The Fearless Baker

Cherry-Cheese Danish

Danish pastries are wonderful: They can be adjusted to suit your mood—you can raid your fridge for potential fillings based on what you have. This recipe is perfect for riffing on—the cream cheese base will work with nearly any kind of fruit, but I especially love it with sour cherries. If you’re not up to making your own puff pastry, you can use store-bought, but it won’t have the same yeasty flavor.

Makes 10 pastries

Difficulty: Medium

Make Ahead and Storage: These pastries are best the day they are made, but you can store leftovers airtight at room temperature for up to 2 days.

½ recipe Yeasted Puff Pastry Dough
227 g / 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
99 g / ½ cup granulated sugar
57 g / 1 large egg
5 g / 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 g / ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
340 g / 2 cups pitted sour cherries
Egg wash: 57 g / 1 large egg, beaten with 15 g / 1 tablespoon water and a small pinch of fine sea salt
41 g / 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon turbinado or coarse sugar

1. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to a ¼-inch-thick rectangle about 8 by 20 inches. Cut into ten 4-inch squares. Transfer the squares to the prepared baking sheets. Cover with greased plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until nearly doubled in size, 35 to 45 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 400°F / 204°C, with racks in the upper and lower thirds.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large bowl, using a hand mixer), cream the cream cheese and granulated sugar on medium-low speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the egg and mix well on medium speed. Scrape down the bowl, then add the vanilla and cinnamon and mix to combine.

5. Scoop 28 g / 2 tablespoons of the cream cheese filling onto the center of each pastry square, then spread it a bit so it covers most of the surface, leaving about ¼ inch uncovered on all sides. Top the filling on each pastry with 34 g / scant ¼ cup of the cherries.

6. Brush the edges of the dough with the egg wash. Sprinkle 4 g / 1 teaspoon of the turbinado sugar on top of the cherries on each pastry. Bake the pastries until the dough is evenly golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.

✻ Why It Works

Yeasted puff pastry is the ideal dough for Danish. Light and crisp, it’s a blank canvas for fillings of all sorts—fresh or dried fruit, chocolate, or nuts, to name a few.

★ Pro Tip

Experiment with Danish shapes (see Shaping Pastries). Some shapes require you to cut the dough in a way that will leave scraps behind. Cut the scraps of dough into bite-size pieces and toss them in cinnamon sugar, then group them into rounds on a parchment-lined baking sheet (a single layer of dough about 3 inches in diameter works for me. Drop 16 g / 1 tablespoon of cream cheese filling onto the center of each round. Bake at 400°F / 204°C until golden and crisp, 15 to 20 minutes.