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Leftover Cranberry Sauce Cheese Danish
If you’ve got holiday leftovers, make these Leftover Cranberry Sauce Cheese Danish, topped with orange flavored icing! This crowd-pleasing pastry uses a half cup of leftover cranberry sauce to make an incredible breakfast or dessert!
- Total Time45 minutes
- Yield6 pastries 1x
Ingredients
Scale
For the danish:
- 1 sheet puff pastry, slightly thawed
- 1 egg, white and yolk separated
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- zest and juice of 1 navel orange (divided)
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 1/2 cup leftover cranberry sauce (canned or whole berry)
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
For the icing:
- 2/3 cup powdered sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons orange juice
Instructions
- Prepare the pastry: Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a rimmed half sheet pan with parchment paper. Unfold the puff pastry and lay it on a clean flat surface. Use a knife or pizza cutter to cut the sheet into six even sized rectangles. You can use the original fold lines as a guide to cut into thirds, then cut each third in half. Next, use a knife to gently score (but not cut!) around the edge of each rectangle, making a border approximately 1/2 inch wide. This acts a guide for fillings and helps the edges rise. Place the rectangles evenly spaced on the sheet pan.
- Egg wash: Separate the egg white and egg yolk if not done so already. Set the yolk aside for later. Whisk the egg white with 1 tablespoon of the orange juice to make the egg wash. Use a pastry brush to apply egg wash to the border of each pastry rectangle.
- Mix the fillings: In a small mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, egg yolk, 1/2 of the orange zest, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, and pinch of salt. Mix until smooth (it’s okay if there are a few small lumps). In another small mixing bowl, combine the cranberry sauce with 1 tablespoon orange juice, remaining orange zest, and cornstarch. Mix until well combined. Save the remaining orange juice for the icing.
- Add toppings: Divide the cream cheese mixture between the six pastry rectangles. Spread it out inside the center rectangle, keeping within the scored border lines created earlier. Next, divide the cranberry sauce mixture between the six pastry rectangles by adding a scoop on top of the cream cheese. Spread it out a bit but let the cream cheese peek out the sides.
- Bake: Bake in the preheated oven for 12-14 minutes, or until the pastry is puffed and golden brown to your liking. The cream cheese portion will deflate slightly as they cool, which is expected. Use a flat spatula to transfer to a cooling rack.
- Make the icing: While the danish cool, make the icing. In a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon orange juice, then mix until a thin icing forms. Add additional 1/2 tablespoons of orange juice as needed, mixing in between. If you run out of orange juice, use milk or cream. The icing should drizzle off the spoon in a thin but constant stream.
- Serve & store: Once cooled for at least 15 minutes, drizzle the icing on top of each danish and serve while still slightly warm. Leftover danish can be stored covered on the counter for up to 2 days.
Notes
Cranberry Sauce: You can use either canned or whole berry for this recipe. I noticed the whole berry had a bit more moisture. If your sauce is quite thin, use 2 teaspoons cornstarch instead of 1.
Double batch: You can easily make a double batch of this recipe with 1 cup of leftover cranberry sauce. I recommend using a hand mixer to beat the double cream cheese mixture!
Nutrition information estimated from My Fitness Pal.
- Prep Time: 31 minutes
- Cook Time: 14 minutes
- Category: Sweets
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Danish
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 pastry
- Calories: 364
- Fat: 18g
- Carbohydrates: 44g
- Protein: 5g