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If you've got 20 minutes, that's all it takes (hands-on time) to put together these Ridiculously Easy Almond Croissants. They look like they came from a fine French patisserie and they're ridiculously delicious too!
This easy almond croissant recipe came about quite serendipitously. I'd requested a few boxes of puff pastry in my last grocery delivery order, not really having a specific purpose for it. I just love having my freezer stocked with this super convenient product. At the same time, I just happened to have almond croissants on my brain. For some reason, I had been remembering the delicious, flaky, frangipane-filled, toasted-almond-topped pastries that Scott and I enjoyed during the seven years that our daughter, Cait, lived in London (yes, the British make EXCELLENT croissants too).
I was actually getting ready to re-test a new blondie recipe (coming up soon!) when the thought hit me: "I wonder if you could make croissants from puff pastry?". I knew it wouldn't be exactly the same as the flaky, multi-layered, laminated dough that classic French (and British) croissants are made from, but I was so intrigued with the idea that I quickly abandoned my blondie project.
Out came the puff pastry as well as butter, sugar, eggs and almond flour to put together an easy frangipane (almond filling). I just had to wait for the puff pastry to thaw a bit. Once it was ready, I simply unfolded the dough (no rolling), cut it into triangles and covered it with the delicious frangipane (sweet almond cream). Then it was simply a matter of rolling up the triangles, croissant-style, brushing them with an egg wash (egg and water) and topping with sliced almonds.
When I peeked in the oven, halfway through the baking time, I was thrilled with the magic that was transpiring. The cold, flat puff pastry dough was living up to its name, puffing up beautiful and taking on a golden hue. Ten minutes later I pulled them out, anxious for these little beauties to cool a bit.
The first bite immediately took me back to England and France and all the little cafés, patisseries and boulangeries we developed a reputation for enjoying so much (our kids say we can sniff out a good bakery like bloodhounds can track their prey). I could hardly wait to bring one to Scott, who was working in his office.
I presented him with the powder sugared-coated confection and said, "Want to take a trip back in time?". He took one bite, rolled his eyes and said, "I think I need a moment of silence". I laughed but I knew just what he meant, they're that good!
I've been playing with the technique ever since and have tweaked and refined it a little along the way. I decided to wait until the last few minutes to add the almonds as they tend to toast too much (aka, burn) in the hot oven if they're added at the beginning. In order to make the almond topping adhere, I simply thin out the leftover frangipane filling with a splash of milk and brush it over the partially-baked croissants before sprinkling with the almonds. They cling to the croissants beautifully and toast a bit during the last few minutes of baking.
Although this recipe is truly ridiculously easy (you don't even have to roll the dough), I wanted to show you clearly how the dough is cut and rolled into croissants. So I had Scott take a few pics of the process. Here you go!
- Unfold thawed (but still cold) puff pastry on a work surface. Divide each sheet into 3 fairly equal size rectangles. I use Pepperidge Farm puff pastry. Each sheet is around 10x15-inches. If you use a different brand, you may need to adjust a bit.
- Cut each rectangle into two long triangles. I use my pastry scraper (a wonderfully versatile kitchen tool) for this, but you could also use a sharp knife.
- Place all of the triangles with the short, flat end facing you. Cut a small slit at this end of each triangle (this will make it easier to roll up pretty-shaped croissants).
- Scoop 2 teaspoons of frangipane onto each triangle. Spread the frangipane over the surface of each triangle.
- Starting at the slit end, roll the dough into croissants, spreading the dough apart a bit at the slit as you start to roll.
- Repeat this process with the other sheet of puff pastry, then place all of the croissants onto the prepared sheet pan.
A MUST for the Ridiculously Easy Café category
If you're a regular Café reader, you know the deal regarding our Ridiculously Easy recipes. But there are lots of new readers, as well, so I'll take a minute to explain. Here, at The Café, we have a special, beloved-by-our-readers, category of recipes that we call Ridiculously Easy. You can check them all out here and you can read more about them in more detail in this post. But to be concise, our Ridiculously Easy recipes are the ones that make you look like a kitchen rock star (in this particular case, a French kitchen rock star) with minimal effort.
Children will always (well, almost always) tell you the truth
Two of our grandchildren, Emmy and Hayes, spent the night last night. Even in the midst of busy children running through the house, I was able to whip up a batch of these easy almond croissants this morning. They hurried through their scrambled eggs for a promise of one of these warm, sweet treats. They each took a bite and without being asked said, "These HAVE to go on the blog!". So there you have it, "from the mouths of babes".
Put puff pastry, almonds and almond flour on your grocery list if you don't already have them. Take 20 minutes and put together a batch of these Ridiculously Easy Almond Croissants. Expect rave review and perhaps even some requests for "a moment of silence"! Bon Appétit!
Café Tips for making these Ridiculously Easy Almond Croissants
- This recipe calls for puff pastry. The most common puff pastry available here in the States is made by Pepperidge Farm. You'll find it in the freezer section of almost every grocery store. It comes in sheets as well as pastry shells. You want the sheets for this recipe.
- Some specialty stores like Trader Joes and Whole Foods carry other brands of puff pastry. Some puff pastries are made with butter and some with shortening. The all-butter puff pastries are delicious, but with this particular recipe, we're adding a filling made with butter so you'll still get delicious flavor even if you use puff pastry made with shortening.
- Puff pastry is easy to work with, but there are a few tips that are important to know:
- Puff pastry usually comes in a box with individually folded and wrapped sheets of dough. Only thaw what you want to use and keep the rest frozen.
- Puff pastry doesn't keep well in the refrigerator for longer than 24 hours.
- Either thaw the dough in the refrigerator for several hours or thaw at room temperature for 30-40 minutes.
- Wait to unfold the dough until it is thawed so it doesn't crack or tear.
- For optimal baking results, puff pastry likes to stay cold. If you're going to use several sheets, work with one at a time and keep the rest in the fridge, covered with plastic wrap, to prevent the pastry from drying out.
- If your puff pastry gets warm while you're preparing these easy almond croissants, simply pop the unbaked croissants into the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes before baking.
- The almond cream filling (aka frangipane) in these croissants calls for almond flour. Almond flour is ground blanched almonds. You can also use almond meal which is ground unblanched almonds. Almond meal is a little coarser so I really like to use almond flour (although I've seen recipes using both almond flour and almond meal).
- Almond flour is really pricy at my local grocery store (almost $20 for a 2-pound bag) so I like to order it online. If you have Amazon Prime, it's usually on your doorstep the next day.
- Don't try to add too much of the frangipane filling or the croissants can get soggy. Two teaspoons is the perfect amount per croissant.
- These croissants are best on the day they are made. However, you can make them ahead and freeze them, unbaked. Pop them in the oven, frozen and just allow a few extra minutes of baking time. That way you can pull as many as you want out of the freezer and have freshly baked croissants any time you get the whim! (You can also freeze the leftover frangipane to use for brushing the croissants when adding the almonds.)
- I like to serve these croissants, warm, shortly after being baked. If you're serving them later in the day, a short, 10-second stint in the microwave makes them "come alive" again!
Thought for the day:
Be strong and courageous.
Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged,
for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9
What we're listening to for inspiration:
If you enjoyed this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review! It’s so helpful to other readers to hear other’s results and ideas for variations.
If you've got 20 minutes, that's all it takes (hands-on time) to put together these Ridiculously Easy Almond Croissants. They look like they came from a fine French patisserie and they're ridiculously delicious too!
- 3 tablespoons very soft butter
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- ½ cup almond flour
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon water
- 17.25- ounce package of purchased puff pastry (2 sheets)
- ½ cup sliced almonds
- powdered sugar for sprinkling
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Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Line a 13x18-inch sheet pan with parchment paper.
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Combine the butter and sugar in a medium-size bowl. Whisk together well. Add the egg and extracts. Whisk again until smooth.
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Add the almond flour and stir to combine. Add the all-purposeflour and stir again until smooth.
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Combine egg and 1 teaspoon water in a small bowl. Stir vigorously with a fork until well combined. Set aside.
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Unfold thawed (but still cold) puff pastry on a work surface. With a dough cutter or sharp knife, cut the dough into 3 equal-size rectangles (see picture above in the post). Cut each rectangle into 2 long triangles.
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Place all of the triangles with the long end, facing you. Cut a small slit at the wide end of each triangle (this will make it easier to roll up pretty-shaped croissants).
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Scoop 2 teaspoons of frangipane onto each triangle. Spread the frangipane over the surface of each triangle.
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Add one tablespoon of milk to the leftover frangipane and set aside.
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Starting at the wide end, roll the dough into croissants, spreading the dough apart a bit at the wide end as you start to roll.
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Repeat this process with the other sheet of puff pastry, then place all of the croissants onto the prepared sheet pan, spacing 1½ inches apart.
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Brush each croissant with the egg wash, lightly but covering all of the exposed surfaces.
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Place in the preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush with the diluted frangipane. Sprinkle each croissant with a scant tablespoon of sliced almonds. Return to the oven for another 5-7 minutes or until medium golden brown.
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Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack. Allow the croissants to cool for 10 minutes then sprinkle with powdered sugar. Put on your French bakers hat and serve warm or at room temperature. Bon Appétit!
Frangipane recipe adapted from The Spruce Eats
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Cis Hartman says
Your post of these almond croissants are so wonderfully comprehensive that I cannot wait to try them! Sincere thanks for this lovely post!
Lindsay @ The Café Sucre Farine says
Hope you enjoy them, Cis!
Erika says
I have now made this recipe 3 times and absolutely adore it. My goal is to make "real" croissants this winter, but I honestly love puff pastry and this works so well. Thank you Chris for a great easy recipe. I, like you love frangipane and there are so many uses for it. Definitely 5 stars from me.
Lindsay @ The Café Sucre Farine says
Wonderful! Thanks for letting us know, Erika!
Amanda J Henderson says
I loved this recipe and just wanted to add a comment here on a easy twist.
I recently purchased some Pisti Pistachio Spreadable Cream from Costco and have used that instead of your recipe filling and its divine also
Lindsay @ The Café Sucre Farine says
Thanks, Amanda!
Nadia says
Morning, I love your recipes. My question today is, can I make the almond frangipane the day before and keep it refrigerated until the next morning? I’d like to make the croissants fresh the morning I have my grandchildren. Thanks.
Lindsay @ The Café Sucre Farine says
Yes, you can do that, Nadia. Enjoy!
Nay says
Thanks. I had 12 years without them bc in Miami I tried two and they were too sweet. I used to eat at Cafe Bambi in Maracaibo Venezuela. Now I am happy I can make them.
Lindsay @ The Café Sucre Farine says
Enjoy, Nay!
Nicole says
Really delicious and easy! My only complaint is that the time listed wasn't nearly enough time for them to get golden brown. I had to add an extra 10 minutes, and the inner layers were still pretty soft. If you want that crispy flaky croissant experience I would recommend adding an extra 10 minutes to the first baking time, and then just keep an eye on the second bake and take them out when they are a deeper golden brown (think a caramel color).
The actual flavor of the frangipane is delicious though, i will definitely make these again!
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Nicole, so happy you enjoyed these. Every oven is a little different so it's best to go with the color rather than the suggested time.
Chantal says
Hi Chris
I want to make these for breakfast tomorrow but I would like to use day old croissant instead of the puff pastry. Would you be able to tell Me how long I should cook them at what temperature so I don’t burn the croissant but also that I cook the almond cream properly?
Hopefully you will read this on time for me.
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Chantal, I haven't tested this recipe with day-old croissants so, sadly, I really can't advise you.
Chantal says
Thanks for the quick reply 🙂
Cassandra Wolf says
Hi! I am searching for a Ridiculously Easy 😉 almond croissant, with actual almond paste filling. Can you please help? Thanks! Much Love!
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Cassandra, I don't have a recipe like that at this time. Almond paste isn't that readily available for a lot of our readers - that's why I went with this method.
Angela says
Hello, we discovered this delicious almond croissant at the breakfast buffet on our Thailand holiday. I immediately had to go in search of a recipe. Thank you so much for this. Here in Thailand, they have doused the almond croissant thickly with frangipani cream. So they don't look quite as nice as yours, but you get even more of the delicious baked cream.
Chris Scheuer says
Hope you enjoy them, Angela!
Dorothy says
I love frozen puff pastry dough. I can’t wait to try these .I absolutely love anything almond.
Chris Scheuer says
Enjoy, Dorothy!
David Puorto says
Good morning Nina,
I do NOT make 300 croissants daily, i doNOT have the time. I make yours 3-4 times per year and so happy you made my favorite croissants so easy and delicious. Thank you for that.
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, David!
Denis Johnston says
This is NOT a croissant recipe no matter how simple you may think it is...
I make by hand over 300 croissants daily, using organic flours from Central Milling and great French Beurremont Butter.There is no substitution for doing things the right way...
Chris Scheuer says
Bonjour, Denis! BRAVO to you! You are absolutely correct. But these pastries are quite delicious, as you can surmise from these reviews. Sometimes, although it's not the way we would prefer, we have to go with an easier version due to time constraints. That is what this recipe is all about.
Ann Waldyn says
I don't know why Denis is typing negatively of this recipe, I just found and joined your page today, and just made these as I love my 6 kids and 3 grands to enjoy the tastes I grew up with being Swedish (almond is everything!!); That said, I do not have a commercial kitchen as he must have to make 300 a day, nor the many extra helping hands to prep, prepare and clean up!! I LOVED this recipe, and yes, I have made croissants by hand and yes, it is a labor of love I would not do everyday...these I could do everyday!!!! Thank you for an easy, economical way for us home bakers with jobs and family to still make foods that make memories 🙂
Your new subscriber 🙂 P.S. I love the verses and songs, they mean much to me as well !!!!
Lindsay @ The Café Sucre Farine says
Thank you, Ann! So glad you're enjoying the site 🙂
Eugene says
I struggled to get past and close the 7 pop-ups and media players, that I gave up trying to read your recipe. I understand what "pays" the bills. I feel it's unrealistic to expect your patrons to navigate through this.
Respectfully,
Eugene Fraker
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Eugene, sorry for your frustration but, you’re right, everyone has to earn a living and pay their expenses.
The ads are the way we’re able to offer well tested recipes to our readers for free. There is a “jump to the recipe” button on the top of every post though so you don’t have to scroll through the ads if you don’t want. Kind regards, Chris
Lin says
Followed recipe exactly. Delicious. Might add a bit more sugar next time
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks, Lin!
CJ says
I have made this recipe 4 times now and each and every time it amazes me. It is simple enough to put it together, baked and on the table for a delightful start to the day or o marvelous desert. I followed the recipe as written and wouldn’t change a thing. It’s AWESOME!
Chris Scheuer says
Awesome! Thanks so much for letting us know, CJ!
Margaret says
I cant wait to make these Croissants. So easy and seem almost foolproof.
Chris, i have ground almonds in my freezer, can i use in this recipe.
Thank you.
Margaret
. B.C.Canada.
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Margaret, you could definitely use frozen ground almonds but they should be the blanched variety for this recipe, not ground up almonds with the skins on.
Margaret says
Thank you Chris...the answer I was hoping to get.
Off i go now to do you know what...BAKE.
Wishing you and yours a very merry and joyous Christmas with many 🙏
Chris Scheuer says
Merry Christmas, Margaret!
Shri says
Hello,
I wanted to make these but it’s a big batch can I make this batch and freeze them or refridgerate them? Could you let me know what’s the best thing to do? Also should I make them full to freeze? Thanks
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Shri, that's one of the beauties of this recipe. You can make them completely except for baking. Then pull them out whenever you want to serve them and pop them in the oven without thawing. You'll need to give them a few extra baking minutes but they will come out great. If you're concerned about the time, just pull one or two out ahead of time and see how long they take. Then you'll know exactly how much time you need to plan on.
Nina says
Is it possible to use premade pure almond paste instead (Solo brand)? How would the recipe be adjust for the use of a pre made almond paste?
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Nina, I honestly haven't tried premade almond paste so I can't say for sure how it would work or how to adjust the recipe. If you do try it, let us know!