When we lived down in the South East of the country we sometimes took ourselves over to France for a day out. We were not all that far from the ferry back then, and it was an easy jaunt and a pleasant trip over on the Ferry. You could be sitting in Boulogne enjoying a hot drink and a plate of Frites in only a few hours, even faster if you took the car train through the tunnel.
I preferred the ferry over the train for several reasons. For one, you could get out of your car and stretch your legs. For two, you could spend the journey in their comfy lounge enjoying a drink and one of their fresh almond croissants.
Oh boy . . . one of the things that the French do very well, aside from their beautiful breads and macrons . . . is croissants and my favorite of all are the almond ones. They are quite, quite, QUITE delicious to say the least!
It has always been my dream to spend a week in Paris, in the Spring time when everything is bursting out in bloom, and it is neither too hot, nor too cold . . . not too wet, and when I can sit at a sidewalk cafe within the sight of the Eiffel Tower, enjoying a hot drink and a freshly baked almond croissant . . .
Oh yes dreams do come true. I am a great believer in the truth of our dreams, but in the meantime, I make these, which are not quite as fabulous as the fresh ones you can get in France, but let me tell you, they make a pretty darned tasty substitution!!
I have adapted the recipe from one I found online here. She adapted it from a recipe that she found here. AND she adapted the recipe from one she found here by Clothilde Dusoulier on Chocolate & Zucchini.
Aren't we just so very, very blessed to have the wide variety of sources to draw from these days online? I think so at any rate. So much inspiration . . . so little time. There are just not enough hours in the day to do all the things I would love to do. Not enough . . .
I hope you will forgive me for not having the potato recipe which was planned for today. I ended up having to work on a new recipe for the site I write for and so I didn't have enough time to do the Pillsburg Potatoes, but never fear. It is still in the queue for a later date.
In the meantime I give you tasty, flaky delicious croissants . . . brushed with an almond flavoured liqueur syrup . . . it soaks into those flaky layers and adds much additional almond flavor and a hint of sweet . . .
Filled with a rich and lush almond filling . . . oh boy, but I could eat that with a spoon . . . buttery and almondy and scrum, Scrum, SCRUMMY!
Brushed with yet more of that almond syrup and scattered with flaked almonds before baking . . .
until the almond filling is all gooey and golden . . .
And the outsides sweet and golden crisp . . . .
Ready to dust with some icing sugar and then sit down and enjoy with a nice hot cuppa. All is right with the world . . . all is right . . .
Yield: 8
Author: Marie Rayner
Easy Almond Croissants
You can't get much easier or tastier than this!ingredients:
You Will Need:- 8 day old medium sized baked croissants
- a handful of flaked almonds
- icing sugar to dust
- 120ml water (1/2 cup)
- 1 TBS sugar
- 1 1/2 TBS Disaronno liqueuer (almond flavoured)
- 45g granulated sugar (1/4 cup)
- 50g ground almonds (1/2 cup)
- pinch salt
- 60g diced butter (1/4 cup)
- few drops almond essence
- 1 large free range egg, beaten
instructions:
How to cook Easy Almond Croissants
- First make the syrup. Put all of the ingredients into a small saucpan and bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Boil for one minute. Set aside to cool.
- To make the filling whisk together the almonds and the sugar. Using a spatula mash in the butter until well combined. Add the almond essence to the egg and stir into the almond mixture to combine thoroughly.
- Line a baking sheet with baking parchment. Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/gas mark 4.
- Take your croissants and using a serrated knife cut them in half horizontally, leaving a small hinge on the one side so that they are not completely separated. Brush them thoroughly on both cut sides inside and all over the outside. They should be fairly saturated. Spoon a portion of the almond filling onto the bottom cut sides, and fold the tops back over. Place onto the baking sheet, leaving space in between. Brush with any remaining syrup and sprinkle almonds on top.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 12 to 15 minutes until the filling has set and the croissants and almonds are golden. Remove from the oven. Let cool slightly, dust generously with icing sugar and serve, slightly warm or at room temperature. Enjoy!
It is also my dream one day to bake croissants from scratch . . . hopefully while I still have the energy to cope with laminating doughs and all of the rolling and buttering and faffing about. In the meantime I still have Paris . . . and I still have these . . .
Up Tomorrow: Pan Seared Mahi Mahi with a Honey & Lime Coleslaw
