Cheese And Italian Herb Tomato Danish Recipe

Few things in life are better than sitting in a quaint little cafe and taking a bite of perfectly buttery, flaky pastry that's still warm from the oven. If you are looking for bakery-quality Danish pastries to enjoy in the comfort of your own home, look no further than this cheese and Italian herb tomato Danish recipe, from the kitchen of Tasting Table recipe developer Jennine Rye. Bursting with fresh flavors, these crispy, creamy, cheesy pastries contain a wonderful balance of textures.

In this unusual and delicious savory version of a Danish pastry, crisp delicate puff pastry is coated with a garlic and herb cream cheese mixture and topped with slices of juicy red tomato. Garnished with Parmesan and fresh basil, these freshly baked beauties are a perfect slice of summer. What's more, they are deceptively simple to make and are ready to serve in under an hour. So, if you are looking for that picture-perfect cafe experience, read on to find out how you can make this cheese and Italian herb tomato Danish recipe.

To begin this cheese and Italian herb tomato Danish recipe, first you will need to gather the ingredients. You will want cream cheese, dried Italian herb mix, garlic powder, salt and pepper, tomatoes, puff pastry, an egg, Parmesan, and fresh basil leaves.

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Line a smaller baking sheet with paper towels.

In a bowl, add the cream cheese, Italian herbs, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.

Mix well to combine and then set aside.

Cut the tomatoes into ¼-inch thick slices.

Place the sliced tomatoes onto the tray with the kitchen towel for 10 minutes to absorb some of the excess moisture.

Whisk the egg to make an egg wash.

Roll out the puff pastry on a clean surface.

Cut the pastry into 8 rectangles and place them on the prepared baking tray.

Spread the cream cheese mixture in the center of the pastry squares, leaving a ½-inch edge.

Brush the egg wash around the edges of the pastry.

Place 2 tomato slices on top of the cream cheese on each pastry.

Place the baking sheet into the oven and cook the Danishes for 20 to 22 minutes, until the pastry is puffed up and golden.

Remove the pastries from the oven and let them cool for 10 minutes.

Top with the grated Parmesan and fresh basil just before serving.

Taking a stroll through the supermarket or a farmers market you'll likely be exposed to a wide array of tomato varieties, especially in the summer months, and it can be hard to know which option to choose for your dish. This recipe uses vine tomatoes, which are simply red tomatoes that are sold still on the vine. This allows for the tomatoes to ripen for longer, giving them a stronger aroma and flavor, which will ultimately result in a tastier Danish pastry. However, this is certainly not the only tomato variant available to you in this recipe.

Heirloom tomatoes are another excellent option for these Danish pastries. You'll know these tomatoes by their wide array of colors, patterns, shapes, and sizes. These beauties may cost a little more, but they will add a stunning visual element to the pastries as well as a superior taste. You could also use cherry tomatoes in this recipe. Small and sweet, these tomatoes don't disappoint when it comes to flavor, and they pair really well with the flavor of the garlic and Italian herb cream cheese mixture. Due to their size, you'll want to halve them and add a few more to each pastry slice than the other tomato variants, but you can use a variety of colors for a pretty stained-glass window effect.

If you are a home baker you'll know all about the complex world of pastries and the seemingly endless varieties available to you, if you are daring enough to try. However, for a Danish pastry, you want to stick with laminated pastry, which has fat evenly layered throughout the dough. This complex process is how the thin, flaky layers of puff pastry are created, and you really can't make a Danish without it. While creating your own puff pastry is something of an art, we are lucky to live in a time where this beautiful yet tricky pastry dough is readily available premade from the store. So, if you don't fancy forming your own puff pastry, you can simply stock up and keep some in your fridge or freezer.

While there isn't a lot of leeway when it comes to the pastry in this recipe, the cheese is another matter. Rye uses cream cheese to make the seasoned base for the Danishes, but there are other alternatives available to you should you fancy switching things up. All you need to look for are cheeses soft enough to mix with seasonings, so goat's cheese, mascarpone, and ricotta are equally great options depending on your tastes. If you want something a little stronger, you can always add grated sharp cheese into the cream cheese mixture, such as Gruyère or Parmesan.