Gluten Free Croissant: Everything You Need to Know About These Delectable French Baked Goods

When you walk into a fancy bakery, what do you expect to see? You probably imagine decorative cakes and cupcakes, trays full of cookies and brownies, maybe even delicate pastries like petit fours or macarons. If you’re shopping in the morning or early afternoon, you’ll probably see traditional breakfast pastries like danish and croissants.

Croissants are one of the most recognizable baked goods out there, of course, due to their iconic crescent shape. When you bite into a croissant, however, you’ll immediately notice the flaky texture of the dough and the rich buttery flavor. If you follow a gluten free diet, you may think you’ll never taste an authentic croissant again, but you would be wrong! You need only go as far as the grocery store, the Schär online shop, or grab a few simple ingredients to make your own.

Keep reading to learn the history and tradition behind croissants, the famous Schär gluten free croissant, and to learn how to make your own gluten free croissant dough from scratch in your own kitchen.

How Are Croissants Traditionally Made?

Though many assume croissants are a French pastry, they are actually of Austrian origin. These flaky, buttery pastries belong to a category known as viennoiseries – a type of pastry made from yeast-leavened dough, typically eaten at breakfast or snack time. Aside from the flaky dough, croissants are known for their crescent shape. Crescent-shaped breads have been a staple of Austrian and French patisserie since the Renaissance, but the modern croissant was developed in the early 20th century.

The technique used to create flaky, buttery croissant dough is called laminating. It involves layering the dough with butter, rolling and folding it several times in succession. During the late 1970s, factory-made frozen, unbaked dough was developed which meant baked goods like croissants could be prepared quickly and relatively easily. By 2008, nearly 40% of the croissants sold in French bakeries today are baked from frozen dough.

Traditionally, croissants are baked in a crescent shape, but croissant dough can also be wrapped around various fillings before being baked to create other pastries. Pain au chocolat, for example, consists of croissant dough wrapped around chocolate. Other fillings may include praline, almond paste, or dried fruit. In Spain and France, croissants are typically enjoyed without filling or topping but, in the United States, they are often filled or sliced and used like sandwich bread.

Schär Gluten Free Croissant

Whether you’re looking for a simple breakfast to take on-the-go or you want to mix up your midday sandwich with something unique, Schär has a delicious gluten free croissant you’ve got to try.

Schär’s Gluten Free Croissant is made with gluten-free, non-GMO ingredients including: certified gluten free wheat starch, water, vegetable palm oil, egg, chicory fiber, psyllium seed husks (vegetable fiber), canola oil, dextrose, rice flour, egg whites, skim milk, glucono delta-lactone, baking soda, yeast, xanthan gum, sugar, salt, citric acid, natural butter flavor (may contain tree nuts and soy).

You can enjoy Schär’s Gluten Free Croissant straight out of the package, or you can warm it up to make the most of that flaky crust. Here’s how:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Wrap the gluten free croissant in foil.
3. Bake the croissant until it springs back when you press on it gently – about 10 minutes.
4. Peel back the foil from the top of the gluten free croissant and bake until the top is crisp – about 5 minutes more.
5. Enjoy the croissant warm or slice it and spread with butter or jam.

Making Your Own Pastry for Gluten Free Croissant

The key to a delicious gluten free croissant is that flakey, buttery crust. It may look complicated, but it’s actually fairly simply. The trick is to take your time when making the pastry to ensure you get plenty of layers of butter in your pastry – that’s how you get nice, flaky croissants.

Here’s the recipe you need for perfect pastry:

Dough Ingredients:

• 2 ¼ cups gluten-free pastry flour
• 2 teaspoons instant yeast
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons melted butter, cooled
• ¾ cup milk, room temperature

Butter Packet Ingredients:

• 2 sticks chilled butter
• ¼ cup gluten-free pastry flour

Instructions:

1. Combine the flour, yeast, and sugar in a large bowl and whisk well.
2. Whisk in the salt then create a well in the middle.
3. Add the butter and milk then mix until the dough starts to come together (add a pinch of flour at a time, if needed, to bring the dough together).
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and sprinkle with flour.
5. Roll the dough out into a 9-inch circle then wrap tightly in plastic and chill.
6. Next, prepare the butter packet by sprinkling a sheet of parchment with 2 tablespoons flour.
7. Place the two whole sticks of butter in the middle, side by side, and sprinkle with another 2 tablespoons of flour.
8. Add another sheet of parchment on top then pound with a rolling pin to flatten.
9. Uncover the butter and fold it in half then cover again and pound until you have a 5-inch square.
10. Cover partially with parchment and chill for 5 minutes until firm.

After you’ve made your gluten free croissant pastry, next comes the most important step – turning and rolling the dough. You’ll roll the dough out to incorporate the butter, folding and turning it as you go to create layers that will turn into crispy, flaky pastry in the oven.

Here are the next steps to take with your pastry dough:

1. Take the pastry dough out of the fridge and place it on a floured surface.
2. Place the butter packet in the center and lightly score the dough around it to mark its size.
3. Set the butter aside and lightly dust the edges of the dough with flour.
4. Roll the edges away from the center to create 4 flaps of dough, leaving the center intact.
5. Place the butter packet back in the center and wrap the dough flaps around it.
6. Sprinkle with flour then roll out the dough and butter packet into a rectangle ½-inch thick.
7. Fold the rectangle in thirds over itself, like a business letter.
8. Arrange the dough so the length is running parallel to your body, then roll away from you until you have a rectangle ½-inch thick.
9. Turn the left and right sides of the rectangle in on themselves again then wrap the dough in plastic and chill for at least 4 hours.
10. Once the pastry has chilled repeat the process another 4 or 5 times.
11. Wrap and chill the dough between turns for at least 30 minutes in the fridge or 10 minutes in the freezer to keep the butter from melting.

Once you have your pastry completed, all that’s left is to shape it into gluten free croissants! You’ll want to prepare a rimmed baking sheet by covering it with parchment paper before you start.

Here are the next steps to follow:

1. Roll the dough out into a rectangle about ¾ inch thick.
2. Use a pizza cutter to square the edges then cut into as many 4x6-inch rectangles as possible.
3. Slice each of the rectangles diagonally into two triangles and separate them.
4. Roll each triangle to about 8 inches long, using a little flour to keep it from sticking.
5. Slice a ½-inch notch in the base of each triangle then roll into a coil from base to tip.
6. To get the ideal croissant curve, turn the edges slightly away from each other as you roll.
7. Place the croissants on the prepared baking sheet, seam-side down.
8. Cover the croissants lightly with oiled plastic wrap and place in a warm are to rise.
9. Once the croissants are doubled in size, uncover and brush the tops and sides with egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water).
10. Chill for 10 minutes then bake at 400°F for 15 minutes until firm and golden brown.

Though it may take some time from start to finish, the process to make a delicious gluten free croissant isn’t terribly tough. Once you get the hang of turning and rolling the dough, you’ll have no trouble with the layers. Try this recipe out and let us know your favorite topping for gluten-free croissants! For an equally delicious and easier croissant experience, try the Schär Gluten Free Croissant. Available online or at your local grocery store.