Cheddar & Caramelized Pear Danish

Bring on the dairy, right?!? I am so excited about this recipe because I’ve made up (hopefully I’m actually being original here) a fun new way to prepare a cheese danish and I think it’s super swanky! Not only is the filling super cheesy but the crust itself is STUFFED with cheese. Yeah, I went there. I filled puff pastry with shredded cheddar then rolled it back into puff pastry, kinda like making a croissant…but with cheese instead of butter. This danish is a little bit sweet, a little savory and totally perfect for breakfast or dessert. I’ll admit that I’ve been eating mine warmed up for breakfast because, well, I can. And now you can. I caramelized pears for the filling but you can also use apples, since both taste delicious with cheddar.

So fun, right????? I really love this pastry with cheddar but you can use any cheese you want. Okay, maybe not fresh mozzarella but you know what I mean.

Cheesy goodness!

And it just keeps getting better and better…

Cheddar & Caramelized Pear Danish

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Ingredients

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, defrosted

1 cup Les Petites Fermieres shredded cheddar cheese

2 pears (any kind), chopped

2 Tbsp unsalted butter

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp salt

8 oz. ricotta

1 egg

2 Tbsp honey

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Toppings

1 egg + 1 tsp water

Les Petites Fermieres shredded cheddar cheese

coarse sugar (such as cane or sanding sugar)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat then add the chopped pears. Cook the pears for 5 minutes, until soft, then add the brown sugar and salt and cook another 5 minutes. The pears should be a golden brown color and the sauce should be sticky and almost evaporated. Set the pears aside to cool.

Unfold the defrosted puff pastry on a piece of parchment paper sprinkled with all-purpose flour.

Roll out the pastry until it is smooth and thin then add the cheddar cheese on half of the pastry.

Fold the other half of the pastry over the cheddar and flatten with your hands. Seal the edges of the pastry so no cheddar falls out then roll out the pastry again into a large rectangle.

Along one long side of the pastry make parallel, 5-inch-long cuts with a knife, each about 1 inch apart. Repeat on the opposite side, making sure to line up the cuts with those you’ve already made. Set the pastry aside while you mix the batter.

Mix together the ricotta, egg, honey and nutmeg then add the caramelized pears. The mixture might be a bit runny but it will fluff up while it bakes.

Spoon the filling down the center of the rectangle. Starting with the top and bottom “flaps”, fold the top flap down over the filling to cover. Next, fold the bottom “flap” up to cover the filling. This helps keep the braid neat and helps to hold in the filling. Now begin folding the cut side strips of dough over the filling, alternating first left, then right, left, right, until finished then tuck in the ends. Don't worry if any filling spills out because it will make the danish look beautiful and rustic.

Whisk the egg together with the water to create an egg wash and brush on top of the danish. Sprinkle with more cheddar cheese and coarse sugar.

Slide the prepared danish on the parchment paper to the baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes, until the top of the danish is golden brown.

Serve the danish warm, room temperature or cold. No wrong way to eat this dessert! The cooled braid can be wrapped airtight and stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or freeze for 3 months.

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https://melindastrauss.com/2015/10/01/cheddar-caramelized-pear-danish/

– This post was sponsored by Les Petites Fermieres –
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