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Flaky and light, this Meyer lemon Danish braid bakes up golden and fluffy with a blissful cream cheese-Meyer lemon curd filling. Leftover curd (if such a thing even exists!) makes a fabulous side. Drizzled with lemon glaze, this treat is sure to win the hearts of lemon lovers!
If you’re feeling ambitious, this sweet yeasted bread can be made from start to finish in a single day.
You can also prep the lemon Danish braid the night before and bake it the next morning for a scrumptious start to your day!
Favorite Meyer lemon recipes:
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Meyer Lemon Danish Braid
- Prep Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
- Rise Time: 75 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
Flaky and light, this meyer lemon Danish braid bakes up golden and fluffy with a blissful cream cheese-Meyer lemon curd filling.
Ingredients
Sponge
- 6 Tbsp (90 g) low fat milk
- 1 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 package (7 g) instant yeast
- 2 Tbsp (17 g) flour
Dough
- 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 4 oz (113 g) reduced fat cream cheese, softened
- 3 Tbsp (42 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp (4 g) vanilla extract
- 1 large egg (50 g), at room temperature
- 2 1/4 cups (315 g) all-purpose flour, divided
Filling
- 3 oz (85 g) reduced fat cream cheese, softened
- 2 Tbsp (24 g) granulated sugar
- pinch of salt
- 1 tsp Meyer lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup (75 g) Meyer lemon curd
Topping
Instructions
- Make sponge: Heat milk in a microwave-safe measuring cup for 45 seconds to 1 minute, until very warm (120-130°F). Whisk together warm milk, sugar, yeast, and flour in a medium bowl; cover loosely with plastic wrap and let stand 15 minutes.
- Make dough: Combine sugar, cream cheese, butter, salt, vanilla, egg, and sponge in a large mixer bowl; beat at medium speed for 1 minute until combined. Add 2 cups (280 g) flour and mix in at low speed until a soft dough forms, about 2 to 3 minutes. Switch out the flat beater for a dough hook, and knead dough for 4 minutes until smooth and elastic, adding remaining 1/4 cup (35 g) of flour 1 tablespoon at a time to prevent dough from sticking. The dough is ready when it feels tacky but doesn’t stick to your fingers.
- Place dough in a large bowl coated with nonstick spray and cover with plastic. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 50 to 60 minutes. To check if dough has doubled, lightly flour two fingers and press them down into center of dough. If indentations remain, dough has risen enough.
- Make filling: While dough rises, combine cream cheese, sugar, salt, Meyer lemon juice, and vanilla in a food processor and process until smooth.
- Assemble braid: Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and dust lightly with flour. Gently punch down dough and roll out into a 12 x 15-inch rectangle on prepared baking sheet. Use an offset spatula to spread cream cheese mixture down the center of the dough, leaving a 4-inch border on each side and a 1-inch border at the top and bottom. Spread Meyer lemon curd over the cream cheese filling. Use a sharp knife or kitchen shears to cut 15 1-inch strips on both sides of dough (be careful not to cut through to the parchment paper).
- Remove the four corner strips and fold top border down over filling. Work from top to bottom and fold strips over filling, alternating strips diagonally (begin by folding over the top left strip, then fold the top right strip, then a left strip, and so on). When all the strips are folded over filling, fold up the bottom border and press to seal. Cover braid loosely with plastic and let rise 25 minutes. (Prepare ahead: After braid rests, cover and refrigerate overnight. Bring to room temperature before baking).
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Bake braid until golden, about 25 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes before drizzling with lemon glaze. Let glaze set before serving.
Notes
Make ahead: Work up to Step 6. Cover the braid tightly and refrigerate overnight. On baking day, bring the braid to room temperature while preheating oven to 375°F and bake as directed.
I made this and it turned out great! I tripled both the lemon curd and the cream cheese filling. It wasn’t overly sweet and had a great flavor. The recipe was very easy to follow even as a beginner baker. I really appreciated having the gram measurements since I like to be precise. The dough was very easy to work with and had a wonderful soft texture. Even with a few mistakes everything turned out great. I can’t recommend this recipe enough!
I don’t see what you’re supposed to do with the sponge after you make it and let it sit 15 minutes?
Hi Ella, the sponge is mixed with the sugar, cream cheese, butter, salt, vanilla, and egg (see the first line of step 2). Hope that helps! 🙂