Almond Croissant Recipe: How to Make Almond Croissants
Written by MasterClass
Last updated: Oct 1, 2024 • 3 min read
You don’t have to be a professional pastry chef to pull off a batch of almond croissants. Learn how to make this classic brunch favorite with minimal fuss and big flavor.
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What Is an Almond Croissant?
An almond croissant is a crescent-shaped French pastry filled with a sweetened almond mixture. Almond croissants are among the most famous examples of viennoiserie, a family of leavened and enriched doughs including fruit and cheese danishes, brioche, and pain au chocolat (chocolate croissants).
Almond croissants feature a sweet almond filling encased in layers of buttery, flaky pastry, finished with a snowy coat of confectioners’ sugar and toasted almonds. Some recipes also use an almond syrup or glaze to emphasize the nutty, floral almond flavor.
3 Tips for Making Almond Croissants
There are two ways to make almond croissants: rolling a sweet almond paste into croissant dough before baking or spreading the almond filling between two leftover croissant halves like a croissant sandwich. Here’s what to know about making the pastry at home.
- 1. Use leftover croissants. Whether you use homemade butter croissants or transform day-old croissants from a bakery or grocery store, stale croissants needn’t go to waste. The almond filling brings much-needed moisture to pastry, and a few minutes in the oven gives them a fresh boost of crackling, chewy texture. Try Chef Dominique Ansel’s French croissant recipe if you want to go the homemade route. (Leftover croissants make an excellent croissant bread pudding, too.)
- 2. Make the almond cream in advance. For easy morning assembly, make the frangipane filling the night before and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake.
- 3. Substitute other nuts for new flavors. If you don’t have almonds on hand, make a riff on a traditional frangipane filling by substituting ground pistachios or ground hazelnuts for the almond meal. Simply grind the nuts in a food processor with a little sugar and all-purpose flour.
Easy Almond Croissant Recipe
makes
4 croissantsprep time
10 mintotal time
25 mincook time
15 minIngredients
Make the frangipane:
- 1
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar and mix on medium speed until light and fluffy.
- 2
Add the egg and beat until combined, then add the almond and vanilla extracts.
- 3
Add the almond flour, and mix until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- 4
Cover the frangipane with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use.
Make the almond syrup:
- 1
In a small saucepan over low heat, whisk together the sugar, water, and almond extract until the sugar dissolves.
- 2
Remove the pan from the heat and set it aside to cool.
Assemble the croissants:
- 1
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- 2
Place the sliced almonds on a plate.
- 3
Place the croissants cut-side down on the parchment paper.
- 4
Using a pastry brush, coat the top of the croissants with a layer of syrup, then flip the bottom half of each croissant cut-side up.
- 5
Spread a thick layer of frangipane onto each bottom half, then replace its corresponding top half.
- 6
Spread a thin layer of frangipane over the top of each croissant, and dip the tops into the almond slices to coat.
- 7
Bake the croissants until the top of the pastries are golden brown and crispy, the almonds are toasted, and the frangipane filling has set, about 10 minutes.
- 8
Remove the croissants from the oven and let them cool slightly before sprinkling generously with powdered sugar. Serve immediately.
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