Puff pastry chocolate croissants are flaky, chocolaty, and delicious. These easy-to-make pastries utilize pre-made puff pastry and semi-sweet baking chocolate. The recipe requires only 3 main ingredients and minutes to prepare. Chocolate croissants are now possible any day of the week!
Thanks to store-bought puff pastry, homemade chocolate croissants, or pain au chocolat, have never been easier. These easy chocolate croissants use few ingredients and come together quickly. The croissants come out golden brown, flaky, and stuffed with gooey, melted chocolate.
Does puff pastry work for croissants? Croissants are typically made from a yeast-leavened laminated dough. Puff pastry, too, is a laminated dough with alternating layers of butter and dough. Lamination gives the pastry its delicate, flaky layers like a classic croissant. Utilizing pre-made puff pastry makes this recipe a breeze. Puff pastry is easy to work with and is generally forgiving. See my puff pastry tips below.
Except for puff pastry cinnamon rolls, these quick chocolate croissants are the best thing to happen to store-bought puff pastry. Flaky, buttery layers of pastry surround a center of sweet melted chocolate. Make a batch of these easy chocolate pastries any day of the week. Enjoy one for breakfast, weekend brunch, or alongside coffee.
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Chocolate Croissants with Puff Pastry
This easy chocolate croissant recipe uses puff pastry instead of traditional croissant dough. The croissants come together with minimal effort and only three main ingredients: puff pastry, semi-sweet chocolate, and an egg (for egg wash).
- Shortcut Chocolate Croissants - There is no need to make a leavened, laminated dough. Simply pull out one sheet of {thawed} puff pastry, portion it, and assemble the croissants. It is that easy!
- Flaky Pastry - Like croissant dough, puff pastry has beautiful flaky layers that melt in your mouth.
- Chocolate Filling - Each croissant is jam-packed with pieces of semi-sweet chocolate. The dark chocolate melts in the oven as the croissants bake, creating an ooey-gooey center.
- Sweet Treat - Enjoy delectable, sweet chocolate puff pastries with coffee or tea.
Ingredients
- Puff Pastry - Use store-bought for convenience or homemade.
- Semi-Sweet Chocolate (roughly chopped) - This recipe uses chopped chocolate to replicate the chocolate batons in classic pain au chocolat.
- Egg (room temperature) - For the egg wash.
See the recipe card for the ingredient quantities.
How to Make Chocolate Croissants with Puff Pastry
STEP 1 (PREPARE) - Preheat the oven to 400 F and line a baking tray with parchment paper. Cut each square of the semi-sweet chocolate baking bar in half. Then, roughly cut each half of the chocolate into pieces (these will be your portions for each croissant).
STEP 2 (EGG WASH) - Whisk the room-temperature egg and a tablespoon of water to make the egg wash.
STEP 3 (ROLL AND PORTION) - Roll out the puff pastry sheet to a 10x12-inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Cut the rolled-out sheet of puff pastry into eight 3x5-inch rectangles using a sharp knife or a bench scraper.
STEP 4 (ASSEMBLE) - Place the portioned chocolate pieces a little from the edge of each puff pastry rectangle. Brush a little egg wash onto the opposite end of the puff pastry. Gently roll the puff pastry, starting at the side with the pieces of chocolate, securing each roll closed with the egg-washed end.
STEP 5 (EGG WASH AND BAKE) - Transfer the unbaked chocolate croissants to the prepared lined baking sheet, evenly spacing them out. Brush the top of each puff pastry croissant with egg wash. Bake the croissants for about 20 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through. Refrain from opening the oven until the last few minutes of baking.
**Pro Tip - Do not skip the egg wash. The egg wash helps the croissants brown.
Substitutions
Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar - Chocolate Batons, Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Suggested Equipment
- French Rolling Pin - Thanks to its simple design, a French rolling pin makes it easy to roll out dough evenly.
- Sharp Knife or Bench Scraper - If working directly on the counter, I suggest using a bench scraper to portion the pastry dough.
- Pastry Brush
- Baking Tray
Storage
Croissants made from puff pastry are best served immediately after baking. Store leftover croissants in an airtight container or plastic wrap for 1-2 days at room temperature.
Chocolate croissants are the best when slightly warmed. To reheat a chocolate croissant, preheat the oven to 325 F. Place the croissant(s) on an oven-safe tray or dish and bake for 5-7 minutes or until warm.
Other Puff Pastry Recipes
- Mini Apple Pies (Puff Pastry)
- Puff Pastry Cinnamon Rolls
- Everything Bagel Cream Cheese Turnovers
- Tomato Ricotta Tart with Arugula
- Blueberry Turnovers with Puff Pastry
Expert Tips
- Use room-temperature puff pastry for rolling and assembly.
- Use quality ingredients. Recipes with few ingredients mean quality matters more than ever. Find store-bought puff pastry that uses real butter and use good-quality chocolate.
- Lightly flour your work surface before rolling out the puff pastry sheet to prevent sticking.
- Work quickly and carefully with puff pastry. Like pie crust, puff pastry is fragile and best to work with while still firm. If the puff pastry becomes too warm or difficult to deal with, place it back in the refrigerator to chill.
- When portioning, cut the puff pastry straight down. Do not glide the knife or bench scraper; this results in breakage.
- Bake the croissants in a hot oven so the layers can rise.
- Resist opening the oven door until you are near the end of baking; otherwise, the pastry may collapse.
Frequently Asked Questions
You baked the puff pastry while it was too warm, which caused the butter to leak out—this leaves you with soggy, dry, and unlaminated pastry.
The pastry will be golden brown and crispy all over, and it will have puffed and risen.
You can find puff pastry at most grocery stores in the freezer aisle. My favorite is found at Trader Joe's—it uses real butter.
If you make the recipe, don’t forget to rate the recipe, and let me know what you think in the comments below! Take pictures, tag #sugarylogic, and share them with me on Instagram or Facebook.
📖 Recipe
Puff Pastry Chocolate Croissants
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 sheet puff pastry
- 2 oz semi-sweet chocolate bar
- 1 large egg plus 1 tablespoon of water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400° F and line a baking tray with parchment paper. Cut each square of the semi-sweet chocolate baking bar in half. Then, roughly cut each half of the chocolate into pieces (these will be your portions for each croissant).
- Whisk the room-temperature egg and a tablespoon of water to make the egg wash.
- Roll out the puff pastry sheet to a 10x12-inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Cut the rolled-out sheet of puff pastry into eight 3x5-inch rectangles using a sharp knife or a bench scraper.
- Place the portioned chocolate pieces a little from the edge of each puff pastry rectangle. Brush a little egg wash onto the opposite end of the puff pastry. Gently roll the puff pastry, starting at the side with the pieces of chocolate, securing each roll closed with the egg-washed end.
- Transfer the unbaked chocolate croissants to the prepared lined baking sheet, evenly spacing them out. Brush the top of each puff pastry croissant with egg wash. Bake the croissants for 18-20 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through. Refrain from opening the oven until the last few minutes of baking.
- Dust with powdered sugar, if desired, and serve immediately while still warm.
Nutrition
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