Starbucks Copycat Sugar Plum Cheese Danish: The Ultimate Homemade Recipe

If you’ve ever experienced the sheer delight of a seasonal Sugar Plum Cheese Danish from Starbucks, you know it’s more than just a pastry—it’s a holiday tradition in every bite. That rich, creamy cheese filling combined with sweet plum jam, all nestled in flaky puff pastry, is truly irresistible. Like many, I found myself craving these delicious treats daily, only to be deterred by their escalating price. The good news? You can now effortlessly create an entire batch of these luxurious danishes at home for what one might cost at your favorite coffee shop!

Freshly baked Sugar Plum Cheese Danish resting on a wire cooling rack, placed over a festive Christmas-themed towel, with some decorative green foliage beside it.

These homemade delights, as a friend aptly pointed out, bear a charming resemblance to “grown-up toaster strudels,” but with an undeniably sophisticated twist. Forget the boxed versions; these danishes are a testament to the joy of homemade baking. They are utterly delicious, and for the ultimate experience, try to enjoy them as soon as they’ve cooled just enough to handle. The warm, gooey center and crisp pastry are simply divine!

Embracing the spirit of a homemade Christmas extends beyond the kitchen. If you love adding a personal touch to your holiday decor, be sure to check out my Gingerbread Salt Dough Ornaments and Easy Pasta Ornaments. These fun and simple crafts are perfect for creative grown-ups and kids alike, making your home feel even more special during the festive season.

For quick access to the full recipe, simply click the JUMP TO RECIPE button at the top of this post, or scroll down to the very bottom to find the complete recipe card with detailed ingredient measurements and instructions.

Essential Ingredients for Your Homemade Danish

Crafting these delectable Sugar Plum Cheese Danishes doesn’t require a culinary degree. In fact, one of my favorite shortcuts for this recipe is using store-bought puff pastry. While I typically champion the art of making almost everything from scratch, high-quality, pre-made puff pastry works exceptionally well here, yielding results that are just as fantastic, if not better, than homemade versions. It’s a genuine time-saver that doesn’t compromise on flavor or texture, making this recipe accessible even on busy days.

All the necessary ingredients laid out to prepare the delightful Sugar Plum Cheese Danish, including puff pastry, cream cheese, jam, and eggs.

Another convenient ingredient I rely on is store-bought plum jam. Since I often find myself baking these danishes during the winter months, fresh plums aren’t always in season or easily available. Using a good quality plum jam ensures that signature sugar plum flavor without the extra effort of making jam from scratch. However, don’t feel limited to plum jam; this recipe is incredibly versatile. You can use almost any jam or fruit preserve you adore – think cherry, apricot, or raspberry – to create your own unique danish masterpiece.

Key Components Breakdown:

Puff Pastry: The foundation of our danish. Opt for a good quality all-butter puff pastry if possible, as it results in the flakiest, most luxurious texture. Thawing it properly is crucial for ease of handling and optimal puff.
Cream Cheese: The heart of the rich, tangy filling. Always ensure your cream cheese is at room temperature, or even slightly softer, before mixing. This prevents lumps and ensures a silky-smooth, creamy texture that perfectly balances the sweetness of the jam.
Powdered Sugar: Used in the cream cheese filling to add sweetness without a grainy texture. Adjust to your preferred level of sweetness.
Lemon Juice: A touch of fresh lemon juice brightens the cream cheese filling, cutting through its richness and adding a subtle, refreshing zest.
Kosher Salt: A tiny pinch in both the egg wash and the filling enhances all the flavors, balancing the sweet and tart notes.
Vanilla Extract: Essential for adding warmth and depth to the cream cheese filling, complementing the other flavors beautifully.
Egg and Egg Yolk: Used for the egg wash, which gives the danishes their beautiful golden sheen and helps the pastry layers adhere during folding. The remaining egg yolk goes into the filling for richness.
Sanding or Turbinado Sugar: For sprinkling on the pastry edges before baking. This adds a delightful crunch and sparkle, enhancing both texture and appearance.
Plum Jam: The iconic “sugar plum” flavor for our danish. As mentioned, feel free to experiment with other jams.

Crafting Your Sugar Plum Cheese Danish: Step-by-Step

Creating these delightful danishes is a surprisingly straightforward process, especially with store-bought puff pastry. Precision and patience are your best allies for achieving that perfect flaky texture and beautiful shape.

Preparing the Puff Pastry:

Gently rolling out a sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface to refine its shape and flatten it slightly before cutting.

A sheet of puff pastry being carefully cut into four equal squares, preparing them for the danish folding process.

Begin by properly thawing your puff pastry according to package directions. This typically takes about 30-40 minutes at room temperature. Once thawed, gently unfold one sheet of puff pastry onto a lightly floured surface. Using a rolling pin, carefully roll it out just a little, aiming to make it slightly larger and flatten it into a more perfect square. The key here is to be gentle; avoid pressing too hard or over-rolling, as this can compress the delicate layers of butter and dough, hindering their ability to rise and puff beautifully in the oven. You’re aiming for enough expansion to easily cut four relatively even squares from each sheet. Once rolled, use a sharp knife or pastry wheel to cut the pastry into four equal squares.

Forming and Chilling the Danishes:

Puff pastry squares arranged on a baking sheet, with small dabs of egg wash strategically placed on each corner for folding and adhesion.

Neatly folded puff pastry squares, each corner brought to the center, lightly brushed with egg wash, and ready for chilling to maintain their shape.

Next, transfer your four pastry squares to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. To create the classic danish shape, make four small cuts, about 1 ½ inches long, from each corner towards the center of the square. This creates “flaps” that you will fold. Prepare an egg wash by whisking one whole egg and half of an egg yolk with a pinch of salt. Dab some of this egg wash onto all four corners of each pastry square and lightly in the middle. Carefully fold each corner inwards, bringing them to meet and lightly overlap in the center of the square, pressing down gently to ensure they adhere. This will create a small “well” in the center where the cream cheese filling will sit. Brush the tops and sides of these newly folded pastries with more egg wash for a beautiful golden finish, then place the entire baking sheet into the freezer to chill for at least 10-15 minutes. This chilling step is crucial for maintaining the danishes’ shape and maximizing their puffiness during baking.

Baking and Finishing Touches:

Chilled danishes, perfectly formed with a dollop of creamy cheese filling in the center of each, sprinkled with sanding sugar, and ready for baking.

Golden brown danishes freshly out of the oven, puffed and ready for the final touch of plum jam to be added to their centers.

While the pastries chill, prepare your cream cheese filling by combining softened cream cheese (room temperature is key for a smooth consistency!), powdered sugar, the remaining egg yolk, a splash of lemon juice, a pinch of salt, and vanilla extract. Whisk thoroughly until the mixture is completely smooth and free of any lumps. Once the danishes are firm from chilling, remove them from the freezer. Dollop a generous tablespoon of the smooth cream cheese filling into the center well of each pastry. Lightly dust the exposed pastry edges with sanding sugar for added sparkle and crunch. Bake them immediately in a preheated oven until they are beautifully golden brown and significantly puffed. As soon as they emerge from the oven, gently place a teaspoon of plum jam on top of the cream cheese filling. Allow them to cool on a wire rack until they are just warm or at room temperature. For an extra touch of elegance and sweetness, you can optionally drizzle a simple powdered sugar glaze over the cooled danishes before serving.

Expert Notes & Tips for Danish Perfection

Achieving bakery-quality danishes at home is surprisingly simple with a few insider tips:

The Importance of Chilling: This step is non-negotiable for truly spectacular danishes. Chilling the puff pastry after forming the danishes ensures that the butter within the dough remains very cold. When this cold butter hits the hot oven, it rapidly creates steam, which then pushes apart the layers of dough, resulting in an incredible, tall, and flaky “puff.” Skipping this step will still give you a tasty pastry, but chilling elevates it to an entirely new level of airy, crisp perfection.
Room Temperature Cream Cheese: For a flawlessly smooth cream cheese filling, your cream cheese must be at room temperature, ideally even a little softer. Cold cream cheese will inevitably lead to a lumpy filling, which is less pleasant in texture. To guarantee ultimate smoothness, I often whip my filling in a small food processor or with an electric mixer until it’s velvety.
The Optional Glaze: The powdered sugar glaze is entirely up to you! While it adds an extra layer of sweetness and a beautiful visual finish, making the danishes look even more “showier” and reminiscent of a high-end bakery treat, they are absolutely delicious without it. It also enhances that “adult toaster strudel” vibe, adding a familiar touch of glaze.
Serving Temperature: For the best experience, enjoy these danishes when they are still slightly warm from the oven. The pastry is at its crispiest, and the filling is wonderfully gooey. While they are still delicious at room temperature, that initial warmth is truly magical.
Storage: These danishes are best enjoyed the day they are made. If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1-2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. Reheat gently in a toaster oven for a few minutes to crisp up the pastry.

Creative Substitutions & Variations

This Sugar Plum Cheese Danish recipe is wonderfully adaptable, allowing you to customize it to your taste preferences or what you have on hand:

Puff Pastry: As mentioned, high-quality store-bought puff pastry is my go-to for its convenience and excellent results. However, if you are an avid baker and enjoy the challenge, you can certainly make your own puff pastry from scratch. The extra effort will be rewarded with a truly bespoke pastry. Just ensure it’s well-chilled before shaping.
Sanding Sugar Alternatives: Sanding sugar provides a wonderful textural crunch and sparkle. If you can’t find chunky sanding sugar, you can easily substitute it with Turbinado sugar (also known as sugar in the raw) or even coarse granulated sugar. These options will still provide a lovely contrasting texture and visual appeal to the pastry edges.
Jam Varieties: While plum jam gives these danishes their signature “Sugar Plum” flavor reminiscent of Starbucks, the beauty of this recipe lies in its versatility. Feel free to use any fruit jam or preserve you love! Cherry jam, apricot preserves, raspberry jam, or even fig jam would be absolutely delicious and offer a different flavor profile. For a simpler, classic treat, you can even omit the jam entirely and enjoy them as pure, delightful cream cheese danishes.
Cream Cheese Filling Enhancements: To add another layer of flavor to your cream cheese filling, consider incorporating a pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg, especially if you’re leaning into the holiday spice theme. A small amount of orange or lemon zest can also elevate the brightness of the filling.
Glaze Options: Beyond a simple powdered sugar glaze, you could experiment with a citrus glaze (powdered sugar mixed with lemon or orange juice) for a tangy counterpoint, or a light vanilla bean glaze for added sophistication.

A stunning shot of a Sugar Plum Cheese Danish gracefully placed on a Christmas-themed towel, adorned with fresh green foliage, evoking holiday warmth and deliciousness.

More Delicious Breakfast Delights

If you’re looking to expand your breakfast repertoire beyond these delightful danishes, here are some other fantastic recipes to inspire your morning meals:

Homemade Breakfast Burrito

Cheddar Chive Biscuits

Healthy Breakfast Sandwich

Breakfast Pie

Crunchy Peanut Butter Granola

Breakfast Focaccia

Caramelized Custard French Toast

Breakfast Fried Rice

Have you tried making this irresistible Starbucks-inspired Sugar Plum Cheese Danish recipe? I’d love to hear about your experience! Please leave a review or comment below to share your thoughts and tips. And don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter to get the latest recipes delivered straight to your inbox. You can also follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook for more delicious inspiration!

📖 Recipe

Yield: 8 pastries

Sugar Plum Cheese Danish

Prep Time:
10 minutes

Cook Time:
20 minutes

Total Time:
30 minutes

Recreate the magic of Starbucks’ seasonal Sugar Plum Cheese Danish at home with this easy, delicious copycat recipe featuring flaky puff pastry, creamy cheese filling, and sweet plum jam.

Ingredients

1 large Egg, whole
1 large Egg Yolk, divided
1, 17.3-ounce box Puff Pastry, 2 sheets – thawed

for the filling:

4 ounces Cream Cheese, room temp
3 tablespoons Powdered Sugar
½ teaspoon Lemon Juice, freshly squeezed
¼ teaspoon Kosher Salt
¼ teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Sanding or Turbinado Sugar, for sprinkling
Plum Jam, or your favorite for topping

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375˚F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and reserve until needed.

Make an egg wash by beating the egg, and half the egg yolk together with a pinch of salt. Reserve until needed.

Remove the pastry from its bag and discard the paper sheets from it. Open it onto a lightly floured surface and using a rolling pin, roll the pastry out, working one at a time, just a touch to form a perfect-ish square.

Cut the large square into 4 even squares by cutting it down the middle and cutting each half in half. Use a ruler to get exact squares if desired.

Using the egg wash you made earlier, brush some on all four corners of each square, and fold each corner into the middle of the square, pressing down so it adheres and you end up with a bit of a divot in the center.

Divide the Danish between two sheet pans lined with parchment paper and place them in the freezer until firm, 10-15 minutes.

While the formed danish rests, make the cheese filling by combining the remaining half egg yolk, cream cheese, powdered sugar, lemon juice, salt, and vanilla in a bowl and whisk together until no lumps remain.

Remove the danish from the freezer brush the tops with egg wash and dust them with the sanding sugar.

Fill the divots with a heaping tablespoon of the cream cheese filling and place the pastries directly in the hot oven.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown. Turn the pan around halfway through baking.

As soon as the danishes come out of the oven, remove them to a cooling rack top them with a teaspoon of the plum jam, and let them cool until room temp or just slightly warm still.

The pastries will deflate a bit as they cool and are best enjoyed the day they are made, even slightly warm.

Optionally, you can leave the jam off and simply leave them cheese danishes, and finish them with a powdered sugar glaze if desired.

Notes

Notes & Tips

It is important to chill the puff pastry after you form the danishes. Doing so ensures you get a really great rise out of it. Rushing it will still give you puffy danish, but chilling it makes it next-level puffy. This is because when the butter is cold, it creates more layers, hence more PUFF.

Be sure your cream cheese is room temp, if not a little softer or you will get a lumpy filling. And that is no good. I even make the filling in my little food processor to ensure it is SUPER smooth.

The glaze is totally optional, it really is just to make them a little showier. But it also enhances the feel of adult toaster strudels.

Substitutions

While you can make your own puff pastry if you like, store-bought is always perfect. I usually encourage anyone to make almost everything from scratch, but this is one shortcut I am willing to take.

I love some crunch sanding sugar on pastries like this, if you can not find really chunky sanding sugar, you can also use Turbinado or sugar in the raw.

Plum jam makes these super reminiscent of the Starbucks Sugar Plum Cheese Danishes, but you can honestly use ANY jam you like on top of these. You could also use NO jam and just have a cheese danish if you prefer.

Did you make this recipe?

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Enchanted Sugar Plum Cheese Danish