danish

Cranberry Kolaches

Cranberry Kolaches by Wood and Spoonn blog. These are little puffy sweat yeast parties filled with a homemade cinnamon and cranberry jam or sugared cream cheese filling. Each bite has a little simple crumble on top and is a great breakfast brunch or dessert option. Learn more about the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com.

People ask me all the time if I ever have any kitchen failures. Let’s just LOL at that one. As with anything, particularly a craft that is heavily dependent on time, temperature, ingredients, skill, measurements, and, oh yeah, SCIENCE, baking is one of those things that just comes with a mixed bag of results. Some recipes are a win, an instant classic, while others require a million tries. Anytime I step into the kitchen, I’m expecting (read: hoping and praying for) great results, but there’s absolutely zero guarantees. Baking mishaps are a real thing.

Cranberry Kolaches by Wood and Spoonn blog. These are little puffy sweat yeast parties filled with a homemade cinnamon and cranberry jam or sugared cream cheese filling. Each bite has a little simple crumble on top and is a great breakfast brunch or dessert option. Learn more about the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com.

Cranberry Kolaches

I set out to make these cranberry kolaches after seeing seeing them freckled about the internet over the past few months. For some time, it seemed as if these European-born pastries were on their way to stardom, and I was bound and determined to wrangle a recipe I could be proud to share on this website. It couldn’t be that hard, right? After all, I’ve made babka! Brioche! The 17-try swirl bread! Cranberry kolaches were bound to be a walk in the park, right?

Cranberry Kolaches by Wood and Spoonn blog. These are little puffy sweat yeast parties filled with a homemade cinnamon and cranberry jam or sugared cream cheese filling. Each bite has a little simple crumble on top and is a great breakfast brunch or dessert option. Learn more about the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com.

Wrong. After months of cranking out pies and cakes and cookies, my yeasted dough know-how was rusty. I had to revisit this recipe a number of times before I felt like I could make them without the slightest bit of anxiety or kitchen fury, but finally, I landed on something that is really quite delicious. These cranberry kolaches are sweet and tender goodies for the morning hour, and because I logged the man hours on the backend, you get to try these pastries with confidence! Let’s talk about how to make them.

Cranberry Kolaches by Wood and Spoonn blog. These are little puffy sweat yeast parties filled with a homemade cinnamon and cranberry jam or sugared cream cheese filling. Each bite has a little simple crumble on top and is a great breakfast brunch or dessert option. Learn more about the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com.

Making the Kolaches

The dough for these cranberry kolaches is adapted from my favorite cinnamon bread. Sweet and rich from the addition of sugar, butter, and egg, the dough comes together with milk, activated yeast, and loads of flour. After some time spent rising, small rounds of dough are pinched down and filled with your choice of fillings. First, a fresh cranberry option, tart and only barely sweet, comes together on the stovetop with cinnamon and barely-burst berries. Second, a cream cheese and egg-based filling that is subtle in flavor but seriously delish. I personally prefer a combination of the two, but you can bake and fill with whichever you prefer. Finally, to finish off the cranberry kolaches, we sprinkle on a simple crumb made from flour and granulated sugar. The mixture bakes on the pastries for an extra hint of sweet and a bit of texture. They’re divine!

Cranberry Kolaches by Wood and Spoonn blog. These are little puffy sweat yeast parties filled with a homemade cinnamon and cranberry jam or sugared cream cheese filling. Each bite has a little simple crumble on top and is a great breakfast brunch or dessert option. Learn more about the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com.

As with any of the refined baked good I opt to make, these cranberry kolaches are made with Kerrygold butter. The dough’s intense richness is 100% thanks to the helping of butter found throughout it, and I am incredibly pleased by how much buttery flavor comes through in the finished product. Kerrygold is aways a favorite choice of mine and this recipe is no exception. I hope you’ll give it a try and pick some up for this recipe next time you visit the store!

If you give these cranberry kolaches a try let me know what you think! Many thanks to Kerrygold for sponsoring this post and many thanks to you all for supporting brands that make Wood and Spoon possible. Happy baking!

Cranberry Kolaches by Wood and Spoonn blog. These are little puffy sweat yeast parties filled with a homemade cinnamon and cranberry jam or sugared cream cheese filling. Each bite has a little simple crumble on top and is a great breakfast brunch or dessert option. Learn more about the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com.

If you like this cranberry kolaches you should try:

Pumpkin Danishes

Breakfast Danish

Brown Sugar Danishes

Cranberry Pear Mini Pop-Tarts

Poached Pear Trifles

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Cranberry Kolaches

These cranberry and cream cheese kolaches are a sweet yeast dough pastry filled with cranberry jam or cream cheese and sprinkled with a crumb topping.

  • Author: Kate
  • Prep Time: 45
  • Cook Time: 25
  • Total Time: 240
  • Yield: 24
  • Category: Pastry

Ingredients

For the dough:

  • 3/4 cup warm milk (not hot or cold)
  • 1/2 cup plus 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 3 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • 3 1/4 cups (about 1 lb) all-purpose flour, with more for flouring surfaces
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 egg yolk, white reserved
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

For the cranberry filling (will fill approximately 12 kolaches):

  • 11/2 cups cranberries
  • ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons cornstarch
  • 2 tablespoons water

For the cream cheese filling (Will fill approximately 16 kolaches):

  • 4 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • 3/4 cup powdered sugar
  • ½ of a lightly beaten egg, the other half reserved.
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Pinch of salt

For the streusel:

  • ½ cup sugar
  • ¼ cup flour
  • Pinch of salt
  • 2 tablespoons melted butter

Instructions

To prepare the dough:

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, stir together the warm milk and 2 teaspoons of sugar. Evenly sprinkle the yeast over top of the milk and allow the yeast to activate, about 5 minutes. The mixture should froth and foam slightly. You can stir it gently to make sure all the yeast has been moistened, but if the yeast does not foam, dump it out and start over. Once yeast has been activated, beat 1/2 cup of the flour in to the milk mixture using the paddle attachment. Once combined, add the remaining sugar, eggs, egg yolk, vanilla, and salt, and beat the mixture on medium speed until combined. On low speed, add the remainder of the flour, 1/2 cup at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Once evenly combined, increase the speed to medium (I use speed number 4 on my Kitchen Aid stand mixer) and add the softened butter 1 tablespoon at a time. Scrape the sides of the bowl and then continue to beat on medium speed for an additional 4 minutes. The dough will be quite moist and sticky, and will hold together in long strands when you attempt to scoop it from the bowl.
  2. Lightly grease a large bowl and place the dough inside, covering it tightly with a piece of plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rest until it has approximately doubled in size, about 1-1/2-2 hours. In the meantime, prepare the fillings.

To prepare the cranberry filling:

  1. All of the ingredients in a small saucepan and place over medium low heat. Cook, stirring and squishing the cranberries regularly, until the mixture is thickened and bubbling, about 8-10 minutes. Set aside to cool completely.

To prepare the cream cheese filling:

  1. Use an electric mixer to combine all of the ingredients. Set aside until ready to use.

To prepare the streusel:

  1. Combine the sugar, flour, and salt. Stir in the melted butter until combined and sandy in texture. Set aside until ready to use.

To prepare the kolaches:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Roll out the risen dough to 1/2 “ thick. Use a 2” cutter to trim out rounds of dough. Lay them out on parchment-lined baking sheets and cover with a piece of plastic wrap or a tea towel. Set aside to allow the dough rounds to rise for approximately 60 minutes or until fluffy. When risen, use your thumb or a floured bottom of a tablespoon-sized measuring spoon to lightly until rounds into the center of the dough. You should leave about ¼-1/2” border around the edge of each round. Whisk the remaining half of the beaten egg with 1 teaspoon of water and use a pastry brush to lightly brush a thin layer of the mixture on top of each pastry. Fill the hole of each kolache with your filling of choice. Approximately half of them will be cream cheese and half will be cranberry. Sprinkle the undented edges of the pastries with the streusel generously. Bake in the preheated oven for about 18-20 minutes or until the pastries are golden and puffed. Remove from oven to cool slightly prior to consuming.

Notes

  • The cranberry filling is rather tart. You can add 1-2 tablespoons of extra sugar to sweeten it after cooking, if desired.

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Pumpkin Danishes

Pumpkin Danishes Recipe by Wood and Spoon. These are fluffy buttery pastries with a simple pumpkin filling and a brown butter glaze. Each danish is small and each batch makes enough to share with a crowd. These are flavored with fall spices and make a really special autumn breakfast baked good. Find the recipe and how to for these danishes on thewoodandspoon.com by Kate Wood.

So you might recall that last weekend was my birthday. We spent Friday and Saturday in Birmingham with friends and family, but the actual day-of was rather standard procedure. Leading up to the day of, Aimee became fixated on preparing me breakfast in bed, and much to her delight, Brett was more than willing to help facilitate.

Pumpkin Danishes Recipe by Wood and Spoon. These are fluffy buttery pastries with a simple pumpkin filling and a brown butter glaze. Each danish is small and each batch makes enough to share with a crowd. These are flavored with fall spices and make a really special autumn breakfast baked good. Find the recipe and how to for these danishes on thewoodandspoon.com by Kate Wood.

I wish I had a picture of her face as she tiptoed into my room that morning. Aimee had filled her tiny plastic tea party tray with miniature cups of orange juice and unicorn cereal, Mickey Mouse waffles and French toast sticks. There were cinnamon rolls and fresh coffee, even a couple of cards and those neon colored daisies that they sell at the grocery store. The whole operation just screamed “ AIMEE DID THIS,” and honestly it was one of the sweetest moments of my motherhood thus far.

Pumpkin Danishes Recipe by Wood and Spoon. These are fluffy buttery pastries with a simple pumpkin filling and a brown butter glaze. Each danish is small and each batch makes enough to share with a crowd. These are flavored with fall spices and make a really special autumn breakfast baked good. Find the recipe and how to for these danishes on thewoodandspoon.com by Kate Wood.

In that moment it was clear that even from a young age humans experience innate joy from celebrating the people they love. Aimee, my four year old who can’t even reach the toaster, took such delight in having a hand  in preparing something that she thought would be so special to me. She celebrated me how she would have wanted to be celebrated, and there’s so much feeling and hormonal heart swelling attached to that memory that I could cry just thinking about it. The breakfast itself was special, yes, but it was really nothing more than frozen waffles. The fun in it all for her was being able to share in something that felt out of the ordinary and celebratory. Even my four year old has figured out that it’s good to celebrate the people you love.

Pumpkin Danishes Recipe by Wood and Spoon. These are fluffy buttery pastries with a simple pumpkin filling and a brown butter glaze. Each danish is small and each batch makes enough to share with a crowd. These are flavored with fall spices and make a really special autumn breakfast baked good. Find the recipe and how to for these danishes on thewoodandspoon.com by Kate Wood.

Pumpkin Danishes

I adore these pumpkin danishes. They’re delicious, equal parts buttery and sweet, but they’re definitely not a run-of-the-mill breakfast food. Danishes take time and tons of intentionality. They’re not something you just whip up on a whim, and honestly, that’s kinda what I like about them. I appreciate how special they feel. I love that they’ve got more gusto than a breakfast bar or bowl of cereal. These pumpkin danishes are a dish that says, “Hey! I love you! Let’s celebrate.”

Pumpkin Danishes Recipe by Wood and Spoon. These are fluffy buttery pastries with a simple pumpkin filling and a brown butter glaze. Each danish is small and each batch makes enough to share with a crowd. These are flavored with fall spices and make a really special autumn breakfast baked good. Find the recipe and how to for these danishes on thewoodandspoon.com by Kate Wood.

If you’ve hung out around this block long enough, you know about the danishes we’ve done in the past. The dough take time and patience, but once you understand the concept of folding and layering the dough, you’re almost all of the way there. For these pumpkin danishes, we utilize those same dough-making methods and then cut, fold, and fill them to create a cute little 3 bite treat. The pastry is 90% of the work and the filling is really simple, but I also threw in a brown butter glaze that’s really unnecessary. We’re just going all-out over here, okay?

Pumpkin Danishes Recipe by Wood and Spoon. These are fluffy buttery pastries with a simple pumpkin filling and a brown butter glaze. Each danish is small and each batch makes enough to share with a crowd. These are flavored with fall spices and make a really special autumn breakfast baked good. Find the recipe and how to for these danishes on thewoodandspoon.com by Kate Wood.

Making the Danishes

The trickiest part of these pumpkin danishes is the shaping of the pastry. In the oven, the pastry will want to unfold and leave an angled corner hanging out on the edge of the danish. Instead, be sure to keep your dough cold and to press the pastry in tight when you shape them. Because the pumpkin filling has egg in it, it does tend to “grow” in the oven. To combat this, I took a cue from Yossy Arefi and doubled filled each one. I filled a little, baked the pastry, filled a little more, and did a final bake. Kinda tedious and really only necessary from an aesthetic standpoint, so if you don’t mind messy pastries you can skip this step.

Pumpkin Danishes Recipe by Wood and Spoon. These are fluffy buttery pastries with a simple pumpkin filling and a brown butter glaze. Each danish is small and each batch makes enough to share with a crowd. These are flavored with fall spices and make a really special autumn breakfast baked good. Find the recipe and how to for these danishes on thewoodandspoon.com by Kate Wood.

I hope you find a reason to celebrate with these pumpkin danishes ASAP. There’s lots of happy to tap into around us if we just take the time to recognize and love on it. Happy Thursday and happy baking!

If you like these pumpkin danishes you should check out:

Brown Sugar Danishes

Braided Breakfast Danish

Swirled Pumpkin Cheesecake Tarts

Pumpkin Pecan Tart

Pecan Apple Dutch Baby

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Pumpkin Danishes

These pumpkin danishes include a buttery pastry dough and a pumpkin spice filling. There’s an optional brown butter glaze if you’re feeling super fancy.

  • Author: Kate Wood
  • Prep Time: 240
  • Cook Time: 45
  • Total Time: 4 hours 45 minutes
  • Yield: 12
  • Category: Breakfast

Ingredients

For the dough (Adapted from Samantha Seneviratne:

  • 1 ½ cups bread flour, plus more for rolling dough
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 14 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cubed
  • 1 large egg
  • ¼ cup cold whole milk

For the filling:

  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened but still cold
  • ½ cup canned pumpkin puree
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • ¼ cup powdered sugar
  • 1 egg, divided
  • ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • Pinch of salt

For the brown butter glaze (optional):

  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • ½ cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tablespoon milk

Instructions

To prepare the dough:

  1. Combine the flour, granulated sugar, yeast and salt in a food processor. Add butter and pulse to combine until butter is distributed in pea-sized pieces throughout the flour. Put the flour mixture in a medium bowl.
  2. In a separate, small bowl, whisk the egg and milk with 2 tablespoons of water. Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients. Fold the mixture until the liquid is evenly distributed, being careful to not overwork the dough. Dump the contents of the bowl out on to a lightly floured surface and pat into a rectangle. Chill for at least 3 hours, and up to 2 days.
  3. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to an 8-by-15-inch rectangle. Fold the dough in thirds like a letter. Rotate the dough 90 degrees and repeat the rolling and folding process. Dusting with flour as needed to prevent sticking, rotate, roll, and fold a final time, ending with a small, rectangular piece of dough. Wrap the dough in Saran wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
  4. Repeat the entire rolling and folding process one more time. You will have rolled and folded the dough six times. If the dough becomes loose or tacky, place in the fridge to rest for a bit. Wrap the dough and place in the fridge for 2 hours or up to overnight.
  5. To prepare the danishes:
  6. In a large bowl, cream the cream cheese, pumpkin, brown sugar, and sugar on medium speed just until smooth. Break the egg yolk and spoon most of it into the mixture, leaving some behind in a small bowl. Add the pumpkin pie spice and salt to the mixture and stir to combine. Pour the filling into a piping bag or a plastic bag with the corner snipped off. If your filling is loose, place it in the fridge while you prep your pastry.
  7.  
  8. Roll out the dough on a floured surface into a roughly 10”x13” rectangle. Trim ¼” off of each side to straighten edges and cut the dough into 12 equal sized squares (I usually make 3 rows of 4 squares.) Beat the remainder of the egg and brush a dab of it on the four corners of each square of dough. Fold each corner in to the center and press down firmly (but without pushing your finger through the dough!) Transfer each one to a parchment lined sheet pan and cover with a sheet of plastic wrap to rise and puff for about an hour or so. The dough should barely start to spring back when you touch it when it’s ready.
  9. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. If the centers of your pastries have risen a ton you can push down on the centers again. Brush the pastries with the thin layer of the reserved egg. Pipe ½ tablespoon of filling in the center of each one, reserving the additional filling.  Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes and then decrease the temp to 375. You’ll notice that the pastries will have risen quite a bit and likely displaced a lot of the filling- don’t worry. We anticipated this. Quickly and carefully remove the pan from the oven and pipe an additional ½ tablespoon of filling on top. You can use the back of a spoon to move it around to cover the old filing a bit if you’d like. Continue baking at 375 for an additional 8-10 minutes or until the pastries are golden brown. Remove from oven to cool.

To prepare the glaze (optional):

  1. Cook the butter over medium heat on the stove until melted. Continue cooking, stirring all the while, until the butter has begun to brown and smells nutty. Remove from heat and immediately whisk in the powdered sugar and milk. Allow it to cool to drizzle consistency before glazing the pastries.

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Brown Sugar Danishes

Brown Sugar Danishes by The Wood and Spoon blog by Kate Wood. This is quick puff pastry filling with pecans and butter and brown sugar. Perfect for breakfast for brunch or dessert. These treats require some how to so check out the photos for instruction on folding and rolling the dough. These mini danish sweets can be filled with nuts or additional dried fruit. Find the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

What makes you joyful?

Last week we went to one of my favorite vacation destinations, Blackberry Farm. (You might remember me going on about our previous trips here and here!) A cozy oasis nestled in the Smoky Mountains, Blackberry Farm is southern foodie vacationing at its finest. Brett and I travel there with our friends at the turn of every new year, and it is nothing short of spectacular. Something about that place relaxes me to my core, way moreso than beach, island, or other mountain retreats do. It feels like home and somehow, in just a few short years, it’s become a place that brings me a ton of joy.

Brown Sugar Danishes by The Wood and Spoon blog by Kate Wood. This is quick puff pastry filling with pecans and butter and brown sugar. Perfect for breakfast for brunch or dessert. These treats require some how to so check out the photos for instruction on folding and rolling the dough. These mini danish sweets can be filled with nuts or additional dried fruit. Find the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

More Joy, Please

I want more of that in 2018. The things that bring me joy and refresh my zeal for life are a top priority this year. Yes, there will continue to be work and hustle and obligations, but I feel like my day to day needs more of the things that give me life and loads of joy.

Brown Sugar Danishes by The Wood and Spoon blog by Kate Wood. This is quick puff pastry filling with pecans and butter and brown sugar. Perfect for breakfast for brunch or dessert. These treats require some how to so check out the photos for instruction on folding and rolling the dough. These mini danish sweets can be filled with nuts or additional dried fruit. Find the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

So while Blackberry Farm, with its 5 Star meals and attention to detail and lazy hours with my very best friends, might not be possible 365 days of the year, there are things in there that are worth pursuing daily: Slow dinners made with real ingredients. Maintaining a home that feels welcoming, clean, and cozy. Spending time on real relationships with people that will love you back as hard as they can. These are things that bring me joy. So 2018, you can bring it, and in the meantime, I’ll be working hard to make average days feel a little more like vacation.

Brown Sugar Danishes by The Wood and Spoon blog by Kate Wood. This is quick puff pastry filling with pecans and butter and brown sugar. Perfect for breakfast for brunch or dessert. These treats require some how to so check out the photos for instruction on folding and rolling the dough. These mini danish sweets can be filled with nuts or additional dried fruit. Find the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

Brown Sugar Danishes

These brown sugar danishes are a year in the making. Literally.

We ate the most divine breakfast danishes at Blackberry Farm in 2017. They were flaky and oozed with butter, brown sugar, and toasted pecans. It was love at first sight, and I spent the next 8 months testing out various versions of those danishes in an attempt to recreate that moment at home.

Brown Sugar Danishes by The Wood and Spoon blog by Kate Wood. This is quick puff pastry filling with pecans and butter and brown sugar. Perfect for breakfast for brunch or dessert. These treats require some how to so check out the photos for instruction on folding and rolling the dough. These mini danish sweets can be filled with nuts or additional dried fruit. Find the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

Ladies and gentlemen, these brown sugar danishes are it. These little pastries, though requiring a bit of love and effort in the kitchen, are every bit as delicious as I recall those fancy resort pastries being, and I am thrilled to be able to share the recipe with you today.

Brown Sugar Danishes by The Wood and Spoon blog by Kate Wood. This is quick puff pastry filling with pecans and butter and brown sugar. Perfect for breakfast for brunch or dessert. These treats require some how to so check out the photos for instruction on folding and rolling the dough. These mini danish sweets can be filled with nuts or additional dried fruit. Find the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

Making the Danishes

To make these brown sugar danishes, we start with perfect danish pastry. I adore this recipe from Samantha Seneviratnae and have adapted it for use in these pastries. Once made, the dough can be stored in the fridge for a day or two until you’re ready to fill and bake your danishes. The filling is simple, prepared with brown sugar, pecans, cinnamon, and butter, and truly takes the dough from delicious to downright heavenly.

Brown Sugar Danishes by The Wood and Spoon blog by Kate Wood. This is quick puff pastry filling with pecans and butter and brown sugar. Perfect for breakfast for brunch or dessert. These treats require some how to so check out the photos for instruction on folding and rolling the dough. These mini danish sweets can be filled with nuts or additional dried fruit. Find the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

These brown sugar danishes are best consumed on the day they’re made. Still, they heat and flake up decently in a toaster oven as well. Make these treats to stay warm these next few weeks. I hope they bring you the same joy they bring me. Happy Monday and happy baking!

Brown Sugar Danishes by The Wood and Spoon blog by Kate Wood. This is quick puff pastry filling with pecans and butter and brown sugar. Perfect for breakfast for brunch or dessert. These treats require some how to so check out the photos for instruction on folding and rolling the dough. These mini danish sweets can be filled with nuts or additional dried fruit. Find the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

If you like these brown sugar danishes, you should try:

Breakfast Danish

Raisin Swirl Bread

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

Pumpkin Pull-Apart Bread

Chocolate Coffee Almond Scones 

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Brown Sugar Danishes

These brown sugar danishes are filled with butter, pecans, and gooey sugary filling. The perfect, flaky, tender addition to any breakfast or brunch!

  • Author: Kate Wood
  • Prep Time: 360
  • Cook Time: 30
  • Total Time: 6 hours 30 minutes
  • Yield: 14

Ingredients

For the dough (recipe by Samantha Seneviratne):

  • 1 ½ cups bread flour, plus more for rolling dough
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 14 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cubed
  • 1 large egg
  • ¼ cup cold whole milk

For the filling:

  • ¼ cup (50 gm) brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons flour
  • 6 tablespoons (85 gm) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • ½ cup (65 gm) finely chopped pecans
  • 1 large egg

Instructions

To prepare the dough:

  1. Combine the flour, granulated sugar, yeast and salt in a food processor. Add butter and pulse to combine until butter is distributed in pea-sized pieces throughout the flour. Put the flour mixture in a medium bowl.
  2. In a separate, small bowl, whisk the egg and milk with 2 tablespoons of water. Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients. Fold the mixture until the liquid is evenly distributed, being careful to not overwork the dough. Dump the contents of the bowl out on to a lightly floured surface and pat into a rectangle. Chill for at least 3 hours, and up to 2 days.
  3. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to an 8-by-15-inch rectangle. Fold the dough in thirds like a letter. Rotate the dough 90 degrees and repeat the rolling and folding process. Dusting with flour as needed to prevent sticking, rotate, roll, and fold a final time, ending with a small, rectangular piece of dough. Wrap the dough in Saran wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
  4. Repeat the entire rolling and folding process one more time. You will have rolled and folded the dough six times. If the dough becomes loose or tacky, place in the fridge to rest for a bit. Wrap the dough and place in the fridge for 2 hours or up to overnight.

To prepare the danishes:

  1. Combine the brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon, salt, and flour in a medium sized bowl. Cut the softened butter into the dry ingredients, smooshing together to make a thick paste/spread.
  2. Using a well-floured rolling pin, roll the dough on a lightly floured surface into a 8”x21” long rectangle. Spread the cinnamon butter mixture evenly on to the dough. Sprinkle with the chopped pecans. Starting at one of the long ends, roll the dough tightly and gently pinch to seal along the length of the dough. Cut 1-1/2” slices of dough and place them in a lightly greased muffin tin. Cover with plastic wrap and allow the danishes to rise slightly, about 1 hour. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and whisk an egg in a small bowl. Once the danishes have risen, gently brush them with a thin layer of egg using a pastry brush and bake in the preheat oven for about 25-30 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown, puffed, and flaky. Check to make sure they don’t feel too soft in the center prior to removing from the oven- this can cause the pastries to fall once they cool. Allow to cool on a cooling rack for about 5 minutes before removing from the pan. Danishes are best served immediately or within 24 hours.

Notes

  • I prefer to use a high-quality, fatty butter like Kerrygold.
  • You can tell if the danishes have risen well by gently poking one with our finger. If it puffs back up slightly almost immediately, it has risen well.

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Breakfast Danish

breakfast danish by the wood and spoon blog by kate wood. This is a rough puff pastry made by laminating dough, rolled out and filled with winter fruits like apples, cherries, cranberries, and other bourbon soaked fruit. Learn how to make laminated dough and how to braid a danish dough. Turns into golden, flaky, pastry once baked. Recipe at thewoodandspoon.com

Brett made a scrunchy face at me and meticulously picked through the remains of his breakfast danish. “There’s a lot of fruit in here”, he said.

“Get out of the kitchen”, I replied.

I usually encourage constructive criticism when it comes to recipes and baking, but this danish had taken so much research, preparation, and use of my spare time that I wanted nothing short of glowing reviews. My husband, though, sometimes a bit more honest than my pride can bear, had already given away how he really felt about the pastry that contained hours of my love, sweat, and flour. He went on the lament of all of the “raisins” in the danish, even as I repeatedly confirmed to him that they were dried cherries.

“CHERRIES. They are dried cherries. It’s legitimately dried fruit soaked in bourbon and then baked into a delicious, flakey crust. How is that ever a bad thing? Explain. Now.”

I usually try to heed most of my husband’s likes and desires but this was one instance where the degree to which he was wrong was no match for how oh-so right the pastry was.

braided breakfast danish fruit filling

At the start of this year, we visited Blackberry Farm in Walland, TN. I high recommend it. Anyone who would kind of consider themselves a foodie, or even anyone that just really likes to eat, would find themselves at home among the never-ending parade of seemingly perfect meals that we were served the entirety of our stay. The resort is small, intimate, and classically Southern, and they are known for their culinary and wine program.

On the last morning of our trip, we sat down for brunch and my attention was immediately directed to my left where BJ Novak (you probably know him as Ryan, the temporary hire on “The Office”) was dining with three other people. I was literally seconds away from approaching him to ask if we could FaceTime Mindy Kaling (Kelly Kapour) so I could fangirl  her and talk about her new book that had me near-pants-wetting the entire time I read it. Right about that time, our waitress brought to our table a complimentary treat: breakfast danish. Let’s talk about that danish.

Actually, I may need a minute to just cherish the memory of that pastry.

Blackberry Farm- you know how to do it. You see all the other restaurants and resorts serving club crackers and cold biscuits as their complimentary bread basket and you decide to Michael-Jordan-slam-dunk-from-the-free-throw-line all over their faces. No, this was not your run of the mill bread basket. 

That danish was of another world. That danish tasted as though it was made entirely of butter and fairy dust. That danish was melt in your mouth, rich, buttery, flaky, tender pastry wrapped around a tart and spicy fruit filling.

braided breakfast danish fruit filling

It was beyond. And I knew I had to have it. After scouring the internet for a recipe that seemed worthwhile, I ran across a recipe by efore I tell you the recipe, a few thoughts that I will share in rhetoric:

  • Is this a ridiculously simple recipe? No. This recipe can look a bit overwhelming from the front end and it is not a mere one or two steps.
  • Is this a recipe that I can prepare in an hour start to finish? Absolutely not. This will take you a chunk of time and is best worked through in short phases throughout the day.
  • Is this a recipe that will melt my face off? Yes. Prepare your face for its day of melting. This is a recipe that is worth every second of meltage and more.

braided breakfast danish fruit filling

I recommend reading the recipe start to finish a few times so you’re kind of prepared for what’s ahead. For additional notes, be sure to check out the original recipe for the pastry as well.

And by the way, BJ Novak, if you ever read this by some random strike of luck or coincidence, tell Mindy Kaling I say what’s up and that we should be best friends. That is all. 

braided breakfast danish fruit filling

 

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Breakfast Danish

A tender, flaky pastry crust braided and baked around a sweet and tart blend of winter fruits.

  • Author: Kate Wood
  • Prep Time: 90
  • Cook Time: 45
  • Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients

For the danish dough (Recipe by Samantha Seneviratne)

  • 1 ½ cups bread flour, plus more for rolling dough
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 14 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cubed
  • 1 large egg
  • ¼ cup cold whole milk

For the winter fruit filling

  • 13 dried apricots, diced
  • 1/2 cup dried cherries
  • 2 tablespoons good quality bourbon
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 2 granny smith apples, peeled and diced
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • Juice of 1/2 of a lemon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 egg

Instructions

To prepare the dough

  1. Combine the flour, granulated sugar, yeast and salt in a food processor. Add butter and pulse to combine until butter is distributed in pea-sized pieces throughout the flour. Put the flour mixture in a medium bowl.
  2. In a separate, small bowl, whisk the egg and milk with 2 tablespoons of water. Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients. Fold the mixture until the liquid is evenly distributed, being careful to not overwork the dough. Dump the contents of the bowl out on to a lightly floured surface and pat into a rectangle. Chill for at least 3 hours, and up to 2 days.
  3. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to an 8-by-15-inch rectangle. Fold the dough in thirds like a letter. Rotate the dough 90 degrees and repeat the rolling and folding process. Dusting with flour as needed to prevent sticking, rotate, roll, and fold a final time, ending with a small, rectangular piece of dough. Wrap the dough in Saran wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
  4. Repeat the entire rolling and folding process one more time. You will have rolled and folded the dough six times. If the dough becomes loose or tacky, place in the fridge to rest for a bit. Wrap the dough and place in the fridge for 2 hours or up to overnight.

To prepare the filling

  1. Combine the apricots, cherries, and bourbon in a 4 quart saucepan over low heat with just enough water to almost cover the fruit. Allow to simmer over low heat until fruit has plumped and some of the liquid has been absorbed. This should take about 15 minutes total. Set aside the fruit and its liquid in a separate bowl.
  2. In the same pan over medium heat, combine butter, apples, brown sugar, flour, salt, cinnamon, dried fruit, and lemon juice. Bring to a bubble and reduce heat to low, cooking for 5-7 minutes or until apples have softened slightly but are not mushy. During this time, slowly add liquid reserved from the dried fruit so that the filling remains a moist a syrupy consistency but never watery. You may not use all of the reserved liquid. Add vanilla and stir to combine. Allow to cool in the refrigerator.

To assemble the pastry

  1. Roll the pastry dough out in a 11×14″ rectangle on a lightly floured piece of parchment.
  2. Using the back of a knife, mark off a 3″ section of dough running the length of the pastry. Be careful not to break all the way through the pastry. This will serve as your guideline of where the fruit filling will go.
  3. Starting at one end and working your way the entire length of both sides of dough, make 1″cuts perpendicular to the lines you first created, dragging your knife from the barrier line to the end of the dough.These will be the pieces of dough you braid over the top of your fruit filling. Cut off the top and bottom 1″ strips, leaving just a center “flap” on either end.
  4. Beat an egg in a bowl with 2 teaspoons of water and apply a thin coat of this egg wash over the braiding strips and end flap.
  5. Spoon your filling in to the 3″ partitioned section of dough, discarding any extra watery liquid that may have gathered in the bowl.
  6. Fold the center end flaps up and over the fruit. Starting at one end of the pastry, braid your strips, in a slightly downward angle. When you get to the end of the pastry, fold your strips over and lightly press to ensure that the pastry has adhered and sealed.
  7. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Move the parchment to a cookie sheet and cover with saran wrap, allowing the pastry to rise. It will puff up slightly and bounce back at your touch.
  8. Brush the remaining egg wash all over the top of pastry. Bake in oven for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 375 degrees. Continue baking for 10 to 15 minutes, gently turning the pan halfway through. Remove from oven when the pastry is flaky and golden. Cool on a cooling rack until just warm. Serve warm with a simple powdered sugar or brown butter glaze.

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Recipe Adapted From: Samantha Seneviratne

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