Bakery-Style Apple Turnovers with Croissant Dough

Bakery-Style Apple Turnovers with Crisp, Flaky Layers 🥐🍎

Few pastries capture the magic of French viennoiserie like a perfectly baked apple turnover. These bakery-style turnovers combine buttery croissant dough, whole spiced apples, and a glossy, caramelised finish that shatters with every bite. If you love pastries that balance technique with pure comfort, this recipe delivers it all.

Why These Apple Turnovers Stand Out ✨

Using croissant dough instead of standard puff pastry gives these turnovers a deeper flavour and a more artisanal texture. The butter layers in laminated dough create lift, flake, and crispness that feel unmistakably bakery-quality. Pair that with whole cinnamon-sugar apples, and every bite becomes tender, juicy, and warmly spiced.

The classic egg-wash finish—with honey and cream—adds a rich golden shine that makes these pastries look like they came straight from a professional French boulangerie.

The Magic of Croissant Dough 🍯🧈

Laminated dough is the heart of this recipe. The combination of cake flour, honey, superfine sugar, and high-fat dry butter creates layers that puff beautifully during baking. Resting between each fold keeps the butter cold and distinct—your key to the signature flaky structure.

The dough is rolled to exactly 5 mm before cutting so each turnover bakes evenly, with perfect height and crispness. If you’re new to lamination, this is a fantastic recipe to practise: simple shaping, but seriously impressive results.

Whole Spiced Apples for a Juicy Centre 🍏

Instead of diced apples, this recipe uses whole halves—peeled, cored, and dipped generously in brown sugar and cinnamon. As they bake, the apples soften just enough while the sugar caramelises around them. This creates a filling that stays juicy but never soggy, wrapped inside those delicate layers.

It’s a nostalgic apple-pie flavour but elevated into stunning viennoiserie form.

A Bakery-Perfect Finish ✨

A double egg wash is the secret to deep golden colour:

• First layer before resting
• Second layer just before baking

The honey in the mixture helps achieve that extra glossy sheen, while scored lines on top allow steam to escape and create a beautiful, rustic pattern.

As they bake, the turnovers puff dramatically, with crisp edges and caramelised apple juices forming at the seams—pure pastry bliss.

Serving Ideas 🍽️

These turnovers shine on their own, warm from the oven, but they pair beautifully with:

• A splash of heavy cream or crème fraîche
• Vanilla-bean ice cream
• A dusting of icing sugar
• A drizzle of salted caramel

They’re equally perfect for breakfast, brunch, or dessert.

Storage & Make-Ahead Tips 🧊

• Refrigerate uncooked turnovers after the first egg wash and bake the next day for ultra-fresh results.
• Freeze unbaked shaped turnovers for up to 1 month; bake straight from frozen, adding a few minutes.
• Reheat baked turnovers at 160°C (320°F) for 5–8 minutes to restore crispness.

Perfect for Pastry Lovers ❤️

Whether you’re mastering laminated dough or looking for an elegant apple pastry to share, these turnovers bring together technique, flavour, and impressive presentation. Every layer tells a story of butter, time, and craftsmanship—a true French bakery experience from your own kitchen.

Enjoy the crackle of caramelised dough, the warmth of spiced apples, and the pleasure of a pastry made with intention. Bon appétit! 🥐🍎✨