A pastry is a baked food made from dough that contains flour, water, and usually butter or another fat. The fat gets worked into the dough in a special way that creates thin, flaky layers when baked. Think of biting into a croissant and hearing that satisfying crunch as the delicate layers separate.

Pastries come in countless varieties. Some are sweet, like Danish pastries filled with fruit or cream cheese, or éclairs topped with chocolate. Others are savory, like the flaky crust on a chicken pot pie or a buttery cheese straw. French pâtisseries (pastry shops) display rows of colorful, elegant pastries that look almost too beautiful to eat.

Making good pastry requires precision and patience. The dough must stay cold so the butter doesn't melt before baking. When the cold butter finally hits the hot oven, it creates steam that pushes the layers apart, forming those characteristic flaky sheets. A skilled pastry chef might spend years mastering techniques that transform simple ingredients into creations that practically melt on your tongue.

The word can also refer to a single baked item: you might buy a pastry at a bakery for breakfast, like a cinnamon roll or an apple turnover.