Apple Cream Cheese Danish

Flaky pastry, sweet cream cheese, caramelized apples and caramel drizzle is what you get when you make this delicious apple cream cheese danish.

Fall season is finally here! This means lots of fall bakes. Especially apple baked goods with a hint of cinnamon and caramel. An irresistible combo! This apple cream cheese danish checks all the boxes. You won’t be able to resits this tasty treat especially when its warm out of the oven. Soft, flaky dough filled with warm, crunchy caramelized apples, cream cheese filling and drizzled with caramel. So delicious!

I always thought that making danishes from scratch is difficult. But I was wrong. After adapting my sweet roll dough recipe, I realized how simple it actually is! The dough turns out so soft, yet slightly flaky at the same time. Making it perfect for a braided danish! Although the dough does take a little bit of extra time to prepare, it’s definitely worth the effort!

What’s in the apple cream cheese danish?

The filling

The danish is filled with cream cheese and apples. The cream cheese is not too sweet making it perfect for the apples. Apples are caramelized in a skillet with a little bit of sugar, cinnamon and thickened with water/cornstarch mixture.

The dough

The dough is simple to make. You will be resting the dough twice before baking. The way the dough is rolled out is a little bit different then other dough’s. You will fold, rotate and roll. This creates layers within the dough. Lots of butter goes into the dough which helps create the flaky layers. So lets get started!

How to make the dough

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water and ½ teaspoon of sugar. Cover and let it proof for 5-10 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the butter and flour. Cut cold butter into squares. Place half the flour in a food processor or blender, add the butter, then add the rest of the flour. Pulse a few seconds at a time. You want the mixture to resemble crumbs. It’s okay if you have large and small bits of butter. Set aside.

Once the mixture has proofed add the warm milk, eggs, and the remaining sugar. Whisk until combined.

Add in the flour/butter mixture. Mix with a spoon until combined. The dough will be a bit sticky. Spoon the dough and cover the dough in plastic wrap. Chill in refrigerator for at least 4-5 hours or overnight.

Once the dough is chilled you are ready to roll it out. Place the dough on a floured surface and roll out into a large rectangle. Fold the dough into thirds like a you would fold a letter. Rotate the dough 45 degrees and roll it out again into a large rectangle. This is called a turn. (fold, rotate, roll) Do this for a total of 3 times. Once you turned the dough three times and rolled it out. Fold into thirds, transfer the dough to plastic wrap and cover with plastic wrap. Return to the refrigerator and let it rest for 45 minutes or up to 1 hour.

Once the dough has chilled repeat the turns three more times. So you will be making a total of 6 turns all together. Refrigerate the dough until ready to use.

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Making the caramelized apples and cream cheese

I recommend making the apples and cream cheese while the dough is resting. That way everything is ready when you are done making the dough.

Making the apple filling: Peel, core and cut the apples into slightly thick slices. Melt ½ teaspoon of coconut oil in a large skillet. Add the apples, cinnamon, nutmeg, coconut sugar and vanilla extract. Cook the apples until they are slightly tender. This takes up to 5 minutes. Add the cornstarch/water mixture and cook until the sauce thickened. Set aside.

Making the cream cheese filling: Beat cream cheese, sugar, egg yolk and vanilla extract until combined. Set aside.

Assembling the apple cream cheese danish

Roll out the dough into a large rectangle. (you can either cut the dough in half, making two medium sized danishes or make one big danish)

Spread cream cheese filling into the center of the danish. Top with apples. Drizzle with caramel. Braid the dough.

Braiding the dough: Cut 1 inch slits on both sides of the danish making sure you have the same amount on both sides. Fold the top portion of the dough into the cream cheese. Then fold the right slit to the left, then the left slit to the right. Continue this process until you reached the last slits. Fold the bottom portion of the dough into the cream cream cheese. Then seal with the last two slits.

Brush with egg wash and bake until danish is dark golden brown. Drizzle with caramel.

Baking the Apple Danish

Bake the apple cream cheese danish for 40-50 minutes. You can start by baking it either on the middle rack or the middle lower rack. ( I usually bake my danish on the middle rack, and if it starts getting dark I switch the rack to a lower position) If the danish starts getting dark on the top cover it with foil and continue baking until the dough is cooked.

Tips

• If you don’t have a food processor or a blender you cut cut the butter into the dough using a pastry cutter. The mixture should resembles crumbs. If you have larger bits of butter in the mixture that is okay. The butter will be rolled out with the dough. If you will be using a blender, stir the flour and butter after every pulse. This helps all the butter to be cut into the flour.
• Do not skip chilling the dough. Chilling the dough helps the butter firm up again. Making it easier to work with.

Substitutions

• Coconut oil and coconut sugar can be substituted for unsalted butter and brown sugar.
• Apple can be substituted for any kind of fruit. If you will be using a different fruit skip cooking the fruit as it won’t be necessary.
• I prefer using honey crisp apples. They add sweetness and stay slightly crunchy when cooked and baked. But you can substitute any kind of apple.
• I prefer using whole milk as it adds richness to the dough. But you can use any kind of milk.

Other apple and pastry recipes you might like

• Apple Pie Parfaits
• Nectarine Danish Filled with Cream Cheese

If you made this recipe I would love to hear from you! Rate and comment below. I would love to see your creation! Share your photo by tagging tasty_treat_pantry on Instagram.

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