Alan Davidson

Croissant

Appears in
Oxford Companion to Food
Oxford Companion to Food

By Alan Davidson

Published 2014

  • About

croissant a French word meaning crescent or crescent shaped, is the name traditionally given to a buttery breakfast roll or bread popular in France. Croissants are made with a yeast-based dough, rolled to incorporate the butter exactly as is done when making puff pastry.

The bending of a little roll into a crescent shape, as probably happened in various parts of the world at various times, does not constitute the invention of the familiar, puffy, buttery croissant. There is more to the croissant than shape.