Sink your teeth into one of this delicious Air Fryer Cream Cheese Danish! It’s got all the classic flavors, but you never have to turn on your oven or heat up your kitchen. It comes together in only 17 minutes!
Making a cream cheese danish with an air fryer is surprisingly easy. You can make this popular breakfast treat for your family in the morning, or whip up a batch of these heavenly treats to enjoy at your next brunch party!
You won’t crave the coffee house favorites once you start baking these Starbucks Copycat pastries.
🍽️ Why This Works
Easy Recipe | Seriously, this is a snap and everyone can do it. Don’t ever be afraid of puff pastry. Even though it’s delicate and flaky, it’s incredibly easy to work with and the results are outstanding!
Great for Baby Showers, Parties, and Brunch | Pull out this recipe anytime you have a holiday brunch or serving it up at a baby shower / bridal shower. Everyone loves cream cheese danishes and yet no one really knows how silly simple they are to make.
Delicious Way to Start the Day | Since these are Starbucks Copycat, you don’t need to start your day at the busy (and expensive) coffee house when you can make these at home for a fraction of the cost and zero hassle.
17 Minutes | If I have to exact, that is all it takes to make these. Come on, you can’t drive to Starbucks and back in that time. Plus these are homemade!
Five Ingredients | These are simple five ingredients that you are used to using.
Easy to Customize | Swap out that cream cheese for cherries, apples, cranberries, Nutella, chocolate or anything else you can think of. Heck, go savory with these and you can put in mushrooms, cheese and caramelized onions. You get the picture. The options are endless!
Flaky, Tender, and Incredible | Since you are using puff pastry instead of canned dough, these are going to make up the nearest bakery style danishes you can imagine, with a fraction of the work!
🥐 Ingredients
This recipe only requires five ingredients! They are simple, easy to use and they create an unforgettable treat that you will want time and time again.
Puff Pastry – The most important ingredient has to be the puff pastry. There is wiggle room here because you can use either store-bought pastry or you can make it yourself. Either way gives you incredible results.
Cream Cheese – Oh, how I love cream cheese! For the best results, be sure to let the cream cheese come to room temperature before you start. It’s going to blend so much easier than if it’s left cold. We love Philadelphia Cream Cheese or our Instant Pot Cream Cheese.
Sugar – Naturally, adding sugar is a must to make the air fryer cheese danish sweet. You can certainly try out various sweeteners, use the ones that your family loves.
We all have those mornings where we wake up craving something sweet, but realize we can’t eat cake for breakfast! This cream cheese danish recipe will satisfy your sweet tooth in just a matter of minutes!
Quick read: 20+ Sugars and How to Use Them
🔥 Instructions
Step One: Blend together the cream cheese, lemon juice, sugar, vanilla, and lemon zest in a mixing bowl.
Step Two: Cut the puff pastry into rectangles.
Step Three: Put the pastry rectangles in the air fryer basket. Cook at 370 degrees for 5 minutes. Brush with an egg wash (if desired).
Step Four: Remove the pastry from the air fryer and add a dollop of the cream cheese mixture to the center of each one. Cook for two minutes more. Serve and devour!
⏲️ Equipment and Tools
Air Fryer – We used our Ninja basket version for this one which will hold 1-2 at a time so there is sufficient air flow between the puff pastry. If I chose to use my Instant Vortex 7 in 1, I could cook 4-6 at a time as the two trays hold so much more. All air fryers cook slightly differently in temperature and time so always cook on the lower side or a little less when trying recipes for the first time.
Liners (optional) – This is a great recipe to use the air fryer liners to keep clean up to a minimum. They are not required at all though.
Storage
Store these in a sealed container for up to three days in the refrigerator.
❗ Expert Tips
Every air fryer is a little different, so keep in mind that the cook time may need to be adjusted depending on your model. If it cooks too quickly, turn down the heat or shorten the cook time. Or if they aren’t done when you check them, cook for an additional minute or two.
Don’t crowd your air fryer. You need to give enough space that the air can circulate properly and do its job…cook the cream cheese danish.
Try to cut the danish so they are all the same size. This will allow them to cook evenly and look much better when you are serving them.
Serving Suggestions
These are so yummy that you will make them time and time again and they are so versatile.
Holiday Breakfast Pairings
Weekend Brunch Pairings
Recipe FAQ
Sure! Feel free to add in a few blueberries, a couple of raspberries, or some sliced strawberries to each danish. Look at using canned apple pie filling, cherry pie filling or making your own version to dollop on top.
Consider adding a spoonful of your favorite jam, marmalade, or even curd! They are all flavorful options that will look and taste great.
Sure! Almost everything tastes better with a dash of chocolate. You could either melt chocolate and drizzle it over the top of the cooked danish, or add a few pieces to the center. Both are tasty!
Substitute homemade Nutella for the cream cheese for a decadent treat.
The air fryer cream cheese danish is always better when eaten fresh, but you can certainly save leftovers. Wrap them with a piece of plastic wrap or put them into a food storage container. They should be refrigerated or frozen. They will last 2 days in the fridge or up to 1 month in the freezer.
Related Recipes
Air Fryer Cheese Danish
Equipment
- Zester
Ingredients
- 2 sheets Puff Pastry or homemade
- 8 oz Cream Cheese softened
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- 1 Lemon
- Egg optional
Instructions
Air Fryer Danish
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the cream cheese, sugar, juice of 1/2 lemon, zest of the other half lemon and vanilla.
- Cut sheets of puff pastry into rectangular pieces.
- Place pastry into the air fryer basket and cook on 370 for 5 minutes. Brush with egg wash optional before placing in the basket.
- Remove and place a dollop of cream cheese frosting in the center, cook for 2 more minutes.
How to Make Optional Egg Wash
- Take one egg and whisk it in a bowl. Add 2 tbsp of water and whisk. Brush on danish before cooking.
Notes
Nutrition
Hi!
Ginny Collins is a passionate foodie and recipe creator of Savor and Savvy and Kitchenlaughter. Indoors she focuses on easy, quick recipes for busy families and kitchen basics. Outdoors, she focuses on backyard grilling and smoking to bring family and friends together. She is a lifelong learner who is always taking cooking classes on her travels overseas and stateside. Her work has been featured on MSN, Parade, Fox News, Yahoo, Cosmopolitan, Elle, and many local news outlets. She lives in Florida where you will find her outside on the water in her kayak, riding her bike on trails, and planning her next overseas adventure.
She was right! This is the same as the Starbucks version, if not better!