Berry Danish

Preparation

Begin by making the berry mixture. Combine honey, half of the blueberries, half of the blackberries, lemon zest, and a pinch of salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook down for about 15 minutes, stirring while it simmers. After about 15 minutes, add the remaining berries and simmer gently about 5 more minutes. Remove from heat, set aside to cool to room temperature. The goal is to have some texture to the berries.

For the cream cheese filling, beat cream cheese and egg yolk. Set aside.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 400ºF.

Unfold puff pastry and cut into 8 equal pieces. Try to keep the pastry cold while you continue to work on each individual one, the colder the better. No one likes working with room temperature pastry dough.

Roll puff pastry into a 4-x-9-inch rectangle on a sheet of parchment. Use a ramekin or cookie cutter and cut into circles, repeating as you continue to lay them out on the parchment paper, leaving about 1 inch or so between each circle.

Take a fork and gently poke each pastry circle. Add 1 tablespoon of cream cheese filling into the center of each pastry circle, then put the entire tray into the freezer for 20 minutes.

Whisk the whole egg and and milk and set aside.

After 20 minutes, remove the pan from the freezer and brush the edges lightly with the egg wash. Spoon a generous heaping tablespoon or so of the berries on top of the cream cheese.

Bake pastries 15 minutes at 400°F, then reduce heat to 375°F and bake 10 minutes more, until deeply golden. Once cooked, remove to a wire rack and let cool. Now it’s time to dig in!

The result is a perfect bite, an awesome pastry that is creamy and fruity and a real treat anytime of the day.