What filling is usually found in a bear claw pastry?

A bear claw pastry is usually filled with almond paste.

The pastry is made from sweet, often yeast-raised dough and shaped so that cuts along one edge resemble a bear’s toes. Almond paste provides the characteristic nutty filling, and raisins are sometimes added. Some bear claws are curved into a semicircle, while others remain more rectangular.

The name refers to the appearance rather than the ingredient: as the dough rises and the cut sections separate, the pastry develops a claw-like outline. Bear claws are commonly sold as breakfast pastries or alongside other Danish-style baked goods.

The pastry has American roots. The name “bear claw” is attested in a Sacramento bakery advertisement from March 13, 1914, and the item appeared on the menu of a German-owned Los Angeles department store bakery the following year. Regional recipes can vary, but almond paste is the standard filling associated with the pastry.