Next Post
Easy Cheesy Soft Pretzel Bites.
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
These easy Gruyère Croissants are just what every dinner table needs. We’re skipping the 3-day process and making croissants start to finish in under 2 hours with zero stress. By skipping multiple folds and chill times and using plenty of butter, we’re able to create the perfect light, buttery, super soft in the middle, and extra flaky outside, croissant. These are YUMMY. Perfect for the holidays when served warm with sweet, salted cranberry honey butter.
Every holiday table, Thanksgiving or Christmas, needs a roll. Most years, and especially for Thanksgiving, I make my honey butter parker house rolls. Everyone loves them and they’re easy.
But this year I wanted a croissant – but not the work of making croissants, so I cheated. And while technically these aren’t classic croissants, you can see from all the layers that they’re going to be GOOD.
So call them cheater’s croissants or whatever you like, but they’re now my favorite.
If you’ve ever ventured to make croissants, most recipes are a 3-day process. Way too much work if you as me. I just can’t do that.
Instead of multiple folds, chill times, and rise times, we’re basically skipping all that by using super thin slices of butter, layered throughout the dough.
It’s simple. But before you get confused, let’s get into the details.
The details
Start with the dough. Simply mix flour with instant yeast and a pinch of salt. I use instant yeast to keep the rolls really quick and easy so we don’t need to worry about rise times.
That said, you can easily use regular yeast too. I gave directions within the notes. But I actually think the instant yeast works wonderfully for this particular recipe.
Next, add warm milk, a touch of honey, and salted butter. Then lots of grated Gruyère cheese. Mix until smooth, and let the dough rest for 10 to 15 minutes or even a few hours. The dough will not get super puffy, but that’s OK since we’re using instant yeast. We get to skip an entire hour-long rise time, which is helpful for holiday meals and busy nights!
Shaping the croissants are fun. First, roll the dough out into a rectangle, then layer the top of the dough with thin slices of cold butter.
THIN COLD SLICES OF BUTTER.
All capitals are needed because the cold butter is how we will create layers of flaky deliciousness throughout the dough. The butter is folded, then rolled into the dough. Try to keep the butter as cold as possible. I like to freeze my sticks for 15 minutes, then slice and use.
Fold the dough once, roll it out, then roll it out once more. Rolling the dough twice helps to really distribute the butter into the dough.
Now roll the dough out once more into a super long rectangle, then cut into long, thin triangles. Top each triangle with more Gruyère cheese and roll it right on up and into a croissant shape.
This ends up actually being a pretty fun process if you enjoy baking. And if you don’t enjoy baking, at least it’s not stressful. Nothing here needs to be done perfectly!
Now that the croissants have been formed, I stash them in the freezer to chill the butter before baking. Just 15-20 minutes is all you need!
Brush the croissants with an egg just before baking, then bake away! I shot as many photos as possible to help you see the process. I created a video too.
The cranberry butter
While the croissants bake, I mix up a cranberry butter using salted butter, dried cranberries, and honey. It’s so delicious slathered over each savory, cheesy croissant.
Especially when topped with a sprinkle of flaky sea salt.
What I love most about these croissants is that you really can’t mess them up. The dough and process are so easy and very forgiving. They’re SO GOOD every time, because, how can anything layered with butter and Gruyère be bad? It just can’t.
Make these for Thanksgiving. They’re perfect for soaking up all that gravy and then eating for breakfast the next morning. There’s nothing not to love.
You can also make these ahead of time, then bake just before serving. Or, if you need to be conscious of oven space, pre-bake these a day ahead of time, then just warm them up before serving, no oven needed.
Again, flaky on the outside, soft, buttery, perfectly sweet, and cheesy inside with so many delicious, buttery layers.
What every dinner roll should aspire to!
Looking for other holiday bread recipes? Try these.
Salted Honey Butter Parker House Rolls
Perfect Popovers with Cranberry Butter
Pull-Apart Garlic Butter Bread Wreath
Salted Rosemary Popovers with Honey Butter
Parmesan Popovers with Crispy Sage Garlic Butter
Lastly, if you make these Easy Gruyère Croissants be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Easy Gruyère Croissants
Servings: 14 croissants
Calories Per Serving: 428 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 3 1/2– 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 packet) Rapid Rise yeast
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups Gruyère cheese, grated
- 1 cup warm whole milk
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/2 sticks (3/4) cup cold salted butter, sliced into thin pieces
- 1 egg + 1 egg yolk, beaten together, for brushing
Cranberry Honey Butter
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
- 1 tablespoon honey
Instructions
- 1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, yeast, and salt. Add 1 cup of cheese. Mix with a fork to combine.2. Pour in the warm milk, honey, 1 egg, and butter. Using the dough hook, mix until the flour is incorporated, 4-5 minutes. If the dough seems sticky, add the remaining 1/4 -1/2 cup of flour. Cover the bowl and let sit at room temperature for 15 minutes or up to a few hours at room temperature.3. Roll the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, creating a large rectangle that’s about 12×18 inches. Layer the thin slices of cold butter down the middle 1/3 of the dough, creating a rectangle of butter (see above photo).4. Fold 1/3 of the dough over the butter, then fold the other 1/3 over top of the first layer so you have 3 dough layers (like an envelope). Roll the dough out again into a large rectangle, fold into thirds. 5. Next, roll the dough out in a large, long 25×9 inch rectangle (it does not need to be exact/perfect). Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife cut the dough into 14-16 long triangles, about 3 inches wide. Sprinkle each triangle with the remaining cheese. Roll the croissants up. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet, 2-3 inches apart. Cover and freeze 15-20 minutes. Alternatively, you can let the rolls sit in the fridge overnight. 6. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Brush with the rolls with the beaten egg. Bake the croissants for 16-20 minutes, until deeply golden. Serve the croissant warm, with cranberry butter and sea salt7. To make the cranberry butter. Combine the butter, cranberries, honey, and a pinch of salt together in a small bowl.
Notes
To Make Ahead: prepare the rolls through step 5. Do not let the rolls rise at room temp. Cover the rolls and place in the fridge (up to overnight). When ready to bake, remove the rolls from the fridge 30 minutes prior to baking, then bake as directed.
To Prepare and Freeze: assemble the rolls through step 5, then cover the pan and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw the rolls overnight in the fridge or on the counter for a few hours. Once thawed, bake as directed.
To Bake and Freeze: bake the rolls as directed and let cool completely. Cover well and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw and warm before serving.
To Use Active Dry Yeast: Mix 1 packet (2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast with the warm milk and honey. Let sit 5-10 minutes, until bubbly and foamy on top. Add the flour and follow the directions as listed for the remainder of the recipe.
These are ABSOLUTELY delicious!! The dough is so easy to work with. I really did not expect them to turn out as well as they did. And the cranberry butter is a must. They were crunchy on the outside and oh so moist and cheesy when you bite into them. The only thing I would do differently is bake them on the top oven rack. Mine were on the middle rack and the bottoms got a little burnt but we’re STILL delicious!
Hey Patty,
Awesome!! 🍂 I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for trying it out! xx
Just popped these into the oven, though I’m not sure why I’m even baking them as there’s something very wrong with my dough. Super dry (only used 3 1/2 cups flour) and not able to roll out beyond about 18 inches. I used bread flour by mistake…maybe that’s why? I’m super sad because the recipe looks amazing ☹️
Hi Julie,
So sorry to hear this! The bread flour may have been the culprit! Let me know how they turn out:) xx
I wanted to use the metric version but he flour measurement of 937g seemed like way too much compared to 4C of flour. When I weighed 4C of flour it was less than half of the 937g. I know measuring & weighing are 2 different amounts, but not double the amount!
I also dropped the temp to 350 & cooked for 25 minutes as my first bach at 400 degrees was still a bit raw inside.
Hey Margaret,
Thanks so much for sharing this feedback and what worked well for you! I am so glad these turned out tasty! xT
Many of your recipes you let the dough rise in the mixing bowl. My mixing bowl is metal. Is that a problem or should I transfer to a glass bowl to let rise?
Hey Deb,
Either one is just fine:) I hope this recipe turns out well for you, please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
I don’t use IG, but I went to IG and tried finding it… no luck. Reading the comments below, it looks like a crucial step may have been omitted about letting the dough rise. Can you please clarify and also give instructions for us “older” folks who don’t use IG, how to find the video? I can’t wait to make these rolls. Thanks.
Hi Fran,
The video is not currently available, we are hoping to upload the video soon. All of the steps are correct, you can follow the recipe as written:) xx
These rolls were actually pretty easy to put together- I’m always afraid of yeast and dough so I was pretty proud of myself. However, I baked them for at least 30 minutes, they got very golden on the outside but the inside was still raw. Are you supposed to let the crossaints get back to room temp after freezing them? I think the recipe might be missing something here.
Hey Andrea,
Awesome!! 🍂 I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for trying it out! You are only freezing for 15 minutes so they really shouldn’t be totally solid. Was there anything else you may have adjusted? xx
I’m getting ready to make and freeze the unbaked rolls for Thanksgiving. I’m wondering why you say in the notes, “To Make Ahead: prepare the rolls through step 5. Do not let the rolls rise at room temp,” when you never have instructions to let the rolls rise at room temperature. I want to make sure this instruction wasn’t accidentally left out of the recipe. Thanks!
Hey Margo,
You can follow the recipe as written, all of the steps are correct:) I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
These are delicious! I messed up the recipe a little and they are very forgiving and tasted better than expected. I made a half batch and left out the cranberries. Highly recommend!!
Hey Connie,
Happy Sunday!! I truly appreciate you giving this a try and sharing your feedback, so glad it was enjoyed:) xx
I’ve culled all your videos on IG and can’t find this one. For those of us that are nervous about yeast, a video is really necessary (as obvious by all the requests for the video in the comments). Can you please either post a link to the video or post here, as I just cannot find it on IG and would really love to make this recipe for thanksgiving. Thank you!
Hi Deb,
Sorry, it takes some time for us to convert the recipe into a video to share on the blog. Not all of my recipes have videos:) If you follow the instructions as written you should not have any issues. Please let me know if I can help in any other way! xx
These look amazing! Croissants are my weakness.
Just curious do you not rise or proof these at any point before baking or did I miss something?
Hi Elisa,
You are going to let the dough rise in step 2:) Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
Hi! I was trying to find the video on Instagram – checked stories and entire feed and cannot find it – any suggestions?? I’m excited to try but feel like I need a video tutorial first:)
Hi Lisa,
Hoping to add the video here soon:) IG stories only last for 24 hours. I hope you love the recipe! xx
Tried these today as a test-run for Thanksgiving. Delicious! Loved them!
Hey Julie,
Awesome! Love to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks so much for making it! Have a great weekend:)
These were amazing! I don’t think I put enough egg wash on them as they weren’t as browned but they still tasted great. Will be doing this recipe again!
Hey Nelly,
Happy Friday!!🌻 I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for trying it and sharing your review:) xT
I don’t use IG and would also benefit from watching the video before making the recipe. Would it be possible to share the video here?
Yes, working on adding that soon:)
Hi Tieghan! This recipe looks amazing! As all your recipes! I feel like an idiot asking, but what is IG stories and how do I find the video? I think I need your tutoring for this recipe! Suz
Hi Suz,
Thanks so much!! I share a lot of videos on Instagram:) So you can find things over there and then I post them here on the blog as soon as I can! I hope you love the recipe! xx
Got it! Should have used my head! Of course, IG is Instagram! I will go check that! Thanks Tieghan! I will definitely let you know my results! My mouth is watering! 😊