I’m a believer of simplicity

With how hectic student life gets around this time of the year, it’s easy to caught up in the stress and deadlines. Take a step back. Do something you love. Spend time with people who make you happy. Breathe.

Pastries and coffee are a reminder of slow afternoons and easy conversations, of brunch turning into lunch and – oh look, it’s sunset now.

This recipe is a simple two-parter that uses a handful of ingredients. The real lifesaver here is store-bought, full butter puff pastry. I used the pre-made puff from Trader Joe’s because it comes as whole sheets instead of scored sheets so I can cut it to any size.

 Some tips:

• Most puff pastry is sold frozen. Make sure to thaw the pastry in the fridge before handling and keep it in the fridge until you are ready to assemble your croissants. You want to keep the butter cold so that the pastry will puff up and have distinct, flaky layers when baked.
• Use softened butter and room temperature eggs or else the almond filling will seize up. Afterwards, chill the filling in the fridge for a few minutes for easy handling.
• Don’t roll the croissants too tightly or too loosely. You need to give the pastry space to puff up while also ensuring that the filing doesn’t spill out.
• Baking rack in the middle of the oven. Don’t burn the tops of your croissants.
• Lots of powdered sugar.

Chocolate | Almond Croissants

Makes 8 chocolate and 6 almond croissants

Ingredients

1 pack | 2 sheets | 1 lb of pre-made puff pastry

1 bar of dark or semisweet chocolate (3.0-3.5 oz.)

3 tbsp unsalted butter, softened

1 eggs, room temperature

2 oz. almond paste

2 tbsp powdered sugar, more for dusting

1.5 tbsp flour

1 egg yolk + 1 tbsp milk for egg wash

Optional garnish: maldon sea salt flakes, slivered almonds.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 F 
2. In a bowl, mix together butter, 1 egg, almond paste, and powdered sugar until smooth. Add flour and stir until just combined. Wrap with plastic and chill in the fridge.
3. Chop the chocolate into 1 cm sticks. It’s okay if the sticks break apart – you just need the approximate width of the pieces to be 1 cm.
4. Unroll 1 roll of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface. Cut into 8 squares (2 X 4)
5. Place a stick of chocolate on one side of the square. Roll once. Place another stick of chocolate at where the roll meets the flat pastry. Place a line of egg wash on the free side of the square. Roll until the end of the square – the seam should be on the bottom and be sealed with the line of egg wash. Repeat for all 8 squares.
6. Brush the tops of the chocolate croissants amply with egg wash and sprinkle sparingly with sea salt. Bake for 15 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown.
7. While the chocolate croissants are baking, unroll the second sheet of puff pastry and cut into 6 squares (2 X 3). Place 1.5-2 tbsp of almond filling into the center of each sheet, or until all of the filling is evenly distributed among the 6 squares.
8. Egg wash the edges of each square, then fold over two opposing corners to the middle to form an envelope shape. Repeat for all 6 squares.
9. Brush the tops of the almond croissants generously with egg wash. Sprinkle on slivered almonds. Bake for 15 minutes or until puffed and golden brown.
10. Allow the croissants to cool slightly, then dust liberally with powdered sugar. Best served warm.

• For freezing, place the croissants in a single layer on a baking tray to freeze first. When they’re frozen, you can transfer them into Ziploc bags. You can bake them straight from the freezer at 400F for 20-22 minutes. 
• To reheat already-made pastry, heat at 350F for 5 minutes.

 

~ S ~