Medialunas
Medialunas de Manteca
Argentina's beloved breakfast pastry — a buttery, slightly sweet crescent that's smaller and sweeter than a French croissant. Enjoyed with café con leche at every corner cafe in Buenos Aires.
Medialunas (Medialunas de Manteca)
Argentina's beloved breakfast pastry — a buttery, slightly sweet crescent that's smaller and sweeter than a French croissant. Enjoyed with café con leche at every corner cafe in Buenos Aires.
Dough
- 500g (4 cups) all-purpose flour
- 60g (1/4 cup) sugar
- 10g (1.5 tsp) salt
- 15g (2 packets) active dry yeast
- 200ml (3/4 cup + 2 tbsp) warm milk
- 2 eggs
- 50g (3.5 tbsp) softened butter
Butter block
- 250g (1 cup + 2 tbsp) cold butter, shaped into a flat rectangle
Syrup glaze
- 200g (1 cup) sugar
- 100ml (1/3 cup + 1 tbsp) water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- •Any panadería (bakery) in Argentina — they're everywhere
- •Café Tortoni (Buenos Aires) — classic experience
- •Le Pain Quotidien (Buenos Aires) — upscale version
- •La Giralda (Buenos Aires) — famous for their chocolate con churros and medialunas
- 1
Dissolve yeast in warm milk with a pinch of sugar. Let sit 10 minutes until foamy.
- 2
In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt. Add yeast mixture, eggs, and softened butter.
- 3
Knead for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. The dough should be slightly tacky.
- 4
Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- 5
Roll the cold dough into a large rectangle. Place the butter block in the center.
- 6
Fold the dough over the butter (like a letter), enclosing it completely.
- 7
Roll out and fold in thirds. Wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes. Repeat this 2 more times.
- 8
After the final fold and rest, roll the dough to 5mm (1/4 inch) thickness.
- 9
Cut into triangles (base about 10cm/4 inches wide).
- 10
Roll each triangle from base to tip, curving the ends into a crescent shape.
- 11
Place on lined baking sheets, cover, and let rise 1-2 hours until doubled.
- 12
Brush with egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp milk).
- 13
Bake at 200°C (400°F) for 15-18 minutes until deep golden.
- 14
While baking, make the syrup: boil sugar and water until slightly thickened, add vanilla.
- 15
Brush hot medialunas generously with the sugar syrup immediately after baking.
- 16
Let cool slightly before serving — they're best warm.
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Keep the butter cold during lamination — if it softens, put everything back in the fridge.
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The sugar syrup glaze is what makes medialunas different from croissants — don't skip it.
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The dough should be less buttery than French croissant dough — medialunas are a bit more bread-like.
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Real panaderías use a mix of butter and lard ('de grasa') for a more traditional flavor.
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Don't over-proof — they should be puffy but not fragile, or they'll collapse in the oven.
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Eat with café con leche for the authentic Argentine breakfast experience.
Medialunas (literally 'half moons') arrived in Argentina with Italian and French immigrants in the late 19th century. They evolved into something distinctly Argentine — smaller, sweeter, and glossier than French croissants, with a signature sugar syrup glaze. There are two types: 'de manteca' (butter, the premium version) and 'de grasa' (lard, more traditional). Every corner panadería makes them fresh daily, and no Argentine breakfast is complete without them alongside café con leche.
Best eaten the day they're made. Freeze unbaked medialunas for up to 1 month — thaw overnight and bake fresh. Day-old medialunas can be refreshed in a 350°F oven for 5 minutes.