These are amazing! Don't be intimidated by the shape and size. This Danish isn't any more difficult to make than cinnamon rolls. In fact, once you get the hang of it, I'd wager it's easier than cinnamon rolls. The lemon cream cheese filling contrasting with the tasty raspberries is one of those amazing flavor combinations that will leave you wanting more... and more. Enjoy!
Raspberry-Lemon Cream Cheese Danish - Fresh out of the oven!
Served with powdered sugar
Raspberry-Lemon Cream Cheese Danish
Makes 2 Danish rings
The
dough in this recipe is the same used in the cinnamon rolls. If you like, you
can make one Danish and one 8x8 pan of cinnamon rolls, which is
what I like to do! Just use a half
recipe for filling/frosting as in the cinnamon roll recipe for your cinnamon
rolls, and use half the filling called for here.
Prepare
filling:
Mix thoroughly in a bowl, then set
aside:
8 oz
cream cheese, softened
2
Tbsp ricotta
Zest
of 2 lemons
2
tsp vanilla extract
1
cup powdered sugar
Rinse and set to dry:
2
cups fresh raspberries
This is filling for half a recipe (since I made cinnamon rolls, too!)
Prepare
dough:
Preheat oven to 350F. (I do this so I can sit things on to top of a
warm oven to rise)
Place in a cereal bowl:
3
eggs (still in shells)
Pour warm/hot water over eggs. This will bring them to room temperature.
In a 2 cup measuring cup, heat until
just scalding (90 seconds in the microwave should do it):
¾
cup milk
Immediately add to hot milk (and stir
occasionally to help butter melt):
½
cup butter, chopped into smaller pieces
½
cup sugar
1 ½
tsp salt
In a small measuring cup or bowl
combine:
1/3
cup warm water (110-115F)
4
tsp rapid rise yeast or active dry yeast
1
Tbsp sugar
Let yeast rest 5 minutes to foam and
allow milk mixture to cool a bit.
Meanwhile, mix in a large bowl:
4 ½
cups Kristin’s Gluten-Free Flour Mix *
(see note at bottom of recipe for measurement amounts for just this recipe)
2
tsp xanthan gum (this is in addition to the xanthan
gum in the flour mix)
Add to the flour mixture:
3 warmed
eggs (you can add these to
the milk)
Milk
mixture
Yeast
mixture
Mix well with a spoon, using the back
of the spoon to help make the mixture nice and smooth. Let this sit just a moment while you prepare
the filling.
Line two large sheets of plastic wrap
side by side on the counter, overlapping a bit. 2-3 foot long pieces work well.
Spoon out half of the dough and place along the middle of the plastic wrap.
Pull out another two large sheets of
slightly overlapping plastic wrap to cover the dough. You’ll then flatten out the dough between the
sheets until you have – more or less – a 10”x20” piece of dough.
Try to make it nice and even. (You
can try to make the middle a bit thicker than the top and bottom since you’ll
be folding it over, so then you’ll effectively double the amount of dough where
it joins together. But don’t worry too much!)
You have to slightly adjust the plastic
wrap as you’re flattening the dough, since it sometimes gets caught underneath
the dough. But, you’ll find the dough
doesn’t stick to the cling wrap, which is fantastic! Carefully remove the top layer of plastic
wrap.
Spread half of the cream cheese mixture
over the dough, leaving a good 1-2 inches at the top and bottom. Sprinkle with half of the fresh raspberries.
Carefully fold the dough in half, using
the plastic wrap to help you lift it up and over itself. Pull the plastic wrap back and use the other
side of the plastic wrap to help lift and fold the bottom back onto itself, as
shown in the picture.
Fold the dough in half long-wise, using the plastic wrap to help
Fold back the edge onto the top of the dough, to form a log
You’ll have to carefully lift the
plastic-wrapped log over to your cookie sheet. You’ll want to roll the middle of your log onto
the cookie sheet and wrap the others around to form a circle. This is a little tricky the first time you
try it, but you can use the plastic wrap to help you adjust the circle and
stick the ends together. Don’t touch the dough with your hands, use
plastic wrap. You can use the
plastic wrap to help you widen the center of your circle once it’s on the pan.
I used the plastic wrap to help widen the center hole, and make a nice circular shape
Using a serrated knife, gently cut
slices around the Danish, widening the sliced areas a tiny bit using the knife
to help you.
Carefully sliced Danish
Cover your cookie sheet with an
upside-down cookie sheet and set in a warm location to rise 30-45 minutes. (alternatively, you can butter some plastic
wrap and set that over the dough). The dough won’t double in size, but should
look like it’s puffed up a bit.
It looks very similar when risen, and will just look like it's puffed up a bit, not doubled.
Repeat with other ½ of dough, OR flatten
dough and fill like cinnamon rolls.
Bake each Danish at 350F for 25-30
minutes, until nicely browned on top. Set cookie sheet on wire rack to cool.
Slice and sprinkle with powdered sugar
to serve!
Ahhh! Look at those raspberries!
These freeze really well and heat up
quickly in the microwave! We slice and pop them
into tupperwares once cooled and pull out and reheat on a plate for
snacks/breakfast/treats. Enjoy!
* If
you don’t want to make up the flour mix since you’d have to make it twice for
this recipe, just use the following:
2 cups brown rice flour
1 cup sorghum flour
¾ cup + 1 Tbsp cornstarch OR 2/3 cup
arrowroot starch
¼ cup + 1 Tbsp potato starch
¼ cup + 1 Tbsp tapioca starch
1 ½ tsp xanthan gum (ideally measure 1
1/3 tsp)
just found this post and it looks amazing! do you think it could be made dairy free as well? I was thinking coconut milk, earth balance and soy cream cheese. not sure what I'd do for the ricotta though and I would prefer an alternative the soy cream cheese...hmmm.
ReplyDeleteThanks! It is really tasty. I think you could definitely use coconut milk. I've not done much cooking with earth balance, but definitely give it a try. Sometimes different moisture amounts in the dough can alter the final texture, so you'll just have to experiment. For such a small amount of ricotta, you could easily leave it out. I've not used soy cream cheese, either, and I know sometimes soy products can have a bit stronger flavor, so you might find you need to add a bit extra lemon flavor and sugar to counteract the flavor. Good luck and happy cooking!
DeleteFound this recipe several months ago, knowing I'd save it to make for my husband's birthday...he's missed cheese Danishes since needing to go gf three years ago. Made these this morning and they were a hit! Thanks for a great recipe!
ReplyDelete