This Easy Cheese Danish Recipe is a game-changer for your brunch or snack game. With that flaky puff pastry and creamy cheese filling, they’re the perfect combination of texture and flavor. They’re surprisingly easy to whip up, so you can impress your friends without spending all day in the kitchen. Plus, the smell of them baking will make your place feel like a cozy café.
The Best Cheese Danish Recipe
If you love a good Starbucks cheese danish, then you’ll adore this cream cheese danish recipe even more! They start with a flaky store-bought dough filled with a delightful mixture of cream cheese, lemon zest and juice, vanilla, sugar, and sour cream to achieve the absolute perfect texture and bright, refreshing flavor that is well balanced and irresistible. Not only are they easy to make, but the homemade touch elevates them beyond anything you’d find at your local café. Once you try them, you’ll see why they’re the best danishes around!
What You Need
Cheese Danish
Puff Pastry: This forms the base of the danish, providing a light, flaky texture that creates a beautiful, golden-brown crust when baked. This should be thawed according to package instructions.
Cream Cheese: It serves as the rich, creamy filling, adding a smooth texture and tangy flavor that pairs perfectly with the sweetness. The cream cheese should be room temperature.
Vanilla Extract: This adds depth and warmth to the filling, enhancing the overall flavor profile of the danish.
Sour Cream: It contributes to a creamy texture while adding a subtle tanginess that balances the sweetness of the sugar.
Lemon Juice: This brightens the filling with acidity, enhancing the other flavors and preventing it from being overly rich.
Lemon Zest: It adds a fresh, aromatic citrus note that complements the cream cheese and sour cream, making the filling vibrant.
Granulated Sugar: This sweetens the filling, creating a delicious contrast to the tangy ingredients.
Coarse Sugar: Sprinkling this on the sides of the cheese danish adds a delightful crunch and a touch of sweetness, making the finished pastry visually appealing and texturally interesting.
Egg + water: This mixture is needed for the egg wash, which is brushed on the pastry before baking to give it a beautiful, shiny golden finish, enhancing its overall presentation.
Glaze, optional
Heavy Cream: This adds richness and a smooth texture to the glaze, making it luscious and easy to drizzle over the cheese danishes.
Powdered Sugar: This sweetens the glaze and gives it a light, fluffy consistency, allowing it to set beautifully on the pastry.
Vanilla Extract: This enhances the flavor of the glaze, adding a warm, aromatic note that complements the danishes and ties all the flavors together.
How to Make the Best Cheese Danish Recipe
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 400F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Step 2. In a large bowl, add the softened cream cheese, lemon juice and zest, sugar, sour cream and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined.
Step 3. Next, unwrap the thawed pastry dough. Then, roll the dough on a floured surface horizontally and vertically to smooth out the seams. Note, you don’t want to completely remove them, as they will be helpful when cutting your pastries.
Step 4. Next, cut the dough into 6 rectangles. I used the seams to help me get even segments. Cut the pastry in half lengthwise. Then, cut pastry into 3 segments width-wise, making 6 rectangles Danishes.
Step 5. Transfer the Danishes to the prepared baking sheets. Using a sharp knife, gently score the Danish by making a shallow cut about 1/4 inches from the perimeter of the pastry perimeter. Be careful not to cut all the way through. You should have created a rectangle that is slightly smaller than your Danish. This step will allow your edges to rise and hold in all that delicious cream cheese filling.
Step 6. In a small bowl, make your egg wash, by mixing the egg and water. Using a pastry brush, brush the border you created with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
Step 7. Next, carefully and evenly add about 2-3 tablespoons of the cream cheese filling into the center of the Danishes. Use a spatula or the back of your spoon to level the cream cheese filling.
Step 8. Next, place the Danishes in the preheated oven on the middle rack and bake for 17-20 minutes or until perfectly golden and the edges are puffed. Once done, remove the Danishes from the oven and let cool on a cooling rack.
Step 9. While your Danishes are cooling, make your glaze by combining the sifted powdered sugar, vanilla, extract, and heavy cream. Once slightly cooled, drizzle your icing on top of the Danishes and enjoy! Note that these Danishes are best when freshly baked.
Tips for the Best Cheese Danish
- Bring Ingredients to Room Temperature: Ensure the cream cheese and sour cream are at room temperature for a smoother filling that blends easily without lumps.
- Don’t Skip the Zest: Lemon zest adds a bright flavor that really elevates the filling.
- Egg Wash for Shine: Brush the pastries with an egg wash (egg mixed with a bit of water) before baking for a beautiful golden color and a professional finish.
- Control the Oven Temperature: Bake at a high temperature (around 400°F) to ensure the pastry puffs up and gets crispy. Use a baking stone or preheated baking sheet for even better results.
- Drizzle the Glaze While Warm: Apply the glaze while the danishes are still warm for better adhesion and a delightful melt-in-your-mouth experience.
How do I store leftover danishes?
What can I use instead of cream cheese?
What’s the best way to reheat leftover danishes?
How do I know when they are done baking?
Can I add fruit to the filling?
More Delicious Breakfast and Brunch Recipes
- Easy Blueberry Biscuits Recipe
- Easy Mini Cheesecake Recipe
- Sausage Quiche Made With Homemade Turkey Sausage
- Easy Buttermilk Biscuits Recipe
- Delicious Buttermilk Pancakes
I hope you love this Easy Cheese Danish Recipe! It’s irresistibly delicious, featuring a flaky pastry filled with a creamy, tangy cheese mixture that strikes the perfect balance of flavor and texture. If you do give this recipe a try, I want to know! Leave a comment with a star rating below. You can also snap a photo & tag @butterloveandsalt on INSTAGRAM. Your reviews help support Butter, Love & Salt and make it possible for me to continue to create delicious recipes.
Easy Cheese Danish Recipe
Ingredients
Cheese Danish
- 1 sheet puff pastry thawed
- 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp sour cream room temperature
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- coarse sugar for topping
- 1 egg for egg wash
- 2 tsp water for egg wash
Glaze, optional
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar sifted
- 1-2 tbsp heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, add the softened cream cheese, lemon juice and zest, sugar, sour cream and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined.
- Next, unwrap the thawed pastry dough. Then, roll the dough on a floured surface horizontally and vertically to smooth out the seams. Note, you don’t want to completely remove them, as they will be helpful when cutting your pastries.
- Next, cut the dough into 6 rectangles. I used the seams to help me get even segments. Cut the pastry in half lengthwise. Then, cut pastry into 3 segments width-wise, making 6 rectangles Danishes.
- Transfer the Danishes to the prepared baking sheets. Using a sharp knife, gently score the Danish by making a shallow cut about 1/4 inches from the perimeter of the pastry perimeter. Be careful not to cut all the way through. You should have created a rectangle that is slightly smaller than your Danish. This step will allow your edges to rise and hold in all that delicious cream cheese filling.
- In a small bowl, make your egg wash, by mixing the egg and water. Using a pastry brush, brush the border you created with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
- Next, carefully and evenly add about 2-3 tablespoons of the cream cheese filling into the center of the Danishes. Use a spatula or the back of your spoon to level the cream cheese filling.
- Next, place the Danishes in the preheated oven on the middle rack and bake for 17-20 minutes or until perfectly golden and the edges are puffed. Once done, remove the Danishes from the oven and let cool on a cooling rack.
- While your Danishes are cooling, make your glaze by combining the sifted powdered sugar, vanilla, extract, and heavy cream. Once slightly cooled, drizzle your icing on top of the Danishes and enjoy! Note that these Danishes are best when freshly baked.
Notes
- Bring Ingredients to Room Temperature: Ensure the cream cheese and sour cream are at room temperature for a smoother filling that blends easily without lumps.
- Don’t Skip the Zest: Lemon zest adds a bright flavor that really elevates the filling.
- Egg Wash for Shine: Brush the pastries with an egg wash (egg mixed with a bit of water) before baking for a beautiful golden color and a professional finish.
- Control the Oven Temperature: Bake at a high temperature (around 400°F) to ensure the pastry puffs up and gets crispy. Use a baking stone or preheated baking sheet for even better results.
- Drizzle the Glaze While Warm: Apply the glaze while the danishes are still warm for better adhesion and a delightful melt-in-your-mouth experience.
Nutritional Information
Recipe by: Chavez Adams / Butter, Love & Salt | Photography by: Jess Gaertner
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