Maybe you've heard of the Cronut, the doughnut-croissant hybrid that was all the rage in 2013. The Cronut, made famous by the Dominique Ansel Bakery in New York, is a deep-fried doughnut made with croissant dough. The fried pastry is then pumped full of pastry cream and glazed.
Here's a much simpler -- but equally tasty -- morning pastry. Meet the Cro-Not. The Cro-Not is baked, not fried, and is made using convenient puff pastry dough from your grocer's freezer case. The dough is generously dusted with cinnamon-sugar before baking and is finished with a vanilla glaze.
The process is a little time- consuming, as it involves rolling and folding the dough multiple times, but it is still easier than making a deep-fried Cronut.
Paired with a cup of coffee or hot tea, these would make a delicious Valentine's Day breakfast.
Cinnamon Sugar Cro-Nots
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 (14- to 17-ounce) box frozen puff pastry, thawed according to package instructions
1 egg, beaten
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract
Heat oven to 375 degrees.Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the cinnamon-sugar evenly over a work surface. Unfold puff pastry sheets, remove parchment, and arrange sheets, stacked on top of each other, on the cinnamon-sugar. Sprinkle the top sheet with another tablespoon of the cinnamon-sugar. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a 16-by-10-inch rectangle. Brush the pastry lightly with egg and fold it in half, short edge to short edge. Sprinkle dough with another tablespoon of the cinnamon-sugar. Roll the pastry again into a 16-by-10-inch rectangle. Brush with beaten egg. Fold the pastry in half again, short edge to short edge. Sprinkle another tablespoon of the cinnamon-sugar over the pastry. Roll the dough into an 8- to 9-inch square. Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon-sugar over the dough. Using a 2 1/2-inch round cutter, cut dough into rounds. Use a 1-inch cutter to remove the center of each round.
Arrange rounds on the prepared baking sheet. Arrange the cut-out holes on the same pan. If there's room arrange the scraps. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until pastries are puffy and deeply golden brown. Cool pastries on pan on a wire rack.
While pastries are cooling, whisk together the confectioners' sugar, milk and vanilla.
Drizzle glaze over pastries while they are still slightly warm.
Makes about 10 Cro-Nots, plus holes and scraps.
Recipe adapted from Sheet Pan Suppers by Molly Gilbert
Food on 02/11/2015