — under-proofed laminated dough blows out in the oven.
Set the loaf pan on the sheet pan. Bake at 350°F for 2 to 2.5 hours. Rotate at 75 minutes. The crust will go very dark gold — that is correct. Internal temperature 200 to 205°F. Tent loosely with foil after 90 minutes if the top is coloring ahead of the interior. Remove from the pan after 10 minutes and cool on a wire rack at least 45 minutes before slicing.
Wrap in plastic and store at room temperature for 3 to 4 days. The corn flavor is strongest on day one and mellows by day two. Toast heavily on days two and three — the laminated crumb toasts exceptionally well. Slice and freeze for up to a month. Excellent from frozen.