Croissant Bread Recipe

Delicious, flaky layers of butter and pastry in loaf form. If you love croissants, you'll love croissant bread!

You might also like my lemon raspberry turnovers, homemade croissants, or old fashioned cherry turnovers!

I'm not sure that I've ever been more proud of a loaf of bread. It took a couple of tries to get it right, but my kids agreed that my croissant bread is the real deal. The crackle that it makes when you remove it from the pan, from the flaky outer layer, is perfection!

Why I Like This Recipe

Quicker than making croissants. What I love about croissant bread is that it doesn’t take all day to make, but yields a loaf with the same great taste. If you’ve made croissants, you know what I’m talking about. It’s a 12-hour process to make the puff pastry, and you're moving the croissant dough in and out of the refrigerator for much of the day. You'll need about 3 hours to make a loaf of croissant bread, which isn't that much longer than making a loaf of my Amish white bread.
Flaky with layers. Golden brown, buttery, and full of yummy flaky layers—everything you’d expect from a croissant.
Same ingredients as croissants. I used the SAME recipe that we use for our homemade croissants and altered it to create a loaf instead! It uses half the butter, and because you don’t chill it all day, it will have fewer layers than a traditional croissant, but the flavor is still there. Trust me.

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Why I Like This Recipe
Tips and Tricks
Ingredients
How To Make Croissant Bread
Croissant Bread FAQs
More Bread Recipes To Make
Croissant Bread Recipe

Tips and Tricks

Dough whisk. You can mix your dough by hand or using a mixer with a dough hook attachment. Both ways work. I'm a fan of mixing by hand with my Danish dough whisk.
Rise in a cool location. Normally, I'd recommend letting the dough rise in a warm location after shaping it into a loaf so that it rises more quickly. DO NOT do that with croissant bread. We don't want the buttery layers getting too warm before baking. Let the loaf pans sit out on the counter in a cool area to do their last rise.
Storage. Wrap the croissant bread in plastic or store it in an airtight container to keep it fresh. Croissant bread will stay soft and fresh for 3-5 days.

Ingredients

Bowls of flour, salt, sugar, bottle of milk, egg, water, stick of butter and scoop of yeast.

Water: A small amount of water is used to proof the yeast.
Yeast: Instant or dry active yeast. I typically proof my yeast no matter what kind I use.
Flour: You can use all-purpose flour or bread flour.
Sugar: adds sweetness to the bread.
Salt: A small amount of salt, along with salted butter, gives the bread the best flavor.
Milk: You can use water if you need to, but milk adds richness to the bread, and I highly recommend using it.
Butter: Softened butter is used create the flaky layers, and melted butter is added to the actual bread dough.
Egg wash: An egg, with a small amount of butter, is brushed onto the bread before baking to create a golden crust.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

How To Make Croissant Bread

Glass measuring bowl of water and yeast.

Step 1: Dissolve yeast in warm water. Let sit 5 minutes.

Hand stirring bread dough in large metal bowl.

Step 2: Combine sugar, salt, and 1 cup of flour in a large mixing bowl. Stir.

Add milk, melted butter, and water/yeast mixture. Stir. Add remaining flour and stir until sticky dough forms.

Step 3: Dump the dough out onto a floured work surface. Sprinkle with a few tablespoons of flour and knead the dough 2-3 minutes until a soft dough forms.

Large mixing bowl with unproofed bread dough.

Step 4: Place dough into an oiled bowl, cover and let rest 40 minutes.

Step 5: Roll the dough into a 9-inch x 15-inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface using a rolling pin.

Cut a stick of butter into 12 slices (butter should be slightly soft). Place half of the slices in the center of the dough. Flatten butter, slightly, using a butter knife.

Step 6: Fold the bottom of the dough over the butter.

Step 7: Place the remaining butter slices on top of the folded dough. Flatten the butter slightly with a butter knife.

Step 8: Fold the top section of dough over to cover the second layer of butter.

Step 9: Turn the dough so that the fold is on the side. Roll out to a 9"x15" rectangle.

Step 10: Fold the dough into thirds, like a letter.

Step 11: Rotate the dough so that the fold is on the side again. Repeat the step above: roll the dough out, then fold it into thirds, like a letter.

Step 12: Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour.

Step 13: Roll the dough into a 9" x 15" rectangle. Fold into thirds, like a letter.

Step 14: Rotate the dough so that the fold is on the side. Roll out again and fold into thirds.

Step 15: Rotate once more so that the fold is on the side. Roll the dough into a 9"x15" rectangle, then ROLL the dough up tightly (like you would if you were making cinnamon rolls).

Step 16: Pinch the seam to seal (it may not stay, but do the best you can) and place the loaf (seam-side down) into a greased 9"x5" bread loaf pan.

croissant bread dough in loaf pan covered in plastic wrap

Step 17: Loosely cover and let rise 40-60 minutes. DO NOT let rise in a warm location like you normally would when making bread. We don't want the butter in the dough to melt. Room temperature is fine. I place mine inside the microwave to keep it free from drafts. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

unbaked loaf being brushed with an egg wash

Step 18: Brush loaf with an egg wash (1 egg + 1 Tbsp. water) and bake for 20 minutes. Cover the loaf loosely with foil (tent it) and cook an additional 15 minutes.

Bread is easier to slice when warm (not hot), but I won't judge if you dive right in. Croissant bread would make delicious French toast or sandwiches, but we like it on its own. One loaf makes 8-12 slices of bread.

Croissant Bread FAQs

Is it quicker to make croissant bread instead of croissants?

What I love about croissant bread is that it doesn’t take all day to make, but yields a loaf with the same great taste. If you’ve made croissants, you know what I’m talking about. It’s a 12-hour process to make the puff pastry, and you're moving the croissant dough in and out of the refrigerator for much of the day. You'll need about 3 hours to make a loaf of croissant bread, which isn't that much longer than making a loaf of my Amish white bread.

What kind of butter is best for making croissant bread?

Use salted butter for the best flavor. Softened butter is used create the flaky layers, and melted butter is added to the actual bread dough.

Is croissant bread made with the same ingredients as croissants?

I used the SAME recipe that we use for our homemade croissants and altered it to create a loaf instead! It uses half the butter, and because you don’t chill it all day, it will have fewer layers than a traditional croissant, but the flavor is still there. Trust me.

How do you store croissant bread?

Wrap the croissant bread in plastic or store it in an airtight container to keep it fresh. Croissant bread will stay soft and fresh for 3-5 days.

Can you freeze croissant bread?

You can freeze croissant bread for up to 6 months.

More Bread Recipes To Make

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