Fresh Cherry Danish with Lemon Glaze

One of the most anticipated fruits I look forward to all year is sweet, ripe, fresh Cherries. I could eat a whole bowl on the back porch on a hot day, every single day in Summer. They are so versatile- adding a flavorful pop to savory and sweet recipes that I tend to plan my meals around The Cherry. This particular recipe is a super simple Danish using pre-made pastry dough that comes together with under 10 ingredients and of course, Cherries being the star.

Ingredients:

1 Sheet Frozen Pastry Dough; thawed

1 1/2 Cup Fresh Cherries; pitted and halved

1/2 Cup Cream Cheese

1/2 Cup Confectioners Sugar

1 tsp Lemon Zest

1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

1 egg; beaten

Lemon Glaze

2/3 Cup Confectioners Sugar

1 Tbsp. Fresh Lemon Juice

1-2 Tbsp. Heavy Cream (Milk works in a pinch for a substitute)

1/2 tsp. Vanilla Extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place one rack second row from the top.

2. Thoroughly combine the Cream Cheese, 1/2 Cup Confectioners Sugar, Lemon Zest & Vanilla together. The Mixture should be thick and smooth once done.

3. Unfolding the Puff Pastry Sheet, it should be fairly square;dive into three even sections.

4. Using a knife, cut 1" strips along the two outer sections on a diagonal. These will create the cross hatch look along the top of the danish once folded.

5. Spread the mixture in the middle section of the Pastry and top with halved cherries.

6. Begin from one side and rotate back and forth folding the one inch sections diagonally across the top of the middle to cover the filling.

7. Brush the Puff Pastry generously with the egg wash. This will give your pastry dough a sheen and help create a golden crust while baking.

8. Place danish on a parchment paper lined sheet pan and bake on the rack 2nd from the top for 25-30 minutes or until fully puffed and golden brown.

9. While the Danish is baking, combine the Icing ingredients to create the Lemon Glaze.

10. Remove the Danish once it's baked through and let cool slightly.

11. Drizzle Glaze all over top and Enjoy!

I tend to make Danishes a few times of year, especially seasonally because they are so adaptable to different flavors and insanely easy to make. This Cherry one hits all the sweet summery flavors with the fruit and lemon. Let me know what you think and please share on social media using #saltsandseasons Comment below with your thoughts!

-Alexandra