Woolworths Gluten Free Croissants
Posted: January 20, 2023 Updated: May 18, 2024
Coeliac and gluten free Aussies can get their fix of croissants quickly and easily at Woolworths. The question is, are they any good? You’ll be happy to know that yes, they definitely are! But to make sure you have a good experience you’ll need to prepare them the right way.
All butter, all the way
A few years ago the gluten free croissants by Woolworths were also vegan. However the recipe changed around 2019 / 2020, adding butter and egg white back to the recipe.
Unfortunately this means these croissants are less accessible to those with additional dietary requirements. However, judging by the reviews over the years the recipe change gave a massive improvement.
How to store your croissants
Good news, like most gluten free products you can safely freeze the Woolworths croissants. A lot of gluten free products will advise you not to freeze, which results in people throwing away spoiled foods.
Honestly, it has never occurred to me to obey these rules! I often buy GF products marked down and put them in the freezer for a rainy day. It’s also a great way to save money.
I haven’t noticed any difference in taste or texture between having these croissants fresh or frozen. I’ve included details below on how to heat them from frozen as well.
How to prepare your croissants
Normally I wouldn’t make a preparation section for something as straight forward as reheating. However, I’ve seen these Woolworths croissants get a bad review on gluten free groups and I can tell you exactly why. They microwaved them.
Now, to be fair, the packaging all through 2022 (and probably earlier) recommended microwaving the croissants for 30 seconds before eating. What you get is a kind of warm, slightly unevenly heated and a bit soggy croissant. Not exactly appetising, right?
Instead, what I do is bake my croissants. Yes, they are already fully cooked, but with any pastry you can easily warm it up in the oven for a few minutes.
The oven gives a much more even heating through the croissant while also helping to crisp up the pastry. This is very handy if you’ve bought the croissants and frozen them at home.
To prepare your croissants you’ll need to heat your oven to 180°C. The croissants need about ten minutes, but keep an eye on them.
If you are baking from frozen you don’t need much longer, just fifteen minutes will give you a lovely result. The last time I cooked from frozen I did 20 minutes and it was a little on the crunchy side. Absolutely delicious but a bit crunchier than what I wanted.
If you have an airfryer you can also heat them in there with excellent results. I don’t own one myself but looking at GF groups you can heat these croissants in just 8 minutes.
Note: as of January 2023 the packaging has changed and it actually now recommends oven heating. Looks like Woolworths have realised their instructions were doing a disservice to their product!
THE TASTE
Flavour wise it isn’t super buttery, although it is 16% butter, but it tastes good. There’s no oily flavour coming through either, which can sometimes be the case in gluten free products.
The layers are definitely visible with clear lamination (gaps between the layers). There’s loads of air inside making it light, and once baked the outside is perfectly crispy and crunchy.
It flakes and it’s messy, just like a regular croissant. It’s perfect to slice open and fill or to sit and pull away pieces to nibble on.
Of course it’s not comparable to the likes of Sebastien sans Gluten or WholeGreen bakery, but for a supermarket croissant its pretty amazing.
THE UPGRADE
I never really ate croissants prior to going gluten free. As I understand though people often just eat them plain, and the French dip them into their coffee! It sounds like a great idea but for me I like a sweet filling.
Most times that I have croissants I’ll put in peanut butter (Mayver’s is a favourite in Aus, and in the UK I love Pip and Nut) and usually some jam. For jams we keep a jar of IKEA’s cloudberry jam in the fridge. The cloudberry is a Nordic delicacy and quite typical in my husband’s home, Finland.
THE VERDICT
I absolutely love the Woolworths gluten free croissants. Given how difficult it can be to find GF croissants in Australia it’s great that I can just go down to the shops and easily buy these.
I have definitely had amazing gluten free croissants from dedicated gluten free bakeries (such as Sebastian sans Gluten in Sydney) and of course they are better. But, they are also more expensive and harder to get – I live in Melbourne now!
Where to find Woolworths gluten free croissants
Obviously they are found in Woolworths – it’s an exclusive! You’ll find them in one of two places, in the aisle with all the gluten free breads. Or you may find them in the general bakery section of your supermarket.
Often when I’ve found these croissants marked down (close to expiry) they’ve been in the bakery section with the regular wheaty products. So it’s definitely worth walking through there occasionally.
The croissants retail for $5.50 for a packet of two, if you’re lucky you might find one marked down – I once got some for just $1.80. Bargain!
PRODUCT DETAILS
Gluten free: Legit, nil detected.
Vegetarian / vegan: Vegetarian.
Allergens: Egg, milk, soy.
Serving size: Two.
Interested in more food reviews? Check out gluten free bakehouse meat pies, exclusive to Woolworths. Or if you’re after a breakfast recipe try these delicious homemade McDonald’s style sausage and egg muffins!