Vegan Danish Recipe With Cashew Cheese | This homemade cashew cream cheese danish is flaky, nutty, and sweet. A smooth, homemade cashew cream cheese is spread on frozen puff pastry and baked until golden brown. Drizzle with a simple icing.
A perfect cream cheese danish balances tartness and sweetness. For this vegan danish recipe, I make a homemade sweet vegan cream cheese using cashews, icing sugar, maple syrup, and some lemon juice for tartness.Â
It’s smooth, sweet, slightly tangy, and super easy to make. It provides the perfect richness, pairing perfectly with the flaky pastry. I use storebought frozen puff pastry for this recipe, and for my Maple Pecan Danish as well.
Using frozen puff pastry saves a lot of time (and butter). Let the frozen puff pastry thaw for 30-60 minutes. In the mean time, you can get started on the cashew cream cheese.
Frozen Vegan Puff Pastry
Puff pastry is that flakey, buttery foundation that makes Danish pastries so irresistible. The use of store-bought vegan pastry dough offers a nice shortcut. Puff pastry dough is also among the most complex dough recipes, so sometimes opting for the store-bought version is the ideal choice.
Puff pastry is one of those foods that happen to be accidentally vegan. Almost all grocery store puff pastry is made with vegetable oils instead of butter, probably for price-saving reasons but hey, we’re not complaining. Make sure you double-check the ingredients list before buying though. My local grocery store sells Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry, which is 100% vegan.
What kind of cashews should I use for cashew cheese?
A lot of cashew cheese recipes call for raw cashews, but for this sweet vegan cream cheese recipe, I use roasted cashews which work just as well, if not better. Roasted cashews give the filling a nuttier flavour, and a darker colour. Raw cashews have less natural flavour, but they do blend smoother and are lighter in colour.
Use whatever kind of cashews you have. We all know that cashews can be pricey, that’s why this recipe only takes 1 1/2 cups of cashews, roasted or raw.
How do you make sweet cashew cheese?
What makes these danishes so good is my easy recipe for homemade cashew cream cheese. The cashews are the creamy backbone, imparting richness, nuttiness, and a luscious texture.
The first step in making cashew cream cheese is soaking the cashews to get a smooth creamy consistency. I soak my cashews by boiling water in a pot, enough to cover the cashews, then removing it from the heat and adding the cashews. Cover the pot with a lid and let the cashews soak for 1 hour. If you use raw cashews instead of roasted, they will become softer quicker, and you can likely get away with a 30-45-minute soak.
After soaking, the cashews should be soft, and pliable and should easily break apart.
Drain the soaked cashews and add them to the blender. Add the lemon juice and sweeteners, and blend until smooth, about 2-3 minutes.
Ingredients
Creating these delectable vegan Danish pastries is a breeze when you have the right ingredients at hand. The exact measurements are below.
Instructions
Bake for 15-17 minutes or until golden brown on top. Keep a close eye on the danishes, making sure the top and bottom don’t burn. If the bottom is burning, move the baking sheets up one rack. If the top is burning and the bottom isn’t cooked, move it to a lower rack or cover it with aluminium foil.
Enjoy the pastries with a simple powdered sugar and plant milk icing, just mix 3 tablespoons of powdered sugar with a small splash of plant milk and stir. Drizzle on top of the pastry and dig in!
Heat about 2 cups of water in a pot on high heat. Once boiling, turn off the heat and add the cashews. Cover with a lid and let sit for about an hour. If you’re using raw cashews, they will become softer quicker, and you can likely get away with a 30-45 minute soak.
Once the cashews are soft and pliable, drain them and set aside.
Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Now you can preheat the oven to 400°F.
Add the drained cashews, powdered sugar, vanilla, maple syrup, lemon juice, and salt to a blender.
Blend for 2-3 minutes until smooth and creamy.
Unfold your two sheets of thawed puff pastry onto your prepared baking sheets. Use that as your work surface. Using a pizza cutter or a knife, cut one pastry sheet in half the long way, then cut each half into 3 equal pieces. You should have 6 equal-sized rectangles. Repeat with the other sheet.
Using a butter knife, trace an inner rectangle on each piece of puff pastry, pressing just hard enough to indent the dough but not pierce it. Leave about a half-inch gap from the edge of the pastry.
Add about a tablespoon and a half of the filling to each piece of pastry dough. Using a spoon, smooth out the cashew cheese filling, making sure to fill the inner rectangle that you traced.
In a small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of almond milk with a splash of maple syrup, and brush it onto the sides of the dough with a pastry brush.
Bake for 15-17 minutes or until golden brown on top. Keep a close eye on the danishes, making sure the top and bottom don’t burn. If the bottom is burning, move the baking sheets up one rack. If the top is burning and the bottom isn’t cooked, move it to a lower rack or cover it with aluminium foil.
Enjoy the pastries with a simple powdered sugar and plant milk icing, just mix 3 tablespoons of powdered sugar with a small splash of plant milk and stir. Drizzle on top of the pastry and dig in!
Tips for making vegan sweet cashew cheese danishes
What to serve with vegan sweet cashew cheese danishes
- Start the day off right: Enjoy a pastry or two with your morning cup of coffee! The slight bitterness of the coffee balances the sweetness of the pastry perfectly.
- The perfect brunch: Feature these vegan danishes at your next brunch along with my vegan spanakopita swirls with a sweet and savoury duo.
- Afternoon tea: Enjoy these sweet nutty pastries with a cup of tea, such as Earl Grey or matcha.
- After dinner dessert: There is no better time to eat a warm pastry than after supper when you’re settling down for the night.
- Extra toppings: Top the danishes with some fresh strawberries and a sprinkling of extra sugar.
Substitutions
Storage
Since these vegan danishes are plant-based, they’re safe to store at room temperature. Store in an airtight container, or wrap in plastic wrap. Keep for 2-3 days at room temperature, if you have leftovers (which is not a guarantee).
Reheat the pastries in the oven at 325°F for 5-7 minutes to restore their crispness.
For freezer storage, keep the pastries in a freezer-safe container and store them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature.
FAQ’s
Most store-bought puff pastry is made with vegetable oils, not butter, making them vegan.
You should soak your cashews for 45-60 minutes until they are soft and pliable.
Vegan Danish Recipe With Sweet Cashew Cheese
Equipment
- 1 blender
- 1 small pot
- 2 baking sheets
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups cashews roasted or raw
- 2 sheets puff pastry about 200g each, thawed
- 6 tablespoons powdered sugar divided
- 1 tablespoon + 1/2 teaspoon maple syrup divided
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoons plant milk + a splash for the glaze
Instructions
- Bring about 2 cups of water to a boil in a small pot. Once boiling, add the cashews and turn off the heat. Cover with a lid and set aside for about 1 hour, until the cashews are soft and pliable.
- Drain the cashews and set aside. Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Add the cashews, 3 tablespoons of powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon of maple syrup, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and salt to a blender. Blend for 2-3 minutes until smooth and creamy. If too thick, add a splash of plant milk.
- Place the puff pastry sheets onto your prepped baking sheets. Cut each sheet in half the long way, then cut each half into 3 rectangular pieces.
- Using a butter knife, trace an inner rectangle onto each pastry piece, leaving about a 1/2 inch border. Press just hard enough to make an indent, without slicing through the pastry.
- Add about 1 1/2 tablespoons of the filling to each piece of pastry. Using the back of a spoon, spread the cashew filling to the edges of your traced inner rectangle.
- Mix the plant milk with 1/2 teaspoon maple syrup. Using a pastry brush, brush the borders of the pastries.
- Bake for 15-17 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
- Whisk together 3 tablespoons of powdered sugar with a splash of plant milk, and drizzle over the pastries.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Info
Nutritional information is an estimate. Values vary based on products used. Read our full Nutrition Disclaimer.
Disclosure: This blog post may contain affiliate links, which means I get a commission if you purchase through my link, at no extra cost to you.
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Erika Piper
Hey there, I’m Erika. I’ve been meat-free for over a decade.
I’m here to provide delicious and affordable plant-based recipes for anyone interested.
Whether you’re a seasoned plant-based eater or just curious about trying it out, I’m here to support you with my easy and accessible recipes.
