Easy! Croissants & Berry Chia Jam

My Valetine's gift this year was croissants. I've made real-life chocolate croissants before. And while they may have been worth the 24 hours of labor (small exaggeration), truth be told: I don't always have enough time in a week, month, or year to make something as extravagant. Making the butter square alone is a difficult and frustrating task for an amateur baker!

And then this post from Alexandra Cooks walked into my life.

The recipe is actually, in method, for a pastry dough but it is beautifully repurposed for croissants. Have I mentioned how EASY it is? No, it's not quite as simple as unwrapping a canister of crescent rolls. It is, however, vastly easier and less time consuming than the butter square and multiple fridge-risings and folding/rollings. If made in one day, the total rising and baking time amounts to 3 hours. I'm serious! What an improvement!

Out of the oven comes soft, buttery, flaky croissants. The accompanying smell---SO GOOD! If you close your eyes just for an second, it's believable that you might actually be in a French bakery...or, better yet, that you yourself might actually be a bread baker.

Wrapped inside most of these Valentine croissants was chopped milk chocolate, per request. I also made berry chia jam because it seemed appropriate. It was my "something bright-and-cheery" on an otherwise dreary day last week. This particular jam is slightly tart--depending on your choice of berries--and only slightly sweetened. Oh, and did I mention it's so simple to make? (Have you noticed a trend here?) In addition to croissants and toast, it's also great in yogurt!

I plan on testing the croissant recipe and method out a few more times to see if I come up with any tips to share---why not when it's that easy? In the meantime, I invite you to visit Alexandra's blog for the full recipe and directions. She uses prosciutto and gruyere in hers, which is just as drool-worthy if not more!

Berry Chia Jam

Servings: About 1 cup

1 1/2 cup frozen strawberries
1/4 cup frozen black or blueberries
4 fresh cranberries
1/2 to 1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon lemon or orange juice, or water
1 tablespoon chia seeds

• Place berries, sugar and juice in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes, or long enough to breakdown berries. Stir frequently and crush berries with a fork a spatula.
• Once berries are cooked down and crushed to your liking, remove from heat and stir in chia seeds. Pour into a container and allow it to set up in the fridge for at least an hour before use. 

Notes: Adapted from Eating Bird Food and A House in the Hills