Seeded Croissant Rolls with Vanilla Pastry Cream
Original recipe, adapted by JojoM
Flaky croissant rolls filled with silky vanilla mascarpone pastry cream and coated in a crunchy five-seed mix for a bakery-style breakfast or brunch.
Seeded Croissant Rolls with Vanilla Pastry Cream 🥐✨
Flaky layers, nutty crunch, and a velvety vanilla mascarpone cream—these seeded croissant rolls bring full bakery luxury straight to your breakfast table. Think classic French viennoiserie meets modern brunch pastry, wrapped in a golden spiral and rolled through a five-seed mix for incredible texture.
Why You’ll Love These Rolls 💛
These rolls deliver a perfect balance of buttery laminated dough, silky cream, and crisp toasted seeds. Each bite gives contrast—soft interior, flaky edges, and a deep nutty aroma from flax, sesame, chia, sunflower, and pine nuts. They’re versatile enough for brunch, festive mornings, or a special weekend bake.
The vanilla mascarpone pastry cream is richer than a classic crème pâtissière, thanks to mascarpone and cocoa butter, giving a stable, luscious filling that stays smooth even after baking.
Building Flavor with a Five-Seed Mix 🌾
This recipe uses a generous layer of mixed seeds packed directly onto the pastry cream before rolling. As the rolls bake, the seeds toast and intensify, creating a nutty crust that pairs beautifully with the softness inside.
Feel free to swap seeds based on what you have—pumpkin seeds, pecans, or chopped almonds all work well as long as the overall weight stays similar.
Mastering the Laminated Dough 🧈
The foundation of this pastry is a proper French-style croissant dough. With 84% dry butter laminated into the dough and rested between turns, you get defined layers that puff beautifully during baking.
For the best results:
- Keep the dough and butter at matching firmness.
- Rest well between turns.
- Roll to an even 3.5 mm at assembly for perfect spirals.
These details ensure your rolls stay tall, defined, and irresistibly flaky.
Silky Vanilla Mascarpone Pastry Cream 🍮
This upgraded pastry cream is infused with four vanilla beans and enriched with mascarpone for a delicate tang. Gelatin provides structure so the cream holds its shape inside the spirals without leaking.
Be sure to chill it fully before spreading—cool pastry cream spreads more evenly and prevents melting during shaping.
How the Rolls Are Shaped 🌀
Once the dough is filled and rolled, the log is chilled briefly in the freezer. This step is key: it lets you slice clean, even spirals without crushing the layers. Each slice goes into a cake ring to help it rise upward rather than outward.
A gentle proof, followed by a bake at 175°C, gives gorgeous golden edges and evenly toasted seeds.
Serve, Store, and Make Ahead 🕊️
These rolls are at their best fresh from the oven—warm, crisp, and aromatic. But you can absolutely prepare components ahead:
- Dough: 1–2 days in the fridge (or freeze after lamination).
- Pastry cream: 1 day in advance.
- Shaped rolls: chill overnight, proof in the morning, and bake fresh.
They reheat beautifully at 150°C for 5–7 minutes.
Perfect for Brunch, Gifting, or Bake Sales 🎁
Their striking spiral shape and seed-crusted tops make them stand out on any table. If you love pastries that are equal parts elegant and indulgent, these rolls will quickly become a signature bake.
Enjoy your bakery-style creations! 🥐💛
Seeded Croissant Rolls with Vanilla Pastry Cream
Original recipe, adapted by JojoMFlaky croissant rolls filled with silky vanilla mascarpone pastry cream and coated in a crunchy five-seed mix for a bakery-style breakfast or brunch.
Chef's Tips
Chill the pastry cream fully before spreading so it stays thick and stable on the dough.
Freeze the filled dough log briefly to make slicing neat, even spirals.
Pack the seed mixture generously on top for a really crunchy, nutty crust.
Proof the rolls just until puffy; over-proofed rolls can collapse and lose definition.
Bake on a preheated tray to help the laminated layers spring and crisp.
Tools Used
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Ingredients
Croissant Dough
Vanilla Mascarpone Pastry Cream
Seed Mixture
Instructions
Make the Croissant Dough
- 1
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, salt, sugar, and crumbled yeast.
- 2
Add the egg, honey, softened butter, and most of the water. Mix on low until a shaggy dough forms, then knead on medium until smooth and elastic, adding the remaining water as needed.
- 3
Shape the dough into a rectangle, cover, and chill until firm but still pliable, about 1 hour in the refrigerator.
- 4
Enclose the dry butter in the dough and give the dough the classic lamination turns (typically one double turn and one single turn, or your preferred schedule), resting and chilling between turns.
- 5
After the final turn, wrap the dough and chill again so it is well relaxed before rolling out.
Make the Vanilla Mascarpone Pastry Cream
- 1
Soften the gelatin sheets in cold water, or bloom powdered gelatin in a little cold water according to packet instructions.
- 2
In a saucepan, heat the milk and whipping cream until steaming. Split the vanilla beans, scrape out the seeds, and add both seeds and pods to the pan. Cover and leave to infuse for about 20 minutes.
- 3
In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, custard powder, flour, and egg yolks until pale and thick.
- 4
Strain the warm milk mixture through a fine sieve to remove the vanilla pods, then slowly pour it over the yolk mixture, whisking constantly.
- 5
Return the mixture to a clean saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking continuously, until thick and bubbling, about 2 minutes.
- 6
Remove from the heat and whisk in the cocoa butter until melted, then add the well-drained gelatin and stir until dissolved.
- 7
Add the butter and mascarpone, then blend with an immersion blender until smooth and glossy.
- 8
Spread the pastry cream in a shallow dish, cover the surface directly with plastic wrap, and chill rapidly in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes, or until cold and thick.
Assemble and Bake the Seeded Rolls
- 1
Mix all the seeds together in a bowl to make an even seed mixture.
- 2
On a lightly floured surface, roll the laminated dough into a large rectangle about 3.5 mm (⅛ inch) thick.
- 3
Using an offset spatula, spread a generous, even layer of the chilled pastry cream over the dough, leaving a small border on one long edge.
- 4
Sprinkle the entire surface with the seed mixture, pressing lightly so the seeds adhere to the cream.
- 5
Starting from the long edge without a border, roll the dough up tightly into a neat cylinder, sealing the border to close the roll.
- 6
Place the log on a tray and freeze for about 20 minutes, just until firm enough to slice cleanly.
- 7
Cut the semifrozen cylinder into slices about 4 cm (1½ inches) thick and place each slice cut-side up into a greased cake ring on a parchment-lined baking tray.
- 8
Cover loosely with a cloth and proof at around 28°C (80°F) for about 2 hours, until visibly puffy and risen.
- 9
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F).
- 10
Bake the rolls for around 15–17 minutes, or until deep golden, crisp on the edges, and the seeds are fragrant and lightly toasted.
- 11
Cool slightly in the rings, then unmold and transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Comments & Reviews
Ayla
9/19/2025
Love how packed with seeds these are. I swapped a little of the mascarpone for cream cheese and it still turned out great.
Leon
6/2/2025
Quite rich but totally worth the effort. Next time I’ll make the dough the day before so I can bake the rolls fresh in the morning.
Marie
4/10/2025
The contrast of crunchy seeds and soft vanilla cream is amazing. I made these for a Sunday brunch and everyone went back for seconds.
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Nutrition Facts
Serving Size: 1 seeded roll
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
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