Updated in 2021! This breakfast pastry is a bit tricky and time consuming to make, but entirely worth the effort if you’re looking for the blistery, bubbly croissants served everywhere in French and French-styled bakeries. Filled with just enough really good semisweet chocolate, these make fantastic coffee break snacks.

1/4 cup water, plus more as needed

1/2 cup milk or df alternative

1 large egg or 1/4c aquafaba (texture will be different for aquafaba)

1 2/3 cups (225g) Better Batter Gluten Free Artisan Blend Flour

2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

8 ounces butter (cold, cut into 1″ pieces) or df margarine

8 oz chocolate, chopped finely

Instructions
Whisk together 1/4c water, milk, and egg or egg sub, set aside.

Place dry ingredients in food processor with metal blade and pulse just to combine.

Add butter and pulse briefly, there should still be a lot of gravel-sized pieces of butter.

Pour flour mixture into a mixing bowl, add liquid ingredients and mix gently, just enough to barely combine. Cover and place in refrigerator for several hours.

Remove from fridge and check texture – dough should be the texture of lumpy bread dough, slightly sticky, and hold together easily. If it is too dry/crumbly, add water 1/4 c at a time until mixture comes together. Stir water in quickly and lightly press, but DO NOT KNEAD. You need lumps of butter in the dough for it to work properly.

Turn dough out onto very lightly floured surface, flour the top, and roll into a 20-inch square. Fold dough in thirds, like a letter. (This is called a “turn” and is what builds all those layers.)

Rotate dough 90 degrees and roll out into a 20-inch square again.

Repeat folding and rolling three times, refrigerating between every turn or two to keep dough cold.

Cut in half, fold each piece into thirds, then thirds again, wrap well and refrigerate

When you are ready to make rolls, preheat oven to 350F.

Roll dough into 14 inch square, cut into eight triangles. Place an ounce of chocolate on the widest part ofthe triangle and roll, starting at the wide end, then seal with a drop of water. Let rise until doubled in size. (This takes from 30-90 minutes depending on temperature of the room and dough.)

Optional: brush on an egg wash (one egg yolk and a few spoons of water whisked) for a shinier, crisper crust. If doing an egg free version, swap for df milk and sprinkle with a little granulated sugar for presentation.

Bake for 15-18 minutes, until golden brown.