Is there anything better than a sweet pastry and coffee on a lazy weekend morning? This cream cheese braid is my family’s favorite. It is a little time consuming, so I admit, I don’t make this as often as they would like. I save it for holidays and for company; but oh, is it worth it! My husband claims this pastry is the reason he married me! I took one to the holiday party where we met, and the rest is history.
The nice thing about this recipe is that it is very versatile. You can choose whatever fruit you want to top it. I have made this with cherry, raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, blackberry, apple, and lemon. I have also used nuts instead of fruit. I have done toasted almond slivers then made a milk and powder sugar icing to drizzle after it was baked, and I have also topped it with a walnut cinnamon crumble. Get creative!
To make, I start with the filling. Make sure your cream cheese is softened, you want everything mixed together really well. You can use a mixer or food processor; personally, I love to use my food processor, so that is what I’ll refer to. Add all ingredients and mix well, scraping the bottom and sides to incorporate everything. This filling should be smooth and creamy. Place in a covered container and refrigerate.
Now for the dough.
After I’ve rinsed out my food processor bowl and attachments, I go straight to making the dough.
First thing I do is wake up my yeast. I take a small bowl and add the warm water, yeast and 1 tablespoon of sugar to “feed ” it. Then I set it aside. After a few minutes it should start foaming up.
I add the remaining sugar, butter, eggs, sour cream, and salt to the food processor and blend. Then I add the now foaming yeast and flour and mix. The dough should have shape but still be tacky. Place dough in a greased bowl and cover. Refrigerate overnight.
When ready to make, divide dough into 2 portions. Roll out the first portion into a rectangle. I always roll this out on powdered sugar instead of flour; it adds sweetness to the bread. Longways on each side of rectangle cut one inch strips about 3 inches in length. Spread half of filling down the middle. Fold top of dough over filling, laying first strips down the middle to help hold filling inside as it bakes. Repeat on bottom. Starting at top, start folding strips over filling, alternating left and right sides. Fold the last strip under. Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Repeat for second pastry. Let pastries rise in warm spot about 1 hour.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20-24 minutes, until golden topped. Add topping of choice and let cool. Dust with powdered sugar before serving. Enjoy!
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crossorigin="anonymous"></script>Cream Cheese Braid
Ingredients
Filling
- 2 8oz packages cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp almond extract
Pastry dough
- 1 tbsp active dry yeast
- ¼ cup warm water 110°-115℉
- 1 tbsp sugar
- ½ cup butter, softened
- ½ cup sour cream
- 2 eggs
- 2 tbsp sugar
- ¼ tsp salt
- 3½ cups all-purpose flour
Toppings
- 1 jar jam or pie filling flavor of choice
- dusting powdered sugar
Instructions
- In mixing bowl or food processor, mix all cream cheese, sugar, egg yolks, and extracts. Combine until smooth. Place in covered bowl and refrigerate overnight.
- In small bowl, combine yeast, warm water and 1 teaspoon sugar to "feed" the yeast. Set aside.
- Once yeast has foamed up, add dough ingredients to mixer or food processor and blend well. Place in greased bowl, cover and refrigerate overnight.
- To form pastry, remove dough from refrigerator, turn onto floured surface and divide in half. Roll out each half into rectangles. On long sides, cut 1 inch wide strips about 3 inches in length toward the center. On middle third of rectangle, spread half of the filling on each pastry. Fold top and bottom edge down over filling to close the ends, turning the outer strands down the sides of the filling. Starting at top end, fold alternating strips over the top of the filling. Curl last strip under. Place on parchment lined baking sheet and let rise about 1 hour in warm spot.
- Bake for 350℉ for 20-24 minutes until golden color. Carefully remove from oven and transfer to wire racks to cool. While cooling, top pastries with jam or pie filling. Before serving, dust with powdered sugar.
Notes
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