In the beginning
In 2013, New York pastry chef Dominique Ansel crossed a doughnut with a croissant and invented the Cronut® (pictured below). It was an instant hit and one of the year’s most sought-after items – there were long queues, and touts sold them on the black market.
Then…
Ansel trademarked the name, but the idea of mash-ups quickly caught on, and hybrid bakes sprang up worldwide. Toronto’s Clafouti Patisserie squished together croissants and Oreos to create a ‘Crookie’.
Now…
Mash-ups are still huge. Instagram is awash with sushi cakes and other quirky pairings, and even Greggs offers the Greggsnut – a sticky croissant-doughnut combo. Ansel’s new London branch, which opened in September 2016, is guaranteed to see queues.
Make your own
Ansel shares a Cronut® recipe in his book, Dominique Ansel: The Secret Recipes. But he admits it is challenging: ‘If you don’t bake, start off with something simpler, like madeleines.’
Explore the trend
Try Edd Kimber’s ‘doughsant’ recipe (pictured above)
Read Dominique Ansel’s ‘Cronut® 101‘
Try making Ansel’s Cronut® recipe at home
Visit our Behind the Trends hub for month by month reports on the hottest food and drink
From September 2016
