If you pay a visit to a traditional French Bakery, chances are you’ll spot these delectable treats behind a gleaming glass display: “Croissants aux Amandes” (also known as Almond Croissants).

During a recent trip to the Seattle area, my cousin’s wife, Katya, generously shared this delightful recipe with me. We savored these almond croissants alongside a steaming latte for breakfast. The almond croissants were a true delight and surprisingly easy to prepare. You can even halve the recipe to cater to a smaller crowd. What a delightful indulgence!

Ingredients for Almond Croissants:

• 8 (one-day-old) medium/large croissants, left at room temperature uncovered overnight
• 3 Tbsp sliced almonds
• Powdered (Confectioner’s) sugar for dusting

Ingredients for the syrup:

• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 4 Tbsp rum (optional, but highly recommended; you can use 1 tsp Vanilla extract as a substitute)
• 1 Cup water

Ingredients for the Almond Cream (crème d’amandes):

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup almond meal/almond flour (or 2/3 cup whole blanched almonds, but you’ll need a good food processor to process almonds into an almond meal)
• 1/8 tsp of salt
• 1 stick (8 Tbsp) unsalted butter, at room temperature, sliced
• 2 large eggs

How to Make the Syrup:

1. In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup of water, 2 Tbsp of sugar, and 4 Tbsp of rum. Bring the mixture to a simmer for a minute, stirring until the sugar dissolves, then remove it from heat and let it cool to room temperature.

How to Make the Almonds Filling:

If using whole almonds: combine 1/2 cup of sugar, 2/3 cup of almonds, and 1/8 tsp of salt in the bowl of a food processor, and pulse until finely ground. Add the butter and mix again until well blended. Add in the eggs one by one, and process on high speed until the mixture becomes creamy and fluffy.

If using almond meal or almond flour: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine 1/2 cup of sugar, 1 cup of almond meal, and 1/8 tsp of salt. Mix until well incorporated, then blend in the butter. Finally, add the eggs one at a time and mix on medium/high speed until the entire mixture achieves a creamy and fluffy, frosting-like consistency.

If it looks like this,