Brown sugar-cinnamon Danish

A magnificent pastry stuffed with orange-scented cinnamon-sugar filling makes the perfect centerpiece to a festive brunch.

Credit: Martha Bakes

• serves

  12

• prep

  45 minutes

• cook

  25 minutes

• difficulty

  Ace

Ingredients

Danish dough

• 1 cup warm milk (43°C/110°F)
• 2 envelopes (10 g /¼ oz each) active dry yeast
• 550 g (1 lb 4 oz, about 4½ cups) plain (all-purpose) flour plus 1½ tbsp, plus extra for dusting
• ⅓ cup plus 3 tsp sugar
• 3 tsp coarse salt
• ½ tsp ground cardamom
• 2 large whole eggs, plus 1 large egg yolk
• 450 g (1 lb) unsalted butter, room temperature, divided

Danish

• ¾ cup packed dark-brown sugar
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• Zest of 1 orange
• 3 tsp fresh orange juice
• Pinch of salt
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten

Dough chilling time: 2 hours (or overnight) + 7 hours (or up to 2 weeks) + 20 minutes. 

Butter chilling time: 15 minutes. 

Rising time: 45 minutes.

Instructions

1. To make the pastry: In a small bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm milk; stir until dissolved. Let sit until foamy, about 5 minutes. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the 550 gflour, sugar, salt, cardamom and 3 tablespoons (55g) butter; beat on low speed until butter is incorporated and the mixture resembles coarse meal, 3 to 4 minutes. Pour in the yeast-milk mixture; mix until dough just comes together. Add the eggs and yolk; mix until just combined, 2 to 3 minutes. Do not overmix.
2. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface, making sure to include any loose bits left at the bottom of the bowl. Gently knead to form a smooth ball, about 30 seconds. Wrap well with plastic and refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight.
3. Paddle remaining room temperature butter, cut into tablespoons, with 1½ tablespoons of flour. Form flour and butter mixture into a 30 cm x 25 cm (12 in x 10 in) rectangle on a sheet of plastic wrap. Refrigerate 15 minutes or up to 1 day. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to an 18-by-10-inch rectangle, a little over a ¼ inch thick, keeping the corners as square as possible. Remove any excess flour with a dry pastry brush. Remove butter from refrigerator and let stand at room temperature until it reaches the consistency of the dough. With a short side facing you, place butter mixture over 2/3 of the dough. Fold the unbuttered third over as you would a business letter, followed by the remaining third. This seals in the butter.
4. Roll out dough again to an 46 cm x 25 cm (18 in x 10 in) rectangle, then fold dough into thirds as described above; refrigerate for 1 hour. This is the first of three turns. Repeat rolling and folding two more times, refrigerating for at least 1 hour between turns. To help you remember how many turns have been completed, mark the dough after each one: make one mark for the first turn, two for the second, and three for the third.
5. Refrigerate dough, tightly wrapped in plastic, for at least 4 hours or overnight. Dough can also be frozen, tightly wrapped in plastic, for up to 2 weeks; before using, thaw the dough in the refrigerator overnight.
6. For the Danish: Line a baking tray (sheet) with baking (parchment) paper; set aside. Cut Danish dough in half. Roll out each half to a 30 cm (12 inch) square. Transfer to prepared baking sheet, stacking the dough squares with a sheet of parchment paper between. Transfer to refrigerator; chill for 20 minutes.  
7. Remove chilled dough from refrigerator. Transfer one dough square to work surface. Place a 27.5 cm (11 inch) bowl, upside down, in the middle of dough and cut around bowl to form a 27.5 cm (11 inch) circle using a pastry wheel or sharp knife. Transfer circle of dough to a baking paper lined baking tray.
8. Combine dark-brown sugar, cinnamon, zest, juice and salt in a small bowl. Spread mixture over dough circle, leaving a 1 cm (½-inch) border around perimeter. Repeat cutting process with remaining dough square. Brush border with beaten egg and cover with remaining piece of dough. Pinch edges to seal. Reserve egg wash.
9. Place a 7.5 cm (3-inch) bowl, upside-down, in the center of the 27.5 cm (11 inch) circle. Using a paring knife, cut dough circle into quarters from the center (starting at the edge of the bowl) to the edge. Then cut each quarter into thirds.
10. Working with two adjacent portions of dough, twist away from one another in a full circle so that the top of the dough remains facing upwards. Repeat process working around the circle of dough. Pinch edges of twists together to seal. Cover lightly with plastic wrap. Let stand at room temperature until doubled in size, about 45 minutes. Brush with remaining egg wash.
11. Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F) degrees. Transfer to oven with a sheet of foil on the rack below. Bake until deep golden brown all over, 25 to 30 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes on cookie sheet. Using a large spatula, slide Danish from parchment paper to a wire rack to cool completely.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.