Bakers get creative with savory croissants

Ham-and-cheese-stuffed croissants have long dominated the savory pastry category, but now bakers are using other cheeses, meats and even pickles in their baked goods. Across the country the trend has taken hold, and with the creativity coming from pastry chefs there's no doubt it will continue.

"I'm just a savory person and I don’t like sweets much," said baker Arielle Israel, owner of Black Box Bakery in Edgewater, Colo. "Having a nice salty pastry for breakfast is my way to go, so we kept brainstorming on what people wanted to do."

The result is the now-iconic Reuben croissant, stuffed with corned beef, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, pickles and thousand island dressing. The bakery has also made a New York bagel-style croissant with cream cheese and rolled in Everything bagel spice (granulated onion and garlic, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, and salt), and a sausage roll using breakfast sausage and hot honey in croissant dough.

Each one is around $6.

Black Box Bakery’s Reuben Croissant. Photo credit: Linnea Covington

Similarly creative approaches are happening across the country. In Austin, Texas, chef Sarah McIntosh’s Épicerie Bistro & Bar has stuffed croissants with a legendary local favorite, Franklin Barbecue’ brisket. In California, the cult favorite Tartine Bakery, with locations in Los Angeles and San Francisco, serves jalapeño and ham pastries for $7.25, with other savory specials daily. And San Francisco's Neighbor Bakehouse dishes out char siu and elote stuffed croissants, both $6.25, on its Sunday bakeshop menu.

These forms of savory croissants stem from the traditional ham and cheese version, which, like the croissant itself, came into fruition in France in the early 1900s. Some bakeries have elaborated on this savory item as well. For example, chef Kim Boyce's Bakeshop in Portland, Ore., makes the $* Croissant Croque Monsieur, a twice-baked butter croissant split in half and brushed with nutmeg-scented béchamel sauce. It's then filled with slices of Fra’Mani ham and topped with Gruyère cheese and more béchamel. The bakery also makes a savory tomato croissant with cheese for $6.

Back in Colorado, New York City native Shawn Bergin opened Bakery Four in Denver, which constantly has a line on weekends and sells out of breads, pastries, and other baked goods. For him, savory pastries were always part of the program.

"My mindset is that, within reason of course, if it tastes good outside of our croissant dough, then it will only taste better with our croissant dough," he said. "We’ve done everything from Buffalo chicken Danishes to truffle and potato Danishes."

Case in point, the prosciutto and arugula-topped croissant, which runs as a rotating item. Bergin said the idea for it came after getting Galloni Prosciutto di Parma into the kitchen. He simply didn't want to do anything complicated with the high-end meat, adding only fresh arugula and ricotta custard to the mix.

"In true practice to honor the ingredient, there’s nothing done to it at all," he said. "The only thing we do is slice it thin and pair it with other wonderful ingredients."

Bakery Four prosciutto croissant. Photo credit: Linnea Covington

Bakery Four also serves a pain au jambon, featuring local River Bear Meats ham and cave-aged Gruyère, an elevated take on the ham-and-cheese croissant. Recently Bergin added a jalapeño popper croissant with cream cheese, jalapeños, cheddar cheese and a garlic herb butter. Most of Bakery Four’s savory pastries run $6 each.
And he said they’re here to stay, because people don't always want to start the day with sweet foods, and more people sample the savory side of baked goods, it won't be surprising if bakeries start creating new and exciting croissants to fit all sorts of palates.