Homemade Classic Croissant Recipe
This homemade classic croissant recipe is an easy-to-follow recipe that results in soft, fluffy, delicious croissants that can be enjoyed plain, filled with your favorite spreads or as a simple bread pudding!
Waking up to a warm pastry and a hot cup of coffee or tea is one of life’s simple pleasures. There’s nothing like it. Except maybe when it’s filled with chocolate! Breaking apart freshly made croissants, watching the steam escape is just something you won’t get from anything store-bought! Ok maybe at a fancy bakery or local cafe, but if you’re ready to learn all the tips and tricks in your own kitchen, stick with me!
It’s a bit of a process, yes, but this recipe will guide you every step of the way. And of course be sure to take your time and don’t rush. Even if they don’t turn out the first time as you would like, they will still taste delicious.
This croissant recipe uses Danish pastry, which is traditional. This means there is some rise time to account for, but in the end, you’ll be enjoying a soft, buttery, fluffy croissant for breakfast or as a snack. And if you choose to share, so will everyone else in your house 😉
Table of Contents
What is the difference between Danish pastry and puff pastry?
Danish pastry and puff pastry are closely linked. At first glance they may appear very similar. The difference is there, however. Puff pastry is a lighter and flakier pastry, whereas Danish pastry is denser and more fluffy.
Puff pastry is made with flour, water, butter, and maybe a bit of salt. And that’s it. There is no sugar or yeast, therefore to obtain the lovely flaky layers it uses steam.
And because there is no sugar, the pastry has a very mild flavor which makes it a great choice for both sweet and savory recipes.
Danish pastry, on the other hand, does use sugar and yeast and acts more closely to bread. Almost like a brioche. It is a variant of puff pastry, but because it does have a subtle sweetness, it’s best paired with sweet fillings.
Use this dough to make a classic croissant, a pain au chocolat, or simple twists. Have fun with this pastry!
Ingredients for Homemade Classic Croissant Recipe
- Flour -Bread
- Yeast -Active dry yeast
- Sugar -Granulated
- Salt
- Water -Lukewarm. The ideal water temperature is between 105F and 115F.
- Milk -Whole (3.25% fat content).
- Butter -Softened
How to Make Classic Croissants
In the bowl of the stand mixer, whisk together flour, yeast and sugar, then add water and milk. Using the hook attachment, knead the dough for 5 minutes. It will be sticky.
Cover and let sit at room temperature for about 1 hour. If your butter is in the fridge take it out and let it soften up.
On a lightly floured surface, punch the dough down and form into a ball. Place in a clean bowl, cover and refrigerate for another hour.
Remove from the fridge and roll into a rectangle. Spread softened butter over 2/3 of the dough leaving a 1/4″ border. Fold the unbuttered third over to meet the middle. Fold the buttered side on top to meet the outer side of the first fold.
Rotate the dough and roll again into the same size rectangle and repeat the fold.
Place in the fridge for 30 minutes before folding again in the same way and refrigerating one last time for one last 30 minutes.
Roll it into a rectangle, trim the edges to make it even. If you are making pain au chocolat, place a stick of chocolate on the edge of the rectangle and roll it up.
For traditional croissants, cut the rectangle into triangles. Stretch it a bit and taking the wider end of the dough, roll it from the bottom to the tip.
Place either pain or chocolat or croissants onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover with a clean towel, and let rise for about 1 hour.
Preheat the oven and sprinkle the dough with a bit of granulated sugar if desired. Bake and allow to cool on the baking sheet before moving them to a cooling rack.
Where did Croissants originate?
Back in the 1600s the croissant began as the Austrian kipfel. In the 1830s, an Austrian opened a Viennese bakery in Paris, it of course became very popular and inspired the French version of the croissant, which is made with a flaky buttery puff pastry.
How to serve Classic Croissants
I love to eat them plain with a cappuccino, or I have been known to slice them in half and add a good amount of Nutella, Chocolate Spread or even Jam.
You can also sprinkle the dough with some slivered almonds, nuts or even chocolate chips before baking.
FAQ’s
Definitely. For an added sheen or to get a deeper golden brown colour, feel free to add an egg wash on top of the pastry dough just before baking.
Croissants will keep at room temperature for up to 1 day when kept in an airtight container to keep the moisture in. Otherwise, you can keep them in the fridge for 1 week or frozen for up to 3 months.
You may notice that pastry dough that is kept in the fridge before rolling is a little harder to work with. It’s important that the dough is kept cold, so unfortunately there is no way around it other than mustering up a little extra strength!
More delicious baked goods
I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! Let me know what you think once you’ve become a master pastry chef 🙂 Enjoy!
Homemade Classic Croissant Recipe
Ingredients
- 1â…” cups bread flour (220 grams)
- 1¼ teaspoons active dry yeast (4 grams)
- 1¼ tablespoons granulated sugar (16 grams)
- 1 teaspoon salt*
- ½ cup + 2 ½ – 3 1/2 tablespoons water (lukewarm)** (150-160 grams)
- ¼ cup + ¾ tablespoon milk (whole) (70 grams)
- ⅓ cup + 1 ¾ tablespoons butter (softened) (100 grams)
*If using salted butter reduce salt to 1/2 teaspoon.
**Start with ½ cup + 2 ½ tablespoons (150 g) if needed add the extra.
Instructions
- In the bowl of the stand up mixer whisk together the flour, yeast, sugar and salt, then add the water and milk, knead with the dough hook for 5 minutes, the dough will be sticky. Cover the bowl with a clean towel and let sit at room temperature for approximately 40-60 minutes.
- On a lightly floured flat surface punch the dough down and form in to a ball, place in a clean bowl, cover and refrigerate for one hour.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and roll into a 9×15 inches (23x40cm) rectangle. Spread the softened butter over 2/3 of the dough (leave a 1/4 inch border around the rectangle). Fold the unbuttered third over meeting in the centre, fold the remaining 1/3 on top (see photos). Rotate the dough 90 degrees and roll again into the same size rectangle and repeat the fold. Refrigerate for 30 minutes, then repeat fold and refrigerate and one last time fold and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Roll into a rectangle 10 1/2 x 7 1/2 inches (27x19cm), trim the edges to make everything even. Cut into triangles, I made 3 croissant, 3 pain au chocolat and a couple of twists with the trimmed edges.
- To form the croissant, cut a slit at the bottom of the triangle, gently stretch the triangle lengthwise and widthwise, roll tightly from the bottom up to the tip, place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. For the pain au chocolate, place a stick of chocolate on the edge of the rectangle and roll, place on cookie sheet, the extra dough can be twisted and also placed on the cookie sheet. Cover with a clean towel and let rise 45-60 minutes.
- Pre-heat oven to 400F (200C).
- Before baking you can sprinkle the dough with a little granulated sugar if you wish. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Let cool 8-10 minutes on the cookie sheet then move to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Hello, thank you for this recipe! I assumed the salt should go in with the dry ingredients, is that correct? The first time I tried this recipe I thought it couldn’t possibly be supposed to be such a loose wet dough and I must have made a mistake, so I added more flour and they turned out delicious! This time I’m trying it as written and it’s far too wet again, especially compared to your photos. May I ask if there been a typo with the amount of flour or liquid, or do you have any suggestions for what I could be doing wrong? I did not add the extra tbsp of liquid per your note.
Hi Marie, yes the salt is with the dry ingredients. It does depend on the flour and how it absorbs the liquid. Sometimes it is necessary to add more flour, so that is ok if you need to. 🙂
Can you make a batch of dough and freeze it for baking at a later date?
Hi Orla, yes you can although they should be shaped before freezing – shape the croissants (before rising) place on a baking sheet, freeze until firm, then wrap in plastic wrap and freeze. To bake the frozen croissants, remove them from the freezer the night before and defrost them, uncovered, in the refrigerator. The morning after, let them rise at room temperature until almost doubled in bulk (1 to 2 hours) and then bake as directed. I hope this helps.
Can I use All Purpose Flour instead of Bread Flour and do I use the same amount of All Purpose Flour that I would use if it was Bread Flour?
Hi Ann, yes that will work also. Let me know how it goes. Have a great weekend.
Rosemary, Do I use the same amount of All Purpose Flour?
Hi Ann, yes the same amount. 🙂
How do I get your recipes?
Hi Michelle, to tell the truth I haven’t sent out a newsletter in quite a while, although I am starting again this weekend. You can sign up on the home page, the sign up notice is on the side bar. Thanks.
Hi Rosemary, I’d just like to say there has not been one recipe of yours that I’ve made that I haven’t loved! My next recipe is going to be the Homemade Classic Croissant Recipe, and I can’t wait to try it! I am wondering however, if I would be able to make them ahead and store in the fridge, or better yet the freezer BEFORE I bake them? Thank you, and keep the deliciousness coming!!
Hi Laurie, thanks so much, glad you enjoy the recipes. Apparently you can freeze them after they are shaped (freeze until firm on a cookie sheet, then place in a freezer safe bag or container). When ready to bake remove from the freezer, place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and let them thaw and proof at room temperature over night, then bake in the morning. Hope that helps. Let me know how it goes. Have a great weekend.