Description
A delicious homemade Danish pastry featuring a sweet cream cheese filling encased in flaky puff pastry. This elegant breakfast treat combines the richness of cream cheese with the buttery layers of puff pastry for a bakery-quality result that’s surprisingly simple to create at home.
Ingredients
Scale
- Cream Cheese Mixture
- 8 ounces full fat cream cheese, room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Egg Wash
- 1 large egg
- 1 ½ teaspoon water
- Glaze Drizzle
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoon milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pastry
- 1 box puff pastry sheets (2 sheets)
Instructions
- Preheat and Prepare: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. This ensures your Danish won’t stick to the pan and makes for easy cleanup after baking.
- Make Cream Cheese Filling: In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add sugar and vanilla, then beat for 2 more minutes until smooth and well combined. The cream cheese should be completely smooth without any lumps for the best texture.
- Prepare the Pastry: Gently open up the mostly thawed puff pastry sheet and roll a few times on a lightly floured surface until square. Be careful not to roll too thin as you want to maintain the layers that create the flaky texture.
- Add Filling: Spoon half of the cream cheese mixture down the center of each puff pastry sheet, leaving about 1½ inches free from filling at each end. This space will allow you to seal the ends properly.
- Create End Closures: Cut two slits at each end of pastry about 1 inch long and fold over the top of the filling, securing the ends to prevent the filling from leaking out while baking.
- Make Side Cuts: Cut off the top and bottom side pieces at an angle and continue to make cuts into the pastry along each side, making sure not to cut too close to the filling. These cuts will create the strips needed for braiding.
- Braid the Pastry: Once the ends have been secured, start folding each piece over each other in an alternating pattern like a braid, pressing gently to secure. This creates the classic Danish braid appearance.
- Apply Egg Wash: In a small bowl, whisk together egg and water to create an egg wash. Brush this mixture over both pastries. The egg wash will give your Danish a beautiful golden color when baked.
- Bake to Perfection: Place the braided pastries on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. The pastry should be puffed up and flaky.
- Glaze the Danish: While the Danish is cooling, mix together powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth to create the glaze. Once the Danish has cooled slightly, drizzle the glaze over the top for a sweet finishing touch.
Notes
- For best results, allow the puff pastry to thaw just until it’s workable but still cold. Overhandling or using warm pastry will prevent it from rising properly. You can add fresh fruit like berries or peach slices to the cream cheese filling for variation. Store leftover Danish in the refrigerator for up to 3 days and reheat briefly in the oven to restore flakiness.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Danish
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/8 of recipe)
- Calories: 320
- Sugar: 14g
- Sodium: 210mg
- Fat: 21g
- Saturated Fat: 8g
- Unsaturated Fat: 12g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 28g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 5g
- Cholesterol: 45mg