Raspberry Creme Cheese Crescent Danish

Raspberry Creme Cheese Crescent Danish

Coffee Cake

• 1 can (8 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Original Crescent Rolls (8 Count)
• 4 oz (from 8-oz package) cream cheese, softened
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• ¾ cup fresh raspberries
• 2 tablespoons raspberry preserves
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted  

Glaze

• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon milk

Prep the Pan and Arrange the Dough Pieces

Heat oven to 375°. 

Line a large cookie sheet with cooking parchment paper and spray it generously with cooking spray. This ensures any filling that leaks out from the candy cane during baking won’t stick to the cookie sheet. It also makes it easy to remove the baked coffee cake from the pan. 

Cut the crescent triangles in half lengthwise. Then line up the triangles on the cookie sheet, with the wide edges overlapping slightly, all pointed in the same direction. Press together the overlapping parts to seal them together.

Layer the Fillings

Mix the softened cream cheese and 2 tablespoons of sugar and spread it in a 1/2”-wide strip down the dough at the widest part. 

Mix the raspberries and preserves and spoon it on top of the cream cheese layer.

Make a Cane Shaped Coffee Cake

Fold each tip of dough over the filling and pinch it to the opposite edge. Gently curve one end of the coffee cake to form the top of the cane. Brush the dough on the top of the coffee cake with the melted butter and sprinkle the remaining 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar over the top.

Bake, Cool, and Add the Glaze

Bake 16 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.  

Allow it to cool on the cookie sheet 5 minutes, for it to become sturdier and easier to move. 

Using a pancake turner, carefully slide the Danish from the parchment onto a serving platter. Mix the glaze ingredients and drizzle it with a spoon over the top of the coffee cake. 

Serve the coffee cake when it’s warm, for the best flavor and texture.

☝️ If this will be transported, choose a platter that will fit in my carrier to keep it warm!!!

How to Store Candy Cane Crescent Danish

Place any remaining crescent Danish on a plate. Cover it tightly and refrigerate up to 2 days. To reheat leftover Danish, place a serving on a microwavable plate. Cover it loosely and microwave on low (30%) 30 seconds to 1 minute or just until slightly warm. Do not overheat, or the filling will run out from the pastry.

Variations on Raspberry-Cream Cheese Danish

With just a change of an ingredient or two, you can have a new flavor for this Pillsbury raspberry cream cheese coffee cake, if you wish:

Swap the Fruit: Rather than use fresh raspberries, try 3/4 cup of fresh blueberries with blueberry preserves, fresh blackberries with blackberry preserves or chopped fresh strawberries with strawberry preserves. Or use a medley of any of these fruits with the berry-flavored preserves of your choice, for a mixed berry coffee cake.

Add Some Crunch: Before wrapping the dough around the filling, sprinkle 1/4 cup finely chopped nuts, such as walnuts, pecans, or almonds.

Swap the Glaze: Make a chocolate glaze by mixing 1/4 cup powdered sugar with 1 1/2 teaspoons each unsweetened baking cocoa and melted butter. Stir in a drop or two of milk until it’s drizzling consistency. Use this glaze instead of the white glaze called for in the recipe.

Love the candy cane shape of this Danish? Try one of our other holiday recipes:

Mini Cherry Cheesecake Crescent Danishes makes four breakfast pastries, so everyone can have a candy cane all to themselves.

Spinach-Artichoke Crescent Candy Cane is a festive, party-ready appetizer to bring to your next holiday party.

Can I Make This the Night Before?

No!  But you can do a little prep ---

While we love a great breakfast recipe you can make the night before, a delicate pastry such as this one, isn’t a great candidate. The fillings soften the dough, creating a pastry that isn’t as light and flaky as when baked up fresh. This recipe takes only 20 minutes to get into the oven, but if you need a jump start on the prep, there are some things you can do to make it easier on you when it's breakfast time:

Prep Your Ingredients: 

You can mix the sweetened cream cheese ingredients and raspberry filling ingredients as directed in step 2. Cover and refrigerate them overnight. In the morning, take them out of the fridge and uncover them to stand at room temperature while you heat the oven. Make the glaze while the coffee cake is cooling 5 minutes (in step 4).

Make But Don’t Bake the Coffee Cake: You can prepare the Danish through Step 3. Cover and refrigerate it no longer than 2 hours before baking. When you’re ready to bake, uncover it and bake as directed in step 4.

Recipe Inspiration Source/s:  

Pillsbury. (includes a short video)

Topper --- Oil-Free Chips - using Tortillas or Potatoes

Optional Seasonings 

The chips can be eaten plain when you just need a little crunch or you can spice them up with any of these - garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, curry powder, paprika, cumin, cayenne pepper, black pepper, vegan Parmesan, minced garlic

💚 Interesting Option to Try - Top your corn chips with lime or lemon juice, then sprinkle with a good pinch of salt or desired seasonings.  If no limes, you can also spritz with water before adding seasonings.Tortillas

• corn tortillas - cut into 8 chip size pieces or smaller strips perfect for soup or salad toppers

☝️ A pizza cutter is helpful when making the salad strips.  

Tortillas 

AIR FRYER - 375 degrees and set timer for 9 minutes or  370 degrees for 6 minutes

Different air fryers may require a different temperature and or time. Also different brands of corn tortillas take different times – depends on how thick they are are and how wet they are. Keep a close on them as they can go from lightly brown to burnt quickly!

OVEN - Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place cut corn tortillas in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with a Silpat mat or parchment paper. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. 

With either method, strips may still be slightly pliable, but will continue to crisp further as they cool.

☝️ If there are leftovers, store them in an airtight container.  Some sources recommend making just the amount you need and eating them right away.  If you store them in a baggie, they can lose their crunch as they cool & become more difficult to chew.

Potatoes

• potatoes, thinly sliced

Thinly and uniformly slice potatoes using mandolin or knife. Place in bowl of water for 30 minutes to prevent browning and remove excess starch.

Remove potato slices and place on paper towel. Pat dry then sprinkle on desired seasonings.

If using an oven, preheat oven to 400°F and line baking sheet with parchment paper. Place potatoes in a single layer and bake 5-10 minutes. Watch carefully and remove when crispy and lightly brown.

If using an air fryer, layer potatoes inside in 4 layers or less. Cook at 170° for 20 minutes tossing the basket every 5 minutes. When potatoes are dry, increase temperature to 400°F and cook an additional 5 minutes or until crunchy.

Recipe Inspiration Source/s:  

Nutmeg Notebook

Karrissa's Vegan Kitchen

Chew on Vegan (YouTube video)

Plant Based Life

Nutriciously - This page has also includes some great links to dips and sauces.

Little Blue Plates

🌿  💚  ✅  ☝️  ★   ★  

Apples in the Microwave - Fast and Easy Snack

Recipe Inspiration Source:  Allrecipes, Salad in a Jar

Actually, the wife who is part owner of Adams Farm told me about this.  She saw I was buying a few of their HoneyCrisp apples.  The way she described them made me definitely want to give it a try.  I also decided to look up some similar recipes in case there were any variations to consider.

• 2 apples, sliced - can also use pears!
• 1 teaspoon white sugar, brown sugar, honey or maple syrup (sweeteners can be omitted for a healthier version)
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Optional: 

• butter, nutmeg, ground cloves, raisins, nuts

Place apples in a microwave-safe bowl; 

Cover with another glass plate or microwave safe lid and heat in microwave for 1 minute. 

Tip: Adding a little water at the beginning will keep them from being too dry.

Sprinkle sugar and cinnamon over apples and stir to coat.  

Heat apples in microwave until soft and warm, 1-4 minutes more.  Check on them each minute.   They can be cooked at a lower temp for longer.

Serving Options - 

• serve with ice cream
• sprinkle with granola
• bake them in a pie crust
• roll them up in a tortilla for an apple burrito
• Make an “Apple Bueno" - Pour cooked apples over all fried flour tortilla chips and eat like nachos

Apple Bueno

Potatoes - Sweet Potato - Chunky Monkey

Recipe Inspiration Source:  I saw this on Facebook.

If I'm hungry and desperately craving a sweet fix, this would definitely be a solution!

If you haven't tried a chunky monkey yet you are missing out!

Cook a sweet potato and open it up, smash a banana on top and drizzle with watered down PB2. So good for breakfast, lunch, dinner or dessert (sprinkle with a couple of teaspoons of Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips for dessert).

Apple Crisps - Air Fried

Recipe Inspiration Source:  Williams Sonoma

I forgot to take a photo after they cooked.
I scarfed them down!

• 1 apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced horizontally
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 Tbs. sugar
• Pinch of kosher salt

Preheat air fryer to 390°.

In a small bowl, stir together the cinnamon, sugar and salt. Rub all sides of apple slices in the mix.

Working in batches, place the apple slices in the fry basket and insert into the air fryer. Cook until the slices are slightly golden brown, 7 to 8 minutes, turning them over halfway through cooking.  6 to 7 minutes means they are still moist, a bit like baked apples.  

Hmmmmmm...  I need to explore more recipes.  I'm wondering how it would be to add in some oatmeal and create sort of a batter for each slice.  That's not necessary because these were good as is and quite simple.  I'm only thinking of experimenting for variety.

Snack - Chocolate Chickpea Clusters

Green Smoothie Gourmet came up with the perfect description for these - 

"Super healthy, crazy easy chocolate and chickpea snack rich in protein, fiber, magnesium and anti-oxidants. The perfect grab-and-run snack to boost you out of those afternoon slump."

picture

NOTE: To make the melting magic happen, the chickpeas must go straight from the oven into a bowl of chocolate chips – so plan your schedule accordingly!

• 1 can 15oz of chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans)
• 1 cup vegan chocolate chips - semi sweet, dark,...

More options:

• 1 TBSP cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• cayenne pepper
• cacao nibs
• nuts - toasted would be good!
• seeds - especially sesame, but also pumpkin or sunflower
• dried fruit

1. Rinse chickpeas.
2. Spread them on a small parchment-lined cookie sheet. 
3. Bake at 350 degrees F for one hour. 
4. Shake baking sheet in a circular motion every 10-15 minutes to ensure even roasting.
5. After first 15 minutes, sprinkle with cinnamon and salt if using.
6. Pour chocolate chips in a bowl, and put HOT chickpeas straight from the oven on top of the chocolate chips, stirring to melt them. Chocolate should be completely melted and drip off of the end of the spoon easily.  If you need to, microwave the bowl in increments of 20 seconds until chocolate is melt enough to stir and coat the chickpeas.
7. Replace the parchment in the cookie sheet and dollop 1 tbsp of mixture in rows, with 1 inch separation. 
8. Chill in refrigerator for one hour.
9. They are ready to eat! Store in frig or room temperature, it’s up to you.

Notes:

• One recipe recommended cooking chickpeas10 minutes at 400.

Recipe Inspiration Sources:  Green Smoothie Gourmet, Nest and Glow and Meal Prep on Fleek

Chia Puddings

Inspiration Sources:
Minimalist Baker, A Saucy Kitchen

Chia puddings have become a new favorite snack.  They are tasty, satisfy a sweet tooth, and pack a wallop of nutrition as well.  Chia seeds are high in fiber and protein.  They are great sources of protein and omega-3 fatty acids.  They give the pudding a wonderful little crunch.  It's also easy to add other ingredients to bump up the nutritional value - like ground flax.

Chia puddings are quite versatile.  Add a bit of cacao (chocolate goodness, but healthier than cocoa).  Add a bit of powdered matcha tea - it turns the pudding a beautiful green and adds a little energy boost.  AND of course, add fruits and nuts.  You can add the extras as toppers or get fancy and create a layered effect,  You can serve it in a bowl or make it more fun by serving in a wine glass.

One point - most of the chia puddings I make are not very sweet.  The fruit toppings provide the sweet boost.

Chia Puddings

My first try at a chocolate chia pudding - it's a keeper!

Note: The amounts below allow for making different flavors for each person.  If both want the same flavor, then double the amount.

Basic Chia Pudding

• 3/4 cup almond milk, cashew milk, coconut milk or oat milk
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 2-4 Tbsp maple syrup ***
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon (optional)
• 1 pinch sea salt

*** If avoiding maple syrup, blend 1-3 dates with milk.

Pudding - Flavor and Extra Nutrition Options

• 1/8 cup cacao powder (or unsweetened cocoa powder)
• 3 TBSP cocoa/cacao -and- 2 TBSP peanut butter or almond butter
• matcha (makes it green)
• turmeric (Golden Milk)
• 3 TBSP hemp seeds

To a small mixing bowl add basic pudding ingredients except chia and whisk to combine. Then add a little dairy-free milk at a time and whisk until smooth.

Taste it to see if it's sweet enough.  Getting the maple syrup right with the least amount is tricky.

Add chia seeds and whisk once more to combine. After 15 minutes, whisk again to be sure the chi seeds are evenly distributed.

Cover and refrigerate overnight, or at least 3-5 hours (until it's achieved a pudding-like consistency).  Leftovers keep covered in the fridge for 4-5 days, though best when fresh. 

Topping Options
Serve chilled with desired toppings, such as -  

• fruit - strawberries, raspberries, bananas...
• granola or toasted oats
• nuts - toasted is good
• coconut whipped cream
• shaved dark chocolate
• orange slice
• mint leaves

If Making Nut Milk, Sweeten With Dates!

This is an even healthier version!

Make your own cashew milk, 

sweeten with dates (no maple syrup), 

add in hemp seeds, as well.

This example is for cashew milk -

Place raw cashews in a bowl and cover with cold water. Allow to soak for at least one hour up to overnight, then drain and rinse. 

Add 1 cup of water, hemp seeds, cashews and dates to a blender. Blend on high speed for 2-3 minutes, until a smooth milk is made.

Add 1-1/2 more cups of water, chia seeds, and other pudding ingredients and pulse until combined, leaving chia seeds whole.

Layering!

1. Make the pudding. Making several batches of different colors is fun!
2. Let the mixture sit for about 30 minutes at room temperature.
3. Mix once more, cover, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours (for best results, refrigerate overnight).
4. Remove the bowl with the pudding from the fridge about 15 minutes prior to serving.
5. Layer some pudding into the bottom each serving glasses. Layer CHILLED AND DICED FRUIT on top of the pudding layer. Alternate layers of pudding and fruit until glasses are filled to the top, ending with fruit.
6. Serve immediately or keep in the fridge until ready to serve. 
   

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Inspiration!

Simple Oceanic Chia Recipe

MATCHA CHIA PUDDING

CHIA PUDDING RECIPE RATIO

chocolate peanut butter chia pudding

almond milk fig chia pudding

GOLDEN MILK CHIA SEED PUDDING

Chia Pudding Recipe