Cheese Danish
- Total Time
- 1 hour, plus several hours for resting and making dough
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 8ounces/226 grams cream cheese
- 1¼cup/160 grams confectioners’ sugar
- 1large egg yolk
- Pinch of salt
- ½teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1batch Danish dough (see recipe)
- 1large egg, lightly beaten
- 2tablespoons/30 milliliters whole milk
Nutritional analysis per serving (9 servings)
240 calories; 11 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 32 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 20 grams sugars; 5 grams protein; 246 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, ¼ cup/32 grams confectioners’ sugar, the egg yolk, the salt and the vanilla until smooth. Transfer the mixture to a resealable plastic bag; set aside.
- Step 2
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out into a 12½-inch square. Trim ¼ inch off each edge. Cut the dough into nine 4-inch squares. Brush the corners of each square with a bit of the beaten egg, then fold each corner into the center and press down gently. Transfer the squares to 2 parchment-lined baking sheets.
- Step 3
Cut the tip off one corner of the filled plastic bag so you have a ½-inch hole. Use the bag to pipe the cheese filling onto the center of each dough square. Loosely cover the pastries with plastic wrap and let stand until slightly puffed, about 1 hour to 1 hour 20 minutes. Heat oven to 425 degrees.
- Step 4
Remove the plastic and gently brush the top and sides of the dough with the beaten egg. Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the sheets and reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees. Continue to bake until pastries are puffed and deep golden brown, another 6 to 8 minutes.
- Step 5
Meanwhile, whisk together the remaining 1 cup/128 grams confectioners’ sugar and the milk. Let the Danish cool slightly on the sheet then drizzle with the glaze. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Private Notes
Comments
The recipe states "Loosely cover the pastries with plastic wrap and let stand until slightly puffed, about 1 hour to 1 hour 20 minutes". I did this, but this being the first time I've made puff pastry I left it out since it didn't specify to refrigerate. After baking and cutting into one, I realized it was under-baked because it needs to stay cold up until it goes into the oven (according to some forums) Is this correct?
Flavor was great, just disappointed with the dough.
Made this recipe according to the directions and found it to be much too sticky for a pastry dough. Had to add another cup of flour (as well as 1/4 cup more milk and 2 tbsp more sugar) to make this dough more manageable for rolling out for a pastry.
Please explain your disappointment. Others cannot benefit if we don't know why the recipe didn't work for you. Thanks.
YAY! Very first time making any type of laminated pastry and while they def do not look like my hero’s Jacques Pepin’s handiwork, I’m happy i can see layers and they puffed up. Thanks NYT Cooking. My only problem was the 90 degree turn. Wish there was a way that a little diagram could be put at the bottom of the recipe to help dolts like myself!
POV - When your newbie self stops food processing before the butter chunks are the size of "small marbles or peas" and are more the size of jumbo blueberries, which leads to there still being visible chunks of butter in the dough, even after the six trifold envelope rolling procedure. So you pray all night, hoping the danishes will still turn out okay in the morning. And the next day, your niece tells you that she doesn't even know what a cheese danish is, so you explain, and add that the only thing better than a cheese danish is a blueberry cheese danish. To which she quips, "We have blueberries, why don't you add them?" Brilliant. And the moment finally arrives to put these lovelies in the oven, but your family is stressing you out at that particular moment, and you accidentally put them in before the oven has reached 425 degrees or anywhere close. When you do realize after about ten minutes, it also becomes apparent that the brilliant blueberry addition has been forgotten. So you add the blueberries and do the whole pan rotation thing, all while still letting the temperature climb to 425 degrees, which it never fully reaches before the danishes are done. But it all turns out fine. And the danishes are perfect. Some with blueberries and some with just cheese. And your niece says, "I love it, thank you!"
Despite a few missteps on my part, these turned out fabulous! Plopped a few fresh blueberries on the cheese of a few. Yum!