You don't need to be an expert baker to bring these Mini Apple Cream Cheese Danish pastries to life. All the hard work is done for you thanks to some frozen puff pastry. They're soft, warm, gooey, and sweet—the perfect little treats!
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You'll love these Mini Apple Cream Cheese Danish Pastries
Do you like toaster strudel? These Mini Apple Cream Cheese Danish pastries are the ultimate adult version according to my boyfriend, Jack! And after sinking my teeth into these, I have to agree. I love the bites of baked apples, gooey cream cheese, warm puff pastry, and sweet powdered sugar!
Premade puff pastry is the way to go here. Find them in the frozen section right by the pies. They make baking these danishes so simple and easy, especially if you don't consider yourself a baker. There's no reason you can't bring these delicious bites to life as an appetizer or dessert!
Ingredients for these Mini Apple Cream Cheese Danish Pastries
Rockit™ Apples: I used 9 of these mini apples. They're absolutely perfect for this recipe!
Puff Pastry Dough: I picked some up in the freezer section of the grocery store.
Flour: I used all purpose flour.
Cream Cheese: We want this to be softened, so leave out to come to room temperature before you get ready to assemble the danish.
Sugar: I used cane sugar.
Vanilla Extract: This will bring out alllll the warm flavors in this sweet and savory treat.
Lemon Juice: To balance out our flavors. No, you won't taste it!
Egg White: We'll use this as a wash for the pastries.
Powdered Sugar: The perfect way to top of these bites of deliciousness!
kitchen equipment you'll need
To make these Apple Cream Cheese Danishes, you will need a baking sheet, mixing bowl, cutting board, knife, measuring cups + spoons, hand mixer, piping bag, and a pizza cutter.
Let's make these Mini Apple Cream Cheese Danish Pastries
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Lightly flour a surface and spread room temperature pastry dough flat.
- Using a pizza cutter or a knife, slice the pastry into 18 equal squares.
- In a mixing bowl, beat softened cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Then, scoop mixture into a piping bag and use to fill pastry squares with batter. You can also do this with a spoon.
- Slice Rockit™ Apples thinly and layer onto cheese + pastry combo.
- Fold the puff pastries into squares and brush with egg wash.
- Gently twist the four corners of each pastry together to wrap the cheese filling. Then, sprinkle with cane sugar.
- Bake for 15 minutes and enjoy!
All of your FAQs
How should I store these Mini Apple Cream Cheese Danish pastries?
Store these in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Do you have any tips for success?
Be sure to ‘twist’ the puff pastry so it’s tight before baking. If you need, use egg wash on your hands to then wrap it. It will help it ‘stick’ a bit more. Also, allow the puff pastry to completely thaw before using it. It will greatly help the baking process.
What happens if the danish expand when cooking?
Depending on how well each pastry puff is tied on the top, some might ‘untie’ and the cheese will expand. If you don't want this to happen and want to maintain the presentation, fill the danish with less cream cheese filling or omit the apples.
Do I have to use cream cheese?
I like to use cream cheese because it’s spreadable, but other soft cheeses will also work! Brie would also be delicious. I would just use less sugar to make it more savory.
Any suggestions on how to change up this recipe?
Try adding cinnamon! If you use cinnamon sugar (3 parts sugar to one part cinnamon) instead of plain cane sugar, your danish will take on apple pie flavors. And to make this extra indulgent, you could swap the powdered sugar dusting for a sweet glaze instead. The frosting recipe on my Peach Pound Cake would work great for this.
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Mini Apple Cream Cheese Danishes
Equipment
- Baking sheet
- Mixing Bowl
- Cutting Board
- Knife
- measuring cups / spoons
- Hand Mixer
- Piping bag
- Pizza Cutter
Ingredients
- 9 Rockit™ Apples
- 2 packs of frozen puff pastry
- 1-2 tbsp all purpose flour
- 8 oz softened cream cheese
- ½ cup cane sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- ¼ cup egg white wash
- 1 tbsp powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Lightly flour a surface and spread room temperature pastry dough flat.
- Using a pizza cutter or a knife, slice the pastry into 18 equal squares.
- In a mixing bowl, beat softened cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Then, scoop mixture into a piping bag and use to fill pastry squares with batter. You can also do this with a spoon.
- Slice Rockit™ Apples thinly and layer onto cheese + pastry combo.
- Fold the puff pastries into squares and brush with egg wash.
- Gently twist the four corners of each pastry together to wrap the cheese filling. Then, sprinkle with cane sugar.
- Bake for 15 minutes and enjoy!
Notes
I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below. It's my passion to create dishes that can be shared with others. Tell me something you loved, something that you think it might need, or just say hi!
Looking for this in MyFitnessPal?
If you're using MyFitnessPal, search 'A Paige Of Positivity' and find Apple and Cheese Danishes
1 serving (1 danish): 15 grams Carbs | 8 grams Fat | 2 gram Protein
**Disclaimer: for most accurate macronutrients and caloric breakdown, it is recommended that you input each ingredient into your MyFitnessPal food diary.
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