Cherry Cheese Danish

Food and prop styling by Shiri Feldman
Food prep and styling by Chef Suzie Gornish
Photography by Felicia Perretti

This heavenly Danish, made with a soft, buttery pastry, is a welcome addition to any cake platter. Needless to say, it tastes much better than the bakery’s! Be forewarned — it’s addictive!

YIELDS 26 LARGE OR 35 MEDIUM DANISH

• 2¼ tsp dry yeast
• ¼ cup warm water
• 1 cup warm milk
• 1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• ¾ cup butter, at room temperature, divided
• ⅓ cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 scant tsp salt
• ¼ tsp vanilla extract
• 5 cups flour, divided (I used white spelt)
• 2 tsp dough enhancer (optional, but recommended)
• cinnamon and sugar, for sprinkling
• egg, for glazing

Danish Filling

• 1 8-oz (225 g) container 3% or 5% quark cheese
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla sugar
• 1 20-oz (570-g) can cherry pie filling

Dissolve yeast in warm water in the bowl of a mixer. Let sit for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, add the lemon juice to the warm milk. Add it to the yeast mixture, along with ¹⁄₄ cup butter, sugar, eggs, salt, vanilla, 2 cups flour, and dough enhancer, if using. Beat until smooth.