Paris has always had a spot in both of our hearts. Linda has traveled there and loved it. I've been three times now and I speak French. Right after we switched to a plant-based diet, I remember walking into our favorite coffee shop and stopping short when we realized that we could no longer indulge in this decadent Parisian pastry. Happily, this is no longer the case! We’ve created a classic vegan croissant with all the air bubbles and flakiness you could want!
CREATING VEGAN CROISSANTS
When I was a little girl, I was entranced with Paris. I thought it was the most beautiful city in the world and couldn’t wait to visit it. The Eiffel Tower, crepes, croissants, and the fashion....
In my mind, no other city could compete with my vision of what France and Parisian culture was.
Flash forward a couple of years and a few trips to Paris, I have to admit… I was a little less entranced. While Paris will always be a place of some special memories, London has become my favorite European city. However, I still love French cuisine… in plant-based forms of course!
So, where does one start when they want to re-create a French dish in vegan fashion? Croissants!
THE BASICS OF VEGAN CROISSANTS
BUTTER
What are the three secrets to French cuisine? Butter, butter, and butter! I’m sure you’ve heard this joke before, but it stands true for croissants.
The reasons croissants puff up so beautifully is because of the butter. When you fold the butter into the dough, you create little pockets of butter in the dough. Pop the dough into the oven and you'll see those little pieces of butter dissolve and turn into a multitude of pockets, revealing the flaky and unique croissant texture.
FLOUR
Another important aspect of making a croissant is choosing the flour.
As many of you may know, there are an abundance of different types of flour: cake flour, bread flour, all purpose, almond, oat, gluten free all purpose, pastry. Between types of wheat flour there is a difference in the amount of gluten.
The specific type of flour we use in this croissant recipe is pastry flour. Why? Because pastry flour has a lower gluten content than other flours. Gluten, the protein found in flour, dictates how dense, chewy, and structured your baked good is. Because pastry flour falls in around 9% protein, it creates a flaky and tender pastry that still holds together.
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN CROISSANTS
STEP ONE
Heat the almond milk in the microwave for twenty seconds.
STEP TWO
Pour the almond milk into a shallow bowl. Pour the active dry yeast on top of the almond milk and mix for a couple seconds. Now let the almond milk and yeast set for approximately five minutes, or until the yeast begins to foam. The yeast must foam in order for the croissants to turn out. If the yeast does not foam try again.
STEP THREE
Put the milk-yeast mixture into a stand mixer. Pour the rest of the almond milk into the mixing bowl along with the caster sugar and mix briefly to combine.
STEP FOUR
In a separate bowl, sift the flour to remove any lumps. Slowly add the flour to the almond milk-yeast mixture in quarter cup increments. The dough is ready when it looks soft and sticky. The amount of flour can vary. The amount of flour we usually end up with is somewhere between 2 ¼ cups and 2 ½ cups. After the dough appears soft and sticky, add the salt and mix to combine.
STEP FIVE
Sprinkle a quarter cup of the flour onto a clean surface and prepare a plate that is dusted with about 1 tbsp of flour. Dump the dough onto the floured surface and kneed for approximately two minutes. Then work the dough into a ball. If the ball starts to fall slightly, the dough was made correctly.
STEP SIX
Place the dough on a plate and cut an X into the top of the dough. Sprinkle another tablespoon of flour on top of the dough and place it in the fridge. Let the dough rest in the fridge for at least one hour.
STEP SEVEN
While the dough is resting, take the butter and put it in your stand mixer. Beat the butter until it is completely smooth. This should only take about a minute or two. Now beat in 2 tbsp of the flour. Mix until uniform in texture.
STEP EIGHT
Put the butter on the floured surface and shape it into a 4 inch x 4 inch square. Wrap the butter-flour mixture in plastic wrap and place it in the fridge to cool. The butter-flour block should be hard to the touch when you take it out of the fridge.
STEP NINE
Once the dough has been in the fridge for an hour, remove it and put it back on the floured surface. Now, get ready to roll out this dough is some semi-complicated ways.
STEP TEN
You’re going to roll out your dough so that the center has enough room to hold that 4x4 butter square. Roll your dough into a large square, much larger than the butter block.
STEP ELEVEN
Place the butter block in the center of the dough like shown below and fold in each of the petals. It should look like a nice little present.
STEP TWELVE
Here’s the fun part, take your rolling pin and lightly smack the butter-dough wrap. We hit it about eight times to make sure the butter is evenly distributed throughout the dough. Now roll the dough into an 18 by 10 rectangle.
STEP THIRTEEN
Now we’re going to make our next fold. Imagine the dough in three sections. You’re going to make the fold so that the end result looks like a thick square, not a long rectangle. Fold the first third of the dough over, following by the second third. Lightly roll the dough to make sure the layers stick together.
STEP FOURTEEN
Pop the dough back in the fridge for an hour and a half.
STEP FIFTEEN
Remove the dough from the fridge and roll it back out into another long rectangle. Do another tri-fold and set that dough back into the fridge for a minimum of six hours.
STEP SIXTEEN
When the six hours are up, take the dough out of the fridge and roll it out into a rectangle that is ten inches long and as wide as you can roll it out. Cut the dough into triangles that have a base of approximately four to five inches, depending on how large you want your vegan croissants. Take the triangles and slightly stretch them out, just so they’re a couple inches longer. Starting from the widest side of the triangle, roll the triangles into crescent shapes.
STEP SEVENTEEN
Transfer the croissants to a parchment lined baking sheet and brush each of them with the rest of the almond milk. Let the dough sit out until the croissants double in size, this should take approximately two hours.
STEP EIGHTEEN
Preheat the oven to 400°F (204°C). Bake the vegan croissants for ten minutes at this temperature. Then drop the oven temperature to 375°F (190°C) and bake for fifteen minutes or until golden brown on top.
HOW TO SERVE VEGAN CROISSANTS
There are multiple ways to serve these buttery vegan croissants. First, and probably most obvious, is to serve your croissant alongside a cup of coffee or tea! Pair them with your favorite jam, I personally like to use raspberry or blueberry.
Another option is to add some herbs and spices to your dough mixture and serve these croissants as a savory side dish to any meal! Talk about an impressive roll to present at any meal. I even made a savory croissant dough and used it to make a vegetable wellington. It was so good!
Make our homemade croissant recipe and follow and tag us on Instagram so we can see your gorgeous creation!
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Vegan Croissants
Ingredients
- 2 ½ tsp active dry yeast
- 1 1/4 cup vanilla almond milk (cannot be unsweetened)
- ¼ cup caster sugar
- 3 cups pastry flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup vegan butter (we prefer Miyokos)
Instructions
- Heat the almond milk in the microwave for twenty seconds.
- Pour one cup of the almond milk into a shallow bowl. Pour the active dry yeast on top of the almond milk and mix for a couple seconds. Now let the almond milk and yeast set for approximately five minutes, or until the yeast begins to foam. The yeast must foam in order for the croissants to turn out. If the yeast does not foam try again.
- Put the milk-yeast mixture into a stand mixer. Pour the rest of the almond milk into the mixing bowl along with the caster sugar and mix briefly to combine.
- In a separate bowl, sift the flour to remove any lumps. Slowly add the flour to the almond milk-yeast mixture in quarter cup increments. The dough is ready when it looks soft and sticky. The amount of flour can vary. The amount of flour we usually end up with is somewhere between 2 ¼ cups and 2 ½ cups. After the dough appears soft and sticky, add the salt and mix to combine.
- Sprinkle a quarter cup of the flour onto a clean surface and prepare a plate that is dusted with about 1 tbsp of flour. Dump the dough onto the floured surface and kneed for approximately two minutes. Then work the dough into a ball. If the ball starts to fall slightly, the dough was made correctly.
- Place the dough on the plate and cut an X into the top of the dough. Sprinkle another tablespoon of flour on top of the dough and place it in the fridge. Let the dough rest in the fridge for at least one hour.
- While the dough is resting, take the butter and put it in your stand mixer. Beat the butter until it is completely smooth. This should only take about a minute or two. Now beat in 2 tbsp of the flour. Mix until uniform in texture.
- Put the butter on the floured surface and shape it into a 4 inch x 4 inch square. Wrap the butter-flour mixture in plastic wrap and place it in the fridge to cool. The butter-flour block should be hard to the touch when you take it out of the fridge.
- Once the dough has been in the fridge for an hour, remove it and put it back on the floured surface. Now, get ready to roll out this dough is some semi-complicated ways.
- You’re going to roll out your dough so that the center has enough room to hold that 4x4 butter square. Roll your dough into a large square, much larger than the butter block.
- Place the butter block in the center of the dough like shown below and fold in each of the petals. It should look like a nice little present.
- Here’s the fun part, take your rolling pin and lightly smack the butter-dough wrap. We hit it about eight times to make sure the butter is evenly distributed throughout the dough. Now roll the dough into an 18 by 10 rectangle.
- Now we’re going to make our next fold. Imagine the dough in three sections. You’re going to make the fold so that the end result looks like a thick square, not a long rectangle. Fold the first third of the dough over, following by the second third. Lightly roll the dough to make sure the layers stick together.
- Pop the dough back in the fridge for an hour and a half.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and roll it back out into another long rectangle. Do another tri-fold and set that dough back into the fridge for a minimum of six hours.
- When the six hours are up, take the dough out of the fridge and roll it out into a rectangle that is ten inches long and as wide as you can roll it out. Cut the dough into triangles that have a base of approximately four to five inches, depending on how large you want your croissants. Take the triangles and slightly stretch them out, just so they’re a couple inches longer. Starting from the widest side of the triangle, roll the triangles into crescent shapes.
- Transfer the croissants to a parchment lined baking sheet and brush each of them with the rest of the almond milk. Let the dough sit out until the croissants double in size, this should take approximately two hours.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (204°C). Bake the croissants for ten minutes at this temperature. Then drop the oven temperature to 375°F (190°C) and bake for fifteen minutes or until golden brown on top.
- See the step by step instruction photos above.
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