Peanut Butter and Jelly Croissants

Did you guys know that a week ago today was national peanut butter and jelly day? If I was smart, I would have had this post ready for it, but since I’m new at this, I made my celebratory dessert that night. I’ve already learned from this so I can properly celebrate National Coffee Day and World Nutella Day the right way with a post before the actual day hits us! But since my celebration dessert turned out so amazingly, I had to share this with you guys anyway. If you love peanut butter and jelly as much as I do, you’re going to love this for pretty much everyday!

I’m going to let you guys know right now that I am unfaithful to crust. When it comes to crust, I cheat all the time. I don’t do homemade pie crust or pastry dough. Maybe someday I will try my hand at homemade pastry dough or pie crust, but for now, I have a more than healthy appreciation for the wonders offered in the refrigerator section at the grocery store. So when you’re there, pick up two packages of crescent roll dough- you’re going to be glad that there’s enough filling for two!

Right out of the gate, I’m starting this off with peanut butter. Jelly is amazing, but I feel like it’s a sidekick and peanut butter is the real superhero. This right here is my peanut butter cream cheese filling. It baked up so creamy and silky that I could hardly believe it. The only bad thing about it is how good it tastes uncooked. Not that I would know because I don’t eat raw egg because it’s bad for you. Of course I wouldn’t risk it basically every single time I bake……….heh heh. Even though I’ve managed to make it this far without ever getting sick from it, and I don’t personally know anyone who has, you should probably take the advice of the CDC over the advice of a small town baker and just stay away from it. Just know that I won’t judge either way!

Once you get the cream cheese, peanut butter, sugar, egg, and caramel extract in the bowl, beat it with a hand mixer for about 2 minutes. Always start on low so you don’t end up with a face full of sugar (yeah, experience speaking) and slowly work your way up to a higher speed. This is what really makes it super creamy. Also, you can use plain old vanilla extract if you don’t have caramel, but I have found that Watkins brand makes the best caramel extract I have ever used and the caramel flavor really compliments the peanut butter.

Next, it’s time to prepare the crust. Grease a cookie sheet and lay the 8 triangles as pictured. Lay down the end pieces first and place the others on top of them. This will help keep the final project intact. Don’t worry about how far apart they are because we’re about to fix that. It’s time to smoosh like you’ve never smooshed before! Press the the dough towards the center so the two sides come together and take extra care to make sure you join the “seams” so it’s all like one big piece in the center. Push each of the other pieces into one another to make sure you have a good sized surface area for all your filling. On that note, make sure the two end pieces are thoroughly joined to the rest of it. Once you’re done, it should look about like the picture below.

It’s time to add that delicious, velvety filling. Scoop about half of the peanut butter filling into the center and spread it around until it completely covers the part that you expertly smooshed together. As you can see, it’s a pretty generous amount. Don’t worry- the filling holds its shape quite well as it bakes. Now, it’s time for the jelly. I used raspberry because that’s my personal favorite, but you can use any kind you prefer. You could even do one croissant grape and the other strawberry for a totally classic take. For this croissant, I used about half a jar of jelly, but it doesn’t really matter how much you use. As with the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich, the jelly to peanut butter ratio is a completely personal thing.

Now we’re gonna braid it up. Start with folding the ends in and laying them down the center. Don’t be afraid to maneuver them so they kinda trap the filling in. There will still be gaps so don’t worry too much. Next, take the sides and fold them in at a slightly downward angle. Pinch the corners closed and pop it in the oven!

While this one is baking, I usually get the next one ready to go in. I kinda thought two might be more than we could handle but they make perfect gifts for friends and family. I took these to an event and they went pretty fast. I like to keep one for home and then give one away when I do croissants. The best part is I think they taste much better refrigerated than hot, so you can make them the day before and then just pop ’em out of your fridge and go.

Here is the finished product! It turned out so golden and lovely. I really like things that look fancy but are secretly super simple to prepare. Definitely refrigerate it after it cools because of the cream cheese. What can I say? Raw cookie dough first, safety second.

Did you celebrate national peanut butter and jelly day? I’d love to hear and/or see your celebration creations- even if it’s just a twist on the classic pb&j!

Peanut Butter and Jelly Croissants

Makes 2 Croissants

Ingredients:

• 2 packages refrigerated crescent dough
• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. caramel extract
• 1/2 c. peanut butter
• approx. 1 12oz. jar of jelly, any flavor

Preheat the oven to 375 F

In a medium mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar, egg, extract, and peanut butter together on medium/ high speed until creamy and lump free, about 2 minutes. Set aside.

Grease a large cookie sheet and separate the first package of crescents. Lay one on each end and three on each side with the pointed ends facing outwards. Use your fingers to join the crescents together in the center to create a base to lay your filling.

Place about half the peanut butter filling in the joined center and top it with however much jelly you prefer. Fold the two ends in towards the center and bring the sides in diagonally to make a braid. Pinch up the corners and bake for 22 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.

Repeat for the remaining filling and enjoy!