Almond Croissant Bars

A combination of fudge brown butter blondies with chewy almond frangipane cream, topped with buttery croissants and flaked almonds. Finished with a dusting of icing sugar.

Almond croissants are all the rage lately. I made an almond croissant pudding recipe as well but these almond croissant bars are a cross between cookie bars, blondies and almond croissants with a generous amount of almond cream.

This recipe is such a treat I will not lie, it is not the healthiest recipe to make but I promise you every single bite is worth it. Having said this, there are layers to this recipe to get it correct, we bake them all at once but it bars need to cool down before dusting with powdered sugar and slicing or else they will fall apart. The almond cream needs too firm up and that happens as it cools down.

I must admit when I was thinking about this recipe I started with the idea of almond croissant short bread cookies bars and it developed to this recipe. The shortbread didn’t seem like it was going to add much texturally to the recipe. Before we get into the recipe let us understand a couple of elements from it.

What is a croissant and what is it made of?

A croissant is French puff pastry that is a laminated dough with butter which bakes into a flakey and light pastry. Croissant means crescent as it is shaped into a crescent before proofing and baking. The dough is a yeast leavened product that makes it incredibly soft and tender on the inside and crusty on the outside. Typically all croissants ingredients are flour, yeast, salt, sugar, milk, butter and eggs. However this can vary depending on the bakery making it.

What are almond croissant made of?

An almond croissant consists of stale croissants and almond cream also known as almond frangipani. The croissants are slit in half, brushed with sugar syrup/simple syrup and stuffed with this almond cream, it is baked with flaked almonds until golden and crispy. Commonly it is served with a dusting of icing sugar.

What is almond cream?

Almond cream is a classic French staple pastry cream that is made with almond flour, eggs, butter, sugar, almond extract, vanilla and rum (optional). Some recipes call for a small amount of flour and pinch of salt. It is creamy, sweet and very nutty, perfect to bake into tarts, puddings and has multiple uses in patisserie and baked goods. Check out my Galette De Rois or the Almond croissant pudding recipe for inspiration.

Why are almond croissants so good?

Almond croissants are delicious because the croissants are soaked in a simple syrup (making sure it is soft and gooey once baked), filled with a rich almond cream that is buttery, nutty and very tasty on its own let alone stuffed into a croissant. More cream is added on top and baked with flaked almonds that give it a superb crunch. They are flakey, sweet, crunchy, soft, gooey and indulgent in every bite. Hence they are YUMMY!

What is the French word of almond croissant?

Almond croissants in French are also known as “Croissants Aux Amandes” in almost every French bakery.

Why are almond croissants viral/trending?

Almond croissants are found in all if not most French bakeries/boulangires. They look fancy and are so delicious, hence when a video on how to make them at home popped up on tiktok, everyone jumped on board. These almonds croissants not only were simple to make, needed no fancy equipment or ingredients yet produced bakery style almond croissants that were perfect in look and taste. Creators on tiktok went one step further and made almond croissant inspired pastries, baked goods and sweet treats.

Are almond croissants healthy?

I am not someone to say a certain food is healthy or unhealthy. In saying this, almond croissants are not healthy in terms of the fact that it is not filled with good fats etc. they are high in calories too but they are definitely worth enjoying.

What is the history of almond croissants?

In 1813 August Zang was credited to be the first person to create a croissant however it was only in 1915 that Sylvain Claudius Goy added yeast into a brioche dough and created a laminated dough recipe that was then popularized. However the crescent shape pastry was inspired from the Austrian kipfel which is a butter cookie. There are debates about this inspiration till today about the pastry and cookie.

What are almond croissant bars?

Almond croissant bars are a layer of blondie batter at the bottom, layered with almond cream aka almond frangipane, topped with croissants that are cut into cubes and flaked almonds. Baked until golden and the blondie is just set. We let them cool down completely before dusting with a generous amount of powdered sugar aka icing sugar before slicing and serving.

What is almond cream? How to make easy almond croissant filling? What is frangiapane filling made of?

Almond cream is a classic French staple pastry cream that is made with almond flour, eggs, butter, sugar, almond extract, vanilla and rum (optional). Some recipes call is frangipane and this depends on the place that is making it – however the terms are used interchangeably as they are made of the same ingredients and used for the same purposes. Some recipes of frangipane also call for for a small amount of flour and pinch of salt. It is creamy, sweet and very nutty, perfect to bake into tarts, puddings and has multiple uses in patisserie and baked goods. Check out my Galette De Rois recipe for inspiration.

Why is called frangiapane?

The word frangipane comes from the last name of the Italian noble Marquis Muzio Frangipani or Cesare Frangipani who invented an almond scented perfume while living in Paris.his family were the perfumers for King Louis XIII. However it is a French term and is used to name recipes with an almond flavour.

Is frangiapane always almond?

The term frangipane comes from almond scented perfume hence it is always associated with almond based creams/pastes etc. However today the term is used to suggest nut based creams in a recipe.

Is frangiapane same as marzipan?

Frangiapne is almond cream and is spreadable – it used in pies, tarts, cakes and desserts. Marzipan is a thick paste/dough that is used mainly for decorative purposes or covering fruit/wedding cakes.

What ingredients do you need to make almond croissant bars?

Blondie layer –

I have made this blondie recipe with brown butter, brown sugar, white sugar, egg, vanilla, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Almond cream layer –

We need brown butter, white sugar, egg, almond flour, corn flour almond extract, vanilla extract and salt.

Topping –

We need croissants cut into cubes, flakes almonds and wine sugar. I have topped The bars with powdered sugar and flakey sea salt.

What equipment do you need to make almond croissant bars?

We need a mixing bowl with a whisk, rubber spatula, a knife and chopping board to cut the croissants. I have baked the bars in an 8×8 inch baking tin that is lined with baking paper. Cut with a sharp knife.

Serving and storing these almond croissant bars?

I love serving these bars with a dusting of icing sugar just like how they serve almond croissants. You don’t need to do it but hit really does feel like you are eating an almond croissant. Serve it with black coffee or tea but honestly it is delicious on its own as well. The leftovers can be stored in an air tight container at room temperature for 3 days, I would suggest storing them in the fridge if you are storing them longer – they keep in the fridge for up to 8 days. I wouldn’t recommend storing them in the freezer as the croissants will get soggy and not have that crispy texture.

Looking for more almond recipes?

Now that we have covered how to make this Almond Croissant Bars, you can have a look at the video on my socials but let’s get to it. Don’t forget to follow along for more baking recipe inspiration.

If you try this recipe out, don’t forget to share it with me on instagram so I can see how it turned out. I’d love nothing more than to chat with you on your cooking/baking.