Diner-Style Cream Cheese Pastry
By Ben MimsPublished on April 15, 2025
Time
1¼ hours, plus 2½ hours rising and cooling
Yield
Serves 12
Ingredients
Dough
2½ cups (12½ ounces) all-purpose flour 1 cup whole milk ¼ cup vegetable oil 2 tablespoons granulated sugar 1 large egg yolk 1½ teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast 1 teaspoon table salt 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, dividedFilling
8 ounces cream cheese, cut into 8 pieces, softened1 cup (4 ounces) confectioners' sugar 1 large egg white ½ teaspoon vanilla extract ¼ teaspoon table saltGlaze
1½ cups (6 ounces) confectioners' sugar 2 tablespoons milk ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract ¼ teaspoon table saltBefore You Begin
These cheese pockets are best the day they’re baked, but they’re easily refreshed with a quick stint in the microwave—or a few minutes in a covered, buttered skillet for a truly diner-worthy experience. The glaze is thick, so use a spoon or offset spatula to spread it in step 8.
Instructions
- Combine flour, milk, oil, sugar, egg yolk, yeast, and salt in bowl of stand mixer. Knead with dough hook on low speed until dough comes together, about 1 minute. Increase speed to medium and knead until dough is smooth and clears sides of bowl, about 8 minutes (dough will form rough, tight ball at first, then relax into smooth-textured mass that slaps side of bowl as it mixes). Turn off mixer and remove dough hook, scraping any dough from attachment back into bowl. Cover bowl and let sit until dough is doubled in size, 1½ to 2 hours.
- While dough rises, whisk cream cheese, sugar, egg white, vanilla, and salt in bowl until smooth; set aside.
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Brush bottom and sides of 13 by 9-inch baking pan with 1 tablespoon melted butter. Transfer dough to lightly floured counter and divide dough into 2 equal pieces.
- Working with 1 piece of dough at a time (cover remaining piece), roll dough into 12-inch-long by 8-inch-wide rectangle. Fold dough into thirds like business letter, then transfer to center of prepared pan and unfold. Gently stretch dough into sides and corners of pan. Using small offset spatula, spread filling over top, leaving ½-inch border on all sides.
- Roll second piece of dough into 13-inch-long by 9-inch-wide rectangle. Fold dough into thirds like business letter, then transfer directly on top of filling-covered dough in pan, lining up edges as best as possible. Unfold dough and press down on edges with your fingertips to seal. Cut 8 evenly spaced 2-inch slits over top of dough, then brush with remaining 1 tablespoon melted butter.
- Bake until light golden brown and pastry registers at least 200 degrees in center, 25 to 30 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Transfer pan to wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes before glazing.
- While pastry cools, whisk sugar, milk, vanilla, and salt together in bowl until smooth.
- Spread glaze evenly over pastry then let sit for at least 1 hour. Cut into squares and serve warm or at room temperature.
for the dough
for the filling
for the glaze
Time
1¼ hours, plus 2½ hours rising and coolingYield
Serves 12Ingredients
Dough
2½ cups (12½ ounces) all-purpose flour
1 cup whole milk
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg yolk
1½ teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 teaspoon table salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, divided
Filling
8 ounces cream cheese, cut into 8 pieces, softened
1 cup (4 ounces) confectioners' sugar
1 large egg white
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon table salt
Glaze
1½ cups (6 ounces) confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons milk
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon table salt
Ingredients
Dough
2½ cups (12½ ounces) all-purpose flour
1 cup whole milk
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg yolk
1½ teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 teaspoon table salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, divided
Filling
8 ounces cream cheese, cut into 8 pieces, softened
1 cup (4 ounces) confectioners' sugar
1 large egg white
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon table salt
Glaze
1½ cups (6 ounces) confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons milk
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon table salt
Ingredients
Dough
2½ cups (12½ ounces) all-purpose flour
1 cup whole milk
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg yolk
1½ teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 teaspoon table salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, divided
Filling
8 ounces cream cheese, cut into 8 pieces, softened
1 cup (4 ounces) confectioners' sugar
1 large egg white
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon table salt
Glaze
1½ cups (6 ounces) confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons milk
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon table salt
Why This Recipe Works
Jongewaard’s Bake n’ Broil in Long Beach, California, makes a giant cheese-filled version of a Danish that the restaurant calls a “cheese pocket.” It’s the ultimate sharing food, the kind that you’ll take a small bite of, just to try, then find yourself going back to right away because it’s just that good. We developed a slightly scaled-down version of the beloved dish—but didn’t scale back the can’t-get-enough experience of eating it. We used a simple yeasted dough that required only a single proof to bake up plush and tender. We divided the dough in half and sandwiched a sweet cream cheese filling between the two rolled-out layers. Once glazed and cooled slightly, these cheese pockets never lasted more than a few minutes in the test kitchen.
Before You Begin
These cheese pockets are best the day they’re baked, but they’re easily refreshed with a quick stint in the microwave—or a few minutes in a covered, buttered skillet for a truly diner-worthy experience. The glaze is thick, so use a spoon or offset spatula to spread it in step 8.
Instructions
- Combine flour, milk, oil, sugar, egg yolk, yeast, and salt in bowl of stand mixer. Knead with dough hook on low speed until dough comes together, about 1 minute. Increase speed to medium and knead until dough is smooth and clears sides of bowl, about 8 minutes (dough will form rough, tight ball at first, then relax into smooth-textured mass that slaps side of bowl as it mixes). Turn off mixer and remove dough hook, scraping any dough from attachment back into bowl. Cover bowl and let sit until dough is doubled in size, 1½ to 2 hours.
- While dough rises, whisk cream cheese, sugar, egg white, vanilla, and salt in bowl until smooth; set aside.
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Brush bottom and sides of 13 by 9-inch baking pan with 1 tablespoon melted butter. Transfer dough to lightly floured counter and divide dough into 2 equal pieces.
- Working with 1 piece of dough at a time (cover remaining piece), roll dough into 12-inch-long by 8-inch-wide rectangle. Fold dough into thirds like business letter, then transfer to center of prepared pan and unfold. Gently stretch dough into sides and corners of pan. Using small offset spatula, spread filling over top, leaving ½-inch border on all sides.
- Roll second piece of dough into 13-inch-long by 9-inch-wide rectangle. Fold dough into thirds like business letter, then transfer directly on top of filling-covered dough in pan, lining up edges as best as possible. Unfold dough and press down on edges with your fingertips to seal. Cut 8 evenly spaced 2-inch slits over top of dough, then brush with remaining 1 tablespoon melted butter.
- Bake until light golden brown and pastry registers at least 200 degrees in center, 25 to 30 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Transfer pan to wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes before glazing.
- While pastry cools, whisk sugar, milk, vanilla, and salt together in bowl until smooth.
- Spread glaze evenly over pastry then let sit for at least 1 hour. Cut into squares and serve warm or at room temperature.
for the dough
for the filling
for the glaze
Gift This Recipe
Enjoyed this dish? Let others know by sharing it as a gift recipe.
Keep Exploring
My Rating
This is a members' feature.
0 Comments