When you are 43 and your parents still save the day

Some days I have all my stuff together and I organize my schedule perfectly, ins and outs, meetings, errands and kid pickups... and other days I plan a meeting smack on top of when the girl gets off the bus not even thinking about it. Thankfully I have my parents who live 10 minutes down the road now that can save me. Since Nicholas had to interview them for a project - we made it a dinner invite too! I made chicken noodle soup on the weekend so all that needed was reheating and noodles added. But bread. What about some delicious bread to dip into that warm cozy soup? I found this recipe and thought it looked really fun. I made the butter packet on the weekend too (which Andy kept threating to eat) - so all I needed to do was make the dough and roll it out - which I did easily on my lunch break. I've done a butter packet before with a cinnamon bread recipe and we loved how it turned out - this time? Same. This bread was so soft and flakey and so good. Everyone had seconds and some thirds. Some will have regrets today when testing their blood sugar, but it was so worth it. My mom claims this had to be hard to make - but honestly - it was not. Rolling it out was the most complicated part - I lost track of my folds but it didn't really matter, I just kept folding and turning. I promise it's not that complicated, maybe it looks like it - but it's not. Your family will be very happy - I know mine was.

East Twisted Croissant French Bread

1 cup salted butter, cool room temperature
2 cups warm water, 105-110 degrees F
1 tablespoon instant or active dry yeast
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, more or less

For the butter packet: grab a piece of parchment paper about 16 1/4-inches by 12-inches (doesn't have to be exact, but should be close to those dimensions). Fold the two short edges of the parchment in toward each other about 4 1/2 inches. They will overlap a bit. Crease the edges well.
Keep those edges folded in and fold the top and bottom edges in about 1 3/4-inches. It should form a little parchment packet when folded with the center rectangle dimensions about 8 1/2-inches by 7-inches.
Unfold the parchment. Cut the butter into large pieces and place in the center of the parchment. Fold up the packet using the pre-creased folds and flip over so the folded edges are on the bottom.
Use a rolling pin, lightly tap the butter (too much aggression here and the parchment could rip) until it starts to flatten and merge into a thick square. Continue tapping or use the rolling pin to roll the butter into a thin sheet so it reaches all the edges of the parchment packet and has a relatively even thickness. Place in the fridge to chill while you make the dough.
For the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, add the water, yeast and sugar, and let sit until foamy, 2-3 minutes. Add the salt and flour and mix until a soft dough forms that clears the sides of the bowl. Add more flour, a little at a time, if the dough is sticking to the dough hook or sides of the bowl.
{It's REALLY important that this dough is not over floured and stiff or it will be hard to roll it out. On the flip side, a dough that is too soft and sticky can be problematic, too. Try for a dough that is soft and slightly sticky but easily clears the sides of the bowl. It should leave a light residue on your fingers but not be overly wet and sticky.}
Knead for 3-4 minutes until the dough is soft and smooth.
Cover the bowl or transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl and cover. Let rise until doubled, about an hour.
Lightly punch out the dough and turn out onto a lightly floured counter. Roll into a rectangle about 18-inches by 11- or 12-inches.
Take the butter packet out of the refrigerator, and unfold the parchment (but leave the butter on the parchment paper). Place the butter packet face down on the center of the rolled out bread dough. Peel the parchment carefully off the butter leaving the butter sheet on the dough.
Work quickly and don't over work the dough during the next couple steps of folding and rolling so the butter doesn't get too soft!
Fold one short side of dough about halfway to 2/3 over the butter. Fold the other short side of dough over the butter, overlapping the first folded side by about an inch.
Fold the top and bottom edges over about 1/2- to 1-inch and press to seal.
Fold the dough in half (from right to left or vice versa) once more.
Starting in the center, roll the dough out into a long, thin rectangle, about 8-inches by 22-inches. If the dough springs back when rolling, let it rest for 5-10 minutes to let the gluten relax and roll again.
Fold one short edge of the long rectangle into the center. Repeat with the other short edge so they meet in the middle. Fold the dough in half (from one of the short sides).
Let the dough rest for 2-3 minutes. Prepare two half sheet pans by lining with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (400 degrees F for a darker crust).
Roll into a 12-inch or 13-inch square. If the dough springs back when rolling, let it rest for 5-10 minutes to let the gluten relax and roll again. Cut the square into four strips.
Take each strip, twist it 3-4 times and place on the prepared sheet pans (two strips per sheet pan, spaced several inches apart).
Cover and let rise until noticeably puffy (the dough can rise in the refrigerator overnight or for several hours – when taking out of the refrigerator, if it hasn't risen enough, let it come to room temp and continue rising until nearly doubled). You don't want to let these loaves rise in an overly warm spot or the butter will melt before it hits the oven and you won't get the flaky, buttery layers.
Bake the loaves until nicely golden, 20-22 minutes.
Immediately out of the oven, use a pastry brush to brush any leaked butter on the sheet pan over the top of the loaves.
Serve warm or at room temperature. Bread can be sliced or torn into pieces.