With Croissants, Eggs, And Your Air Fryer, You Have The Start Of A Loaded 'Breakfast Boat'

You're probably inclined to think of croissants as something you eat in a café with a coffee, or at home as part of a sweeter breakfast spread. But we all know that croissants benefit from a little savory treatment from time to time, and that's where this breakfast boat comes in. Opening up a croissant along the top and cracking in an egg, some cheese, and any other ingredients you have on hand in that pocket, then popping it for a few minutes in the air fryer, will give you a warm, flaky, and savory breakfast pastry with a more substantial middle. 

While croissants may be one of the more unexpected foods to put in your air fryer, there's actually a good reason they work well in them. An air fryer circulates hot air around the croissant which can help turn the outside extra crispy and flaky as the egg inside cooks. The air fryer may actually be a very handy and quick way to transform this pastry into a heartier breakfast without losing any of the parts that make a croissant so good in the first place. 

Plus, this breakfast boat is also very adaptable, so tweak the recipe with whatever you actually have in the fridge, using the egg and croissant as the base. Ham, spinach, and mozzarella would work like a treat, or imagine a more classic breakfast sandwich combination of sausage and cheddar. Mushroom and cheddar are excellent for a meat-free alternative. You could also try smoked salmon and cream cheese, or chorizo, pepper jack, and salsa for something a little different.

There are a few tricks for making this breakfast boat work as well as it possibly can. For one, make sure you create a deep enough pocket in the croissant for the filling to sit in, otherwise you're going to end up with the egg running out of the side of your croissant. Pressing down on the inside of the croissant once you've cut it open can help make some room for everything you want to stuff inside. Then, for the cooking part, start at 325 to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and bake it for around 10 minutes or until the egg white has set. Add the cheese toward the end of the cooking time so it can melt without burning. Basket and oven-style air fryers vary in how they cook, so do keep an eye on your croissants to make sure that they don't start to go brown or burn before the egg has finished cooking. 

If you're someone who is into bulk buying and meal prepping, this could be a creative way to enjoy Costco's fan-favorite croissants and create a meal plan that you'll look forward to eating. Make all your breakfast boats in one go, then allow them to cool and store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three to four days. When you're ready to eat, all you have to do is warm the breakfast boats in the air fryer until they're back to the same flaky exterior.