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Easy Cheese Danishes

These Easy Cheese Danishes use a shortcut (crescent roll dough) to make your favorite bakery pastry at home. So simple and delicious!

A SIMPLIFIED WAY TO MAKE CHEESE DANISHES

Do you remember a short while back I posted a recipe for Easy Apple Danishes? Well, I got such great feedback from that recipe that I had to try my hand at some cream cheese ones. So I decided on a yummy cream cheese filling – and butter my butt and call me a biscuit – I was surprised at how good these turned out. So this one is for all you cheese danish lovers!

Easy Cheese Danishes made with crescent rolls and layered on a white platter.

TIPS FOR MAKING CRESCENT ROLL CHEESE DANISHES:

  • If you don’t need so many danishes, just use one tube of crescent rolls and save the leftover cream cheese filling for another time. Just put it in a container with an airtight lid and store in the fridge for up to a week.
  • Try adding strawberry or raspberry jam along with the cream cheese. It adds amazing flavor!
Crescent Roll Cheese Danish recipe from The Country Cook, layered on a white plate.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED (FULL RECIPE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST)

  • crescent rolls
  • cream cheese
  • granulated white sugar
  • vanilla extract
  • butter
  • light brown sugar
  • powdered sugar
  • milk
crescent roll dough, cream cheese, brown sugar, vanilla extract, sugar, butter, powdered sugar.

HOW TO MAKE EASY CHEESE DANISHES:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. In a medium bowl, combine softened cream cheese with white sugar and vanilla extract. Mixture should be creamy and smooth when finished (like cheesecake batter.)

cheesecake cream cheese filling batter in a clear bowl.

Separate crescent roll dough into eight rectangles. Seal perforations to make a rectangle.

sealing perforations of crescent roll dough.

Using a brush or spoon, spread melted butter all over crescent rolls. Sprinkle each rectangle with 1 tablespoon of brown sugar.

light brown sugar sprinkled on crescent roll dough.

Roll up from long side; pinch edges to seal.

rolled up crescent roll dough.

Holding one end, loosely coil each one.

coiled crescent roll dough to make a danish shape.

Now you want to get in there with your fingers and spread out the dough some to make room for the filling. Just pull and stretch and make a nice dent in the middle. Place on cookie sheet that has been sprayed with nonstick spray. Top each coil with about 2 tablespoons of cream cheese filling.

prepared crescent roll cheese danish on a baking sheet.

Bake at 350(F) for 15-18 minutes, or until golden brown. For the glaze, in a bowl, combine powdered sugar, vanilla and milk. Stir until smooth and drizzle over each warm danishes.

stack of cheese danishes on a round white plate.

Cook’s Note: If you don’t need so many danishes, just use one tube of crescent rolls and save the leftover cream cheese filling for another time. Just put it in a container with an airtight lid and store in the fridge for up to a week. Makes 8 danishes.

a hand holding up a cheese danish.

CRAVING MORE RECIPES?

Crescent Roll Cheese Danishes recipe

Easy Cheese Danishes

These Easy Cheese Danishes use a shortcut (crescent roll dough) to make your favorite bakery pastry at home. So simple and delicious!
4.90 from 97 votes
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 18 minutes
Total Time: 28 minutes
Servings: 8

Ingredients

For the danishes:

For the glaze:

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F) In a medium bowl, combine softened cream cheese with white sugar and vanilla extract until smooth.
  • Separate crescent dough into eight rectangles (there will be two crescent rolls to each rectangle.) Seal perforations.
  • Using a brush or spoon, spread melted butter all over crescent rolls.
  • Sprinkle each rectangle with about 1 Tablespoon of brown sugar.
  • Roll up from long side of the crescent rectangle; pinch edges to seal.
  • Holding one end, loosely coil each.
  • Spread out the dough in the middle some to make room for the filling.
  • Place on cookie sheet that has been sprayed with nonstick spray. Top each coil with about 2 tablespoons of cream cheese filling.
  • Bake at 350(F) for 15-18 minutes, or until golden brown.
  • For the glaze, in a bowl, combine powdered sugar, vanilla and milk. Stir until smooth and drizzle over each warm danish.

Video

YouTube video

Notes

  • It’s important that the cream cheese is fully softened to room temperature. If it isn’t, it will end up lumpy. 
  • Salted or unsalted butter can be used. I prefer salted. 
Course: Breakfast, Dessert
Cuisine: American

Nutrition

Calories: 337kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 19g | Sodium: 448mg | Sugar: 25g

Nutritional Disclaimer

“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.

Did you make this recipe?Share it on Instagram @thecountrycook and mention us #thecountrycook!

Originally published: June 2011
Updated & republished: July 2020

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162 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    I accidentally made these with cinnamon instead of brown sugar – just wasn't paying attention. Good news is that it was still delicious!

  2. 5 stars
    Made these today and they were fantastic!! So easy and yummy!! Next time I think I will try making them with cherry pie filling on top of the cream cheese, can't wait to try them!!

  3. Boy do these look tasty. Judith has a good idea–place cherry pie filling on top. But… I could eat these just as they are. Thanks for the post.

  4. ohhhh myyyy goodness!!! does this ever look delish!!! I just may place a little bit of cherry pie filling on top as I love that together with the store-bought Danish … ty so much for sharing this recipe! 🙂

  5. Tonight is my second time making these Amazing, Mouthwatering, Dabomb cheese danishes. Yummmy…yummy!!

  6. Well, I have to say these are the best things I've put in my mouth in a long time. I had one can of the regular crescents and one can of the Grands crescents but the amount of cream cheese was perfect. I put some blueberries on a couple during the last ten minutes. I am never, ever disappointed with your recipes. You are my "goto" site for ideas now. Love you, Darlin'.

  7. Great recipe! Just made 'em (used one can of rolls and will be making again later this week!) Note: I added the zest of one lemon into the cream cheese mixture…even better! May try the zest of an orange for another batch?

  8. Hey Brandi,

    Big fan of yours but a quick question. Can these or the Apple Danish be froze, thawed and heated after they are baked or maybe froze before baking and if so do you have instructions for doing it?

  9. Just made them and they are scrumptious. I have found my new love for breakfast 🙂 and all the recipe look great on here!

  10. These were awesome!!! The only things I might tweak next time would be to use reduced fat cream cheese, and to use a little less vanilla extract on the glaze. But I made 6 of them and have eaten all of them but one. So yummy!!!

  11. Maybe my expectations were too high, but I thought these tasted a little too much crescent roll-y and not enough danish-y. I'll have to give the apple ones a try, though.

  12. Oooooh my! These are amazing! Cheese danishes are one of my favorites, but I try to stay away from them when watching my weight. This recipe allows me to make them at home with lower fat ingredients (reduced fat crescents & fat free cream cheese). I can't thank you enough!! 🙂

  13. Hi, I would like to say that a substitution of Truvia baking sugar mix works well in the cheesecake filling. Lowering the carbs content just a little. My husband could not tell the difference.

  14. 5 stars
    Just made ate 3 right away! Easy to make sooooo gooood!! I did not have confectionary sugar i put white sugar in magic bullet and it saved the day ! Just not my waistline ;(

  15. 5 stars
    These are SO easy and SO delicious!!! I have had em pinned for a hot minute, but was waiting for the right time to make em because I knew I was going to want to eat them all the second they came outta the oven. Perfectly perfect. Just loved em to peices. I even made them vegan! Thank you so much for posting, I can't wait to make em again and again.

  16. 5 stars
    I made these for fathers day they were scrumptious. I added a bit of cherry jam on top, they were really a hit, thanks for the recipe.