Description
These chocolate cream cheese danishes are made using frozen puff pastry. This recipe is easy to make. They have a cream cheese filling that gets baked with the pastry. They are topped with chocolate ganache frosting after they cool. The pastry gives you loads of flaky pastry layers.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 Frozen puff pastry sheets
- 8 oz Cream cheese (room temperature)
- 1/3 cup White granulated sugar
- 2 tsp Pure vanilla extract
- 1 Large egg (for egg wash)
- 1 tsp Water (for egg wash)
- 1 cup Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 3/4 cup Heavy cream
Instructions
- Place frozen puff pastry on the counter for 30 minutes to thaw.
- While you wait for the pastry to thaw, make the chocolate ganache. Pour chocolate chips in a bowl. Heat heavy cream in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Heat until steaming. Pour hot cream over chocolate chips.
- Let sit for 1 minute and 30 seconds. Stir gently until smooth. If any chocolate chunks remain, heat in the microwave for 15 second intervals. Stir well in between. Let sit for 2 hours at room temperature until ‘pudding like’ in texture.
- In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese using a hand mixer. Beat on high for 1 minute. Add in sugar and beat again for 1 minute. Mix in vanilla.
- Place frozen pastry sheets on a lightly floured surface. Use your fingers to push the seams together. Use a sharp knife and cut pastry into thirds. Cut along the seams for 3 long rectangles.
- Cut each rectangle in half to get 6 rectangles. Repeat with the other sheet. Mix the egg and water together. Use a pastry brush and spread the egg wash around the edge of each rectangle.
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Place the rectangles on the cookie sheet. 6 per sheet. For each rectangle, use a sharp knife and cut another rectangle shape along each rectangle of pastry leaving a 1/2 inch edge. Don’t cut all the way down. This gives the pastry the ability to rise around the filling.
- Spoon 1 TBSP of filling on each square. Spread the filling inside each ‘box’.
- Place 1 sheet in the fridge and 1 in the freezer. Let the sheet in the freezer sit for 5 minutes before baking. This gets the butter in the pastry cold again.
- Bake 1 sheet at a time. Bake for 17-20 minutes. Bake until the pastry is golden brown. Let cool completely and then bake the next sheet.
- Spoon chocolate on top of the cream cheese filling once pastry is cool. Make sure some of the cream cheese is showing around the edges of the chocolate.
Notes
- Once you bake these danishes, the cream cheese filling will sink as it cools. This is normal.
- After the chocolate ganache is made, stir it periodically. This will help make sure no film develops on top, and it also helps you to see how the ganache is doing.
- Once the pastry is done cooling completely and after both sheets are baked, the chocolate should be ready. It will be like a chocolate pudding in texture.
- It will be thick enough to spread on top of the danishes.
- Store the chocolate cream cheese danishes at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 18 minutes
- Category: Pies and Pastries
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 danish
- Calories: 226kcal
- Sugar: 12g
- Sodium: 68mg
- Fat: 18g
- Saturated Fat: 10g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6g
- Trans Fat: 1g
- Carbohydrates: 15g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 42mg