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I've always been afraid to make croissants because it's common opinion that making them is complicated… guess what…. it's not true! On the contrary, making them is quite simple and doesn't require much work at all.
In fact, most of the time you simply have to wait for the dough to rise or cool (how cool is that?!). So if you are afraid to venture into the wonderful world of croissants, don't be!
Follow the recipe and in a matter of hours you'll know how to make the best vegan croissants EVER!
Butter Substitute
I always use "stable" margarine to make croissants. It's important NOT to use a spreadable margarine because we don't want our block of "butter" to melt easily (or the whole recipe is going to be a big mess!).
So any traditional butter substitute that doesn't get hard in the cold cannot be used for this recipe.
Time
There are some recipes that take multiple days to prepare croissants. Mine takes a little over 4 hours of which only 1 we will actually have to "actively work", the other 3 hours are rising or resting times for the dough in the fridge.
Ingredients
You only need a handful of ingredients to make this recipe: yeast, flour, sugar, salt and water.
Also, instead of brushing the croissants with egg we will use a vegan oat-cream or soy milk (use whichever you prefer).
Dough
The dough for our croissants is super easy to make! We just have to mix, flour, salt, sugar, yeast and water.
Then we knead the dough until it's smooth and lumps-free. If you prefer you can of course use a kneading machine (I would too if I had one :)).
Beurrage
The Beurrage is nothing more than a block of butter (or in our case margarine) that will allow us to create the puff pastry with which we will make the croissants.
The block is done by cutting the margarine into slices and placing these on a sheet of baking paper. Then we wrap the margarine with the baking paper and flatten the butter forming a 20 x 20 cm square.
The block of butter should never melt while we are making the pastry. This is why it's important that the block is well chilled before we start making the puff pastry.
Laminating the Dough: Part 1
This is the most fun part of this recipe (after eating the croissants of course ;))! Before we start: It's very useful to have a measuring tape at hand so that we can roll out the dough following the measurements given in the recipe.
We start by taking the dough out of the fridge and to form it (using our hands) into a 25 x 25 cm ( 10 x 10 inches) square.
Then we use a rolling pin to roll out the dough into a 45 x 25 cm (18 x 10 inches) rectangle. We place the block of margarine on one side of the rectangle and fold the other side of the dough up and over the margarine.
Now we gently roll out the dough forming a rectangle of 45 x 25 cm (18 x 10 inches). We grab the bottom of the dough and fold it ¾ of the way up the rectangle.
Then we take the top half and fold it the remaining ¼ of the way until both ends meet.
Next we fold the longer part over the short one, making a long rectangle. We wrap the rectangle in baking paper and let it rest for 1 hour in the fridge. Et voilà! The first lamination is already over! One more to go!
Laminating the Dough: Part 2
The second part of the process is much easier than the first. We only need to roll out the dough into a large 60 x 25 cm (24 x 18 inches) rectangle. We grab the bottom of the dough and fold it ⅓ of the way up the rectangle.
Then we take the top half and fold it over so that it covers completely the other one. We should have a square. We wrap it in baking paper and set in the fridge for 1 hour.
Shaping the Croissants
We can finally start shaping our croissants! YAY! We take the dough out of the fridge and with a rolling pin we shape it carefully into a 30 x 50 cm (12 x 20 inches) rectangle. Then cut the dough into 10 triangles.
Starting at the base of each triangle, we begin rolling, making sure the tip of each triangle ends up tucked under the croissant to hold its shape.
Then we transfer the croissants to a baking tray lined with baking paper leaving some space between each croissant (they will double in size!).
Rising
We don't want our croissants to dry while rising so we brush them with soy milk or water, put them in the oven and close it. Now we let our babies rise for 1 hour, until they've doubled in size.
This is How they'll look once they've double in size and are ready to be baked.
Final "No-Egg-Wash"
Instead of the traditional egg wash I used vegan oat-cream to brush the croissants. It looks just like egg-wash once baked and it smells absolutely delicious!
If you don't have any vegan cream just use soy milk or maple syrup (I love using maple syrup as egg-wash, it's super delish and it gives and amazing color!).
Baking Time
When it comes to baking you really need to know your oven. I baked mine at 200 °C (390 °F) for approx. 15 minutes, until they were golden and crispy. You can do the same, just keep an eye on them to be sure they don't burn.
How to store the croissants
The croissants can be stored either in the refrigerator or in the freezer.
- Refrigerator: Put the croissants in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Before serving, moisten with a little water and bake in the oven at 180 °C for 3-4 minutes until crispy.
- Freezer: put the vegan croissants in an airtight container and place in the freezer. Before serving, take the croissants out of the freezer and defrost them in the refrigerator (preferably overnight). Once defrosted, moisten the croissants with a little water and bake in the oven at 180 °C for 3-4 minutes.
More recipes you may like
- Best Ever Vegan Chocolate Croissants
- Italian Custart Tart (Torta della Nonna)
- Super Creamy Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Extra Fudgy Vegan Butter Beans Brownies
If you try this recipe...
If you tried this recipe and you now know how to make the best vegan croissants ;), let me know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #carlocao or #vegaliciously on Instagram. Cheers, friends!
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Thi says
Hi Carlo.
This recipe looks fantastic. It's difficult finding stable vegan margarine where I'm from. There is only the spreadable widely available. Do you have any suggestions on how I can still make these?
Thank you!
Tomasz Michałowski says
I had to spend decades to look for online, only website unfold the fully details, bookmarked and many thanks.
Chloe says
I made these and they came out really well! The only step where I stumbled was when it came to putting the croissants in the oven to prove - after two hours, they had still not even started rising and I feared a day of tending to my pastry had been scuppered!
After some quick and fretful googling, I covered the croissants with lightly oiled clingfilm and set them near a radiator for an hour, which did the trick! The clingfilm is not essential; a clean, damp tea towel would probably work too. The main things to consider are keeping them moist and providing a heat source to activate the yeast.
Anyway, bottom line is - don't panic if they don't rise! There are things you can do - hope this helps.
carlocao says
Hi Chloe, thank you for your comment 🙂 The rising time is different from kitchen to kitchen depending on the temperature you have. So it's totally possible that your croissants needed more time than mine to rise 😀 I'm happy you liked them and that the recipe was a success!
Maria & Sons says
So excited for this recipe and super clear steps! Our croissants (first ones for boys' with dairy, egg and nut allergies) came out well and were fun to make. Next time (there will be a next), I'd bake in a hotter oven so they get crispier. Thank you for the great directions!!
Robert says
Your dough looks so well done!
Alexa Larocque says
What is stable margarine vs spreadable? how do I know the difference
carlocao says
hi Alexa, stable margarine gets rock hard when in the fridge, while spreadable margarine stays spreadable even if cold. I hope this helps 🙂
Nolo says
Really good recipe. Easy to follow and turns out amazing
Marta says
Thanks for sharing the recipe, will try it out!
How many grams of yeast does one package contain? I'm guessing it can differ between countries etc. 🙂
Dani says
Sounds amazing, I've made croissants a few years ago, but I wasn't vegan at the time. Now, being vegan for a little over 5 years, I think I must try your recipe.
I am so exited!!
carlocao says
Hi Dani! Please let me know how they turn out :)!
Gabrielle says
Can’t wait to make this!! Amazing recipe!
carlocao says
Gabrielle, please let me know how they turn out once you make them! I'd love to hear your feedback! Hugs, Carlo