Have water and milk at 110°-115°F and all other ingredients at room temperature.

Dissolve yeast in water. Pour milk into a bowl with sugar and salt; blend. Stir yeast-mixture and pour into bowl. Add about 1/2 the flour. Beat until smooth, then mix in the shortening and remaining flour with hand or wooden spoon. Scrape down dough from sides of bowl. Cover; let rise in warm place until doubled, about 20-30 minutes. Meanwhile grease two large baking sheets. Measure 2 tsp celery seeds; beat 1 egg slightly; melt 3 tsp butter.

Punch down dough. Turn onto lightly floured board. Shape 1/3 of the dough at a time as follows: Turn dough over on board several times to coat with flour, then roll to a 10-inch circle. Cut into 12 pie-shaped pieces. Stretch wide end of each piece as you roll, so the long point tucks under. Curve ends to form a croissant. Brush with the egg; sprinkle with seeds. Place croissants a little apart on the baking sheets. Let rise until doubled, 15-20 minutes. Bake 15 to 20 minutes in preheated 400°F oven. Remove from pans and cool on rack a few minutes before serving. Brush with butter.

*You can substitute Instant (fast-rising) Yeast in place of Active Dry Yeast in batter/no knead recipes. When using Instant Yeast, expect your batter/dough to rise about 50% faster. Adjust your rise times accordingly. Traditional methods: use equal amounts; Bread Machine: use 1/2 tsp Instant Yeast OR 3/4 tsp Active Dry Yeast per cup of flour in your recipe. Visit our Lessons in Yeast & Baking for more information on baking.