The pros: Trader Joe’s 8 Mini Croissants are new and replace the frozen ones you have to proof. Don’t worry though, the Chocolate and Almond croissants are still in the frozen aisle.
The cons: If you imagined (like I did) that these would be about the size of say a crescent roll, then you will be surprised by how much they puff up. This bag is not resealable. They are made in Belgium.
The verdict: 
I love a good croissant. So much so that a fellow friend and blogger, Ashley and I decided to take a croissant making class at Sur La Table a day or two before my wedding.
Yup, nothing says I don’t need to fit into my clothes anymore, like learning to make buttery pastries.
Ashley loves croissants way more than I do. In fact, she does an annual roundup of the best croissants she’s eaten all year. And yes, her blog is called the Daily Croissant. If that isn’t love, then I’m not sure what is.
I’ll just say, she wins the croissant expert award in my book. But for the sake of this review, I’d think she’d approve of these too.
So let’s start off with a couple of things that are worth noting. This is a new product. Trader Joe’s previously offered boxed variety with the same name that were just plain croissants. Those required time. Overnight + bake time. While the chocolate and almond croissants are still there, the plain ones have not been there the last few times I stopped into my local TJs.
Now, the chocolate ones are near perfection. The only downside is you can’t just pop them in the oven. You have to wait for them to rise.
The almond ones are a close second, but they frequently leak their filling all over the cookie sheet. Also, they would be prettier if they mentioned the importance of an egg wash. In terms of taste, they are on point too.
These croissants are for those of us who fail to plan. I know I’ll need to eat, but often I fail to plan. If you have about 25 minutes, then you might be pleasantly surprised by how good these are for something coming out of a bag.
Let’s start off with the price. For $3.99 you are getting 8 not so mini but not full sized pastries. Go into any French bakery and that might get you two if you are lucky.
Because of the ridiculously high heat here in NY, these were pretty much fully defrosted for me by the time I brought them home. So while I did not leave them out for 30 minutes, they did endure a shopping trip, a 25 minute car ride in 90 degree heat, plus putting the groceries away.
About 25 minute later I had golden brown pastries. I pushed it to the 30 minutes to ensure that they weren’t quite as light as the ones on the picture on the bag.
You see, when it comes to croissants you want a bit of color. Without the color it means you might be biting into mush. You want flaky layers. If I had let them stay in the oven a few more minutes I probably could have added to the layering.
But the outside was crisp and the inside light and tender.
For something that wasn’t full sized, it was pretty good. For something that does not require an overnight proofing, they are pretty good.
Best of all these are less than half the calories of the chocolate or almond croissants and a touch easier to make. It’s like Trader Joe’s understands just how lazy I am.
Don’t get me wrong, those chocolate and almond ones are worth the time. But if you are looking for an upgrade to your Pillsbury Crescent Rolls, then you should give these a try.
Here is the visual run down of what you get if you buy this product:
The bag of Trader Joe’s 8 Mini Croissants:
The nutritional information:
The ingredients:
How to prepare:
How Trader Joe’s describes these:
After being cooked you get:
Would I buy this again? Yes, I would buy Trader Joe’s 8 Mini Croissants again. They were easy, peasy and tasted pretty good. Not French Bakery amazing, but darn good out of the bag.
Want to see more items I’ve reviewed from Trader Joe’s? Click on Thoughts & Reviews of Trader Joe’s for a searchable list.
Did you try it? Let me know what you think in the comments section!
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These sounds yummy. I so wish they would make a savoury variety like ham and gruyere or spinach and feta.
Hey Dag! Happy 4th! Oh yes, those are absolutely missing from shelves. But these could be made into a cute little sandwich too. Hope the weather by you has finally cooled down!
Funny you should mention that, because guess what just hit Trader Joe’s website: https://www.traderjoes.com/digin/post/uncured-ham–swiss-cheese-flaky-croissant-dough-squares
I haven’t seen it in my store, but I’ll keep an eye out!
I asked for these at my local TJs on Monday (and the only TJ in central Oregon. ..unless you drive 3 hours and go to Portlandia), and they had not received them yet. But I’m nervous that these won’t be as good as those you proof. Can you comment on their comparison to the old style mini croissants? I loved the older version and am happy I still have a few boxes still in the freezer.
Hey Penelope! Unfortunately, I never got around to trying those. They were always on my list to try, but my inner Homer Simpson voice kept saying “Mmmmm…Chocolate” (croissants). That’s the voice I kept listening to. Worth a try. I’ve even reheated them in the toaster oven and they held up well. I wish I could help more on this one.
WHAT? Ham and cheese croissant squares?! I am going to Trader Joe’s tomorrow! You just made my weekend LOL. Maybe this will make up for the chicken parmesan I just tried again. I put a comment on your past review.
Hey Dag! I just picked up the Ham and Cheese croissant squares. Hope to get the review up in the next couple days. Glad the info made you weekend! Thanks as always for taking the time and stopping by!
Well I just got back from TJS with for boxes of the ham and cheese croissant squares in hand. There were only six left. These look remarkably similar to Starbucks ham and cheese croissant pockets. They appear to be about the same size, the same ingredients and look visibly similar. We shall see how Trader Joe’s version tastes. Where they definitely differ is the price! Starbucks version cost about $3.75 a piece. Trader Joe’s box of 4 costs $4.99! I am looking forward to your opinion in your review.
The new ones are NOT croissants; they’re crescent rolls. The old ones were fabulous croissants and will be greatly missed. I won’t be bothering buying the new ones. I’d like to finding who made the old ones and see if they’re sold anywhere else.
Hey Terry! Thanks so stopping by and sharing your thoughts on this. I did not get a chance to try the old ones so thanks for the comparison point.
The old ones were wonderful, practically ideal. There is no comparison to a new ones. I’m puzzled now, why would TJs replace the great product with just an ordinary. Who’s idea it was. If you really liked the new one, just add it to the roster, not replace the old great ones.
Hey Alex! Thanks for posting this. I never got around to trying the other ones, so it is readers like you who I count on to fill in the gaps. Perhaps people did not love the proofing process, but who knows. Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing your thoughts!
New ones are terrible. Not real croissants, just bready inside.What happened to flaky and butter? New ones freeze together in freezer and difficult to pull apart. Old ones were perfect. So easy and faster. New ones have a nasty after taste and seem very cheap. Please bring back your winning formula. They were the reason I shopped at Trader Joe’s.
Hey Michael Borrowman! I’m glad you can draw a comparison for everyone. I never tried the old ones. I’d recommend that you reach out to Trader Joe’s directly here: https://www.traderjoes.com/contact-us/product-feedback and voice your concerns. Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by and share your thoughts!
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I wholeheartedly agree with the previous posters- the new croissants are an abomination- a plague upon the buttery heavenliness of the previous version. To those who complained about having to proof them overnight I apologize to them for not realizing that we humans must eat in the future as well as the present. Your shortsightedness has left us with the easy bake version of microwaveable quality dough. Thank you for your persistent complaining about having to think. Now we can all enjoy these terrible croissants with a 10am crying session about how our daddy never loved us over bottle of 2 buck chuck over ice with a straw. This is what you made us.
Hey thestreetprose! I never tasted the originals, so I’m glad everyone is sharing how different (and clearly unloved) they are to those who loved them. As always, if you truly hate them enough (and because I’m neither affiliated nor work for them) I always encourage people to voice their concerns about a discontinued or a bad replacement with TJ’s themselves. Here is the link: https://www.traderjoes.com/contact-us/product-feedback
Yes, unfortunately the new ones aren’t anywhere near as good as the croissants that proof overnight. We loved the old ones. Hopefully, they will bring back the old supplier.
Hey Dawn, I left TJ’s information in one of the comments. It’s absolutely worth writing to them to share your experience to make your voice heard. Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by.
I agree.
I agree with previous posters, the new ones are terrible. It is like eating a piece of bread with no taste, very disappointing. I cooked them this morning and they are still sitting on the table. I am french and use to buy my croissants from a small bakery in Paris (winner of best croissants in Paris) and the TJ ones were pretty darn close to that experience… we use to make them the TJ ones every sunday morning and it was a wonderful ritual… PLEASE bring back the old ones!!!