Sugar Free Wholegrain Croissants
Oh yes, I did it. I went for the croissants. And made them sugar free.
The truth is, it wasn’t actually that difficult. Croissants are a far cry from healthy food, but they are often the lowest sugar option after crumpets when you are in a coffee shop that is chock full of sugary cakes and tray-bakes and muffins (yes, even “skinny” or “healthy” ones). In fact, in our house, we have a pastry morning most weeks. When we buy them, we make sure we check labels and get ones that are 3g or less of sugar per croissant, which is less than a teaspoon, and we get ones that have recognisable ingredients beside that (butter, yeast, flour). The white flour and lack of any good nutrients definitely make those pastries a treat, but I actually feel more comfortable giving my kids half a croissant than some of the kids’ cereals you see on supermarket shelves that contain no more nutrients and far far far more sugar.
And the truth is, if you want to up the nutritional value, you can serve them with eggs and spinach, or some free range off-the-bone ham, sliced grilled tomatoes or mushrooms, and good quality cheese (goat’s cheese would be nice) alongside a salad (I know, salad for breakfast?! It’s less scary than it sounds, trust me, you may even enjoy it!).
Despite being comfortable with serving shop-bought low sugar croissants once in a while, I still thought I could do better. Now I’ve made croissants a fair few times before, and they are definitely a labour of love, but you can leave the sugar out completely, make the croissants 100% wholewheat and control all the ingredients that go in, and oh, the taste difference! I mean, really, there simply is no comparison. Shop-bought croissants might be nice, but homemade is just a totally different playing field! And using all wholegrain flour adds a natural sweetness and depth of flavour you just cannot get from shop-bought white ones. Plus, they are very very cheap when you make your own. Which is always a bonus in my opinion!
And people are really really impressed when you serve them homemade croissants. Despite the fact that they really are not as hard as everyone thinks they are, and they freeze really well, so you can make one big batch and it’ll last you a month or more, depending on how often you eat them.
Still, I know that people can be daunted by something like croissants, so I thought I would make it easier for you all and include a video tutorial I found (see below). That way, if you are a visual learner and aren’t too sure about how to follow the recipe without visual cues (folding can be a bit confusing if you haven’t done it before!), then the video can walk you through it.
I hope you enjoy them as much as we do, and that they become a favourite treat breakfast in your house too!
Delicious, healthier, sugar free wholemeal croissants. These pastries are a healthier way to have a sweet treat for breakfast, and the taste is far far superior to shop-bought. Plus, everyone will be super impressed, it'll save you some money and requires surprisingly little actual hands on time.
- 500 g strong wholewheat bread flour
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp xylitol (feel free to leave it out entirely if you want to!)
- 2 tsp instant yeast
- 300 ml cold water
- 250 g cold unsalted butter
- 1 medium egg, to glaze
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Put flour, salt, xylitol and yeast in a large mixing bowl. Slowly pour in the cold water and bring together in a stand mixer or with your hands until it forms a stiff dough. Knead in the mixer or by hand for about 8-10 mins. Shape into a ball, cover with cling film or place in a freeze bag and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
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Place the cold butter between two sheets of baking/greaseproof paper and bash or roll it out flat with a rolling pin. You want it to be evenly rolled to a rectangle shape about 40x20cm (doesn't have to be exact). Still wrapped in the greaseproof paper, chill the butter again to make sure it is still really cold.
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Roll out the chilled dough to make a 60x21cm rectangle. You basically want it to be a third taller than the butter one, and a little bit wider (again, doesn't have to be exact as long as it is roughly in proportion with the butter).
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Place the chilled butter rectangle on top of the bottom 2/3 of the rolled out dough, then fold over the third of the dough without butter on it over the top third of the 'buttered' bit. Gently score along the top of the bit of butter that is still exposed so it can fold over well (or cut it off and put it on top of the folded dough). Fold the bottom bit of dough over so you have folded the whole thing like a business letter. Push lightly on the edges of the dough to seal, then wrap in cling film and chill again for about 1 hour.
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Roll out the chilled dough to a large rectangle shape again (similar in size to the previous time). Fold the same way: top third over, then bottom third over that. Turn 90º. Wrap and chill again for at least another 30 mins-1 hour, then repeat the rolling, folding and turning again. Chill for another 30 mins-1 hour, then roll and fold and turn another time. Wrap up again, and this time chill overnight or for at least 8 hours. By this point it should have risen slightly.
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Now you are ready to shape the croissants: Roll out the dough one more time, then cut in half lengthways. Cut each strip into 6 triangle shapes by cutting into 3 square shapes then cutting diagonally across each square. You should now have 12 triangles of dough. Roll each triangle up from the thick end through to the point, so you have a spiral "croissant" shape. Turn the ends of the croissant inwards so they are almost touching if you want a more traditional shape. Repeat with the rest of the triangles, placing each croissant on a lined baking tray (you may need two), leaving a decent amount of space between each croissant. Cover the shaped croissants on the trays with cling film and leave to rise for another 1-2 hours.
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Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas 6. Beat the egg with a splash of milk or water and brush the croissants with it. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 mins, until the croissants are risen, golden and cooked through. Allow to cool slightly before eating. Best eaten fresh, but you can easily freeze the croissants before baking when you have shaped them - just pop the tray of shaped pastries in the freezer for a couple of hours, then place the frozen croissants in a freezer bag or freezer-safe container. When you are ready for them, just brush with egg and bake from frozen for an extra 5 mins. Yummy served with sugar free jam, low sugar chocolate spread, unsweetened nut butters, or savoury toppings. Or just eat warm on their own dipped in a cup of coffee or hot milk. YUM.
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