Puff Pastry Chocolate Croissants are the ultimate quick yet indulgent treat, giving you bakery-quality flavor with minimal effort. Made with flaky puff pastry and rich chocolate, they bake up golden, buttery, and utterly irresistible. Perfect for breakfast, brunch, or an afternoon pick-me-up, they’re especially delicious served warm with a cup of coffee.
Love More Puff Pastry Desserts? Try My Puff Pastry Cinnamon Rolls or this Apple Puff Pastry Ring next.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Golden, flaky, and filled with melted chocolate, these croissants deliver bakery-quality results without the time-consuming process. They come together in about 35 minutes, making them an easy yet impressive option for breakfast or brunch. With their crisp exterior, gooey chocolate center, and irresistible flavor, they’re sure to win over even the toughest critics.
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Puff Pastry Chocolate Croissants
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 8 pastries
Description
Easy homemade chocolate croissants made with store-bought puff pastry, dark chocolate chips, and a golden egg wash. Perfect for breakfast, brunch, or dessert.
Ingredients
For the Croissants:
- 1 package frozen puff pastry (2 sheets), thawed
- 1 to 1¼ cups dark chocolate chips (or chopped chocolate bars)
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- Powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions
Heat oven to 400°F. Line your baking sheet with parchment. Don’t skip the parchment – these things can stick.
Beat the egg with water in a small bowl. That’s it. This brushes on top for color and helps seal the edges.
Unfold your thawed pastry on a floured counter. Cut each sheet into 4 rectangles or triangles – whatever shape floats your boat. I do rectangles because I’m lazy.
Drop 2-3 tablespoons of chocolate near one end of each piece. Roll from the chocolate end toward the other end, not too tight or it’ll burst. Brush the final edge with egg wash and press to seal.
Put them seam-side down on your pan with space between. Brush the tops with more egg wash. This step makes all the difference in how they look.
Into the oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown and puffy. Don’t open the door for the first 12 minutes or they might deflate.
Let them cool for about 5 minutes (the chocolate is lava-hot). Dust with powdered sugar and try not to eat them all before your family sees them.
Notes
Don’t overstuff – More chocolate seems better but it just leaks out and burns on the pan
Make them uniform – Cut pastry pieces roughly the same size so they bake evenly
Cold pastry works better – If your kitchen is hot, stick the shaped croissants in the fridge for 10 minutes before baking
Watch the bottoms – If they’re browning too fast, slide another pan underneath
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: French-inspired
Ingredients
For the Croissants:
- 1 package frozen puff pastry (2 sheets), thawed
- 1 to 1¼ cups dark chocolate chips (or chopped chocolate bars)
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- Powdered sugar, for dusting
Why These Ingredients Work
Frozen Puff Pastry: This saves you about 6 hours of work. The store-bought stuff is already perfectly laminated with butter layers. I buy the all-butter kind when I can find it.
Dark Chocolate Chips: Semi-sweet works too but dark chocolate doesn’t make these overly sweet. The slight bitterness plays nice with the buttery pastry. I sometimes chop up a chocolate bar instead for bigger chunks.
Egg Wash: Makes everything shiny and golden. Skip this and your croissants look homemade (not in a good way).
Powdered Sugar: Pure vanity but it makes them look bakery-fancy for about two seconds of effort.
Essential Tools and Equipment
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Small bowl and fork (for egg wash)
- Sharp knife
- Pastry brush (or just use your fingers)
- Fine strainer for sugar dusting
How To Make Puff Pastry Chocolate Croissants
1. Preheat and Prep
Heat oven to 400°F. Line your baking sheet with parchment. Don’t skip the parchment – these things can stick.
2. Create the Egg Wash
Beat the egg with water in a small bowl. That’s it. This brushes on top for color and helps seal the edges.
3. Prepare the Puff Pastry
Unfold your thawed pastry on a floured counter. Cut each sheet into 4 rectangles or triangles – whatever shape floats your boat. I do rectangles because I’m lazy.
4. Fill and Roll
Drop 2-3 tablespoons of chocolate near one end of each piece. Roll from the chocolate end toward the other end, not too tight or it’ll burst. Brush the final edge with egg wash and press to seal.
5. Final Touches
Put them seam-side down on your pan with space between. Brush the tops with more egg wash. This step makes all the difference in how they look.
6. Bake to Golden Perfection
Into the oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown and puffy. Don’t open the door for the first 12 minutes or they might deflate.
7. The Grand Finale
Let them cool for about 5 minutes (the chocolate is lava-hot). Dust with powdered sugar and try not to eat them all before your family sees them.
You Must Know
Your pastry should be cold but pliable. Too warm and it tears, too cold and it cracks. Room temp for about 20 minutes is perfect.
Personal Secret: I double-brush with egg wash – once when rolling and once on top. Extra work but they look professional.
Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks
- Don’t overstuff – More chocolate seems better but it just leaks out and burns on the pan
- Make them uniform – Cut pastry pieces roughly the same size so they bake evenly
- Cold pastry works better – If your kitchen is hot, stick the shaped croissants in the fridge for 10 minutes before baking
- Watch the bottoms – If they’re browning too fast, slide another pan underneath
Flavor Variations & Suggestions
Nutella version: Use about 2 teaspoons Nutella per croissant instead of chocolate chips
Almond chocolate: Add a thin layer of almond paste with the chocolate – fancy bakery style
Cinnamon sugar: Mix cinnamon with the chocolate chips for breakfast pastry vibes
Orange twist: Add tiny bit of orange zest to chocolate for grown-up flavors
Make-Ahead Options
These freeze beautifully unbaked. Shape them, freeze on the pan, then transfer to bags. Bake straight from frozen – just add 3-4 minutes to the time. I keep a stash for unexpected guests.
You can also prep them the night before and keep covered in the fridge. Brush with egg wash right before baking in the morning.
Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips
- Thawing time: Frozen puff pastry needs about 40 minutes at room temperature or overnight in the fridge
- Size flexibility: Make them bigger for brunch, smaller for party appetizers
- Chocolate quality: Use decent chocolate – cheap chips taste cheap in the final product
- Steam vents: Don’t poke holes in these like other pastries – you want all that steam trapped inside for maximum puff
Serving Suggestions
These are perfect with coffee for breakfast or as dessert with vanilla ice cream. I serve them at brunch parties and people lose their minds thinking I’m some kind of pastry wizard.
Room temperature is fine but they’re extra special served slightly warm when the chocolate is still soft.
Hope these become your new weekend tradition like they did mine. Sometimes the simplest shortcuts make the best memories.
How to Store Your Puff Pastry Chocolate Croissants
Counter: Keep in airtight container for 2 days max. They lose their crispness but still taste good.
Fridge: Up to 4 days covered. Reheat in 300°F oven for 5 minutes to crisp them back up.
Freezer: Baked ones freeze for 2 months. Thaw and reheat in oven – never microwave these things.
Reheating: Always use the oven, not the microwave. Microwave makes them soggy and sad.
Allergy Information
Contains: Wheat, eggs, possibly dairy (check your puff pastry brand)
Gluten-free: Some brands make GF puff pastry but texture won’t be exactly the same
Dairy-free: Most frozen puff pastry is actually dairy-free but double-check. Use dairy-free chocolate too.
Egg-free: Skip the egg wash if needed but they won’t look as pretty
Questions I Get Asked A Lot
Can I use milk chocolate?
Sure, just know they’ll be sweeter and might get messier when melted.
Mine didn’t puff up – what happened?
Probably your pastry got too warm before baking or your oven wasn’t hot enough. Keep pastry cold and preheat fully.
Why did my chocolate leak everywhere?
Too much filling or not sealed well enough. Less chocolate, better sealing next time.
Do I have to use dark chocolate?
Nope. Semi-sweet, milk chocolate, even white chocolate work. Use what you like.
💬 Made these? Tell me how they turned out! Did your family demand you make them every weekend like mine does?
