Cheese Danish (Shortcut)

Before you start

A real cheese danish starts with a laminated yeast dough, but good all-butter puff pastry gets you most of the way there in under an hour and a half. Each square is scored to make a raised border, filled with sweetened cream cheese brightened with lemon, and baked until the pastry is tall and the filling just set.

Two things decide success. The pastry must stay cold so it puffs in clean layers, and the center must be docked and filled with a stiff filling so it bakes flat while the border rises around it. A single egg yolk in the filling sets it like a small cheesecake; the leftover white goes into the egg wash.

Ingredients

• Pastry2 sheets (about 490 g total) frozen puff pastry — thawed but cold
• 1 large egg white — beaten with 1 tbsp water, for brushing
• Filling225 g (8 oz) full-fat block cream cheese — softened
• 50 g (¼ cup) granulated sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp lemon juice — plus the finely grated zest of ½ lemon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Glaze60 g (½ cup) powdered sugar — for an optional glaze
• 2 to 3 tsp milk

Method

1. Beat the cream cheese, sugar, egg yolk, flour, lemon juice, zest and vanilla with a spatula until smooth and thick. Refrigerate while you prepare the pastry.
2. Unfold one pastry sheet on a lightly floured counter and roll it just enough to smooth the creases, to about 25 cm (10 in) square. Cut into 4 squares. Repeat with the second sheet and space the 8 squares on parchment-lined sheets.
3. With the tip of a knife, score a border 1.5 cm (½ in) in from the edge of each square, cutting partway through. Prick the center inside the border all over with a fork.
4. Brush the borders with egg wash, keeping it off the cut edges so they rise freely. Spoon about 2 heaping tablespoons (35 g) of filling into each center and spread it level.
5. Refrigerate the sheets for 15 minutes while the oven heats to 200°C (400°F).
6. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, one sheet at a time or rotating the sheets halfway, until the borders are puffed and deep golden, the undersides are browned and the filling looks set with no shine in the middle.
7. Cool on the sheets for 15 minutes. Whisk the powdered sugar and milk into a thin glaze and drizzle it over if you like.

Tips for success

• Block cream cheese, not the spreadable tub kind, gives a filling that holds its shape instead of running.
• If the centers puff up during baking, press them down gently with the back of a spoon after 8 minutes.
• A spoonful of jam or lemon curd on top of the cheese before baking makes a two-tone danish.

Substitutions

Puff pastry

Refrigerated crescent dough sheets bake into softer, bread-like danishes with less shatter. Bake at 190°C (375°F) for about 12 minutes.

Cream cheese

Use half well-drained ricotta for a lighter, slightly grainy filling closer to an Italian pastry.

Egg white wash

Brush with milk or cream for an egg-free shine. The color will be lighter and less glossy.

Troubleshooting

Borders did not rise

The pastry warmed up or egg wash glued the cut edges. Keep it cold, chill before baking and brush only the top surface.

Filling ran over the sides

Too much filling or soft tub cream cheese. Use block cheese, keep to 35 g each and press the center flat before filling.

Pale, soggy bottoms

Underbaked or the oven ran cool. Bake until the underside is browned and check the oven with a thermometer.

Storage

Cream cheese filling is perishable. Refrigerate cooled danishes within 2 hours in a covered container for up to 3 days, and crisp them in a 175°C (350°F) oven for 5 minutes before serving.

Safety notes

The filling contains raw egg yolk until baked; bake until it is set. Do not leave filled pastries at room temperature for more than 2 hours. Contains wheat, milk and egg.