Keto Cream Cheese Danish
Published August 12, 2022 • Updated April 17, 2025
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This keto cream cheese danish is easy to whip together and has 1 gram of net carb per serving. With a light and airy pastry dough and sweet creamy cheesecake filling, this danish is sure to be a fast breakfast favorite.
This cream cheese danish has zero sugar, the light and airy pastry texture you love, and a sweet creamy filling that tastes like cheesecake! It’s even drizzled with a sweet lemon icing, making it true bakery-quality. And we didn’t have to make fathead dough with mozzarella cheese – which shouldn’t be part of a sweet pastry in my opinion.
While my favorite time to enjoy this danish is in the morning with a hot cup of coffee, they’re the perfect treat for any time of day. Make a double batch and bring to your friend coffee date, work potluck, or holiday brunch. Or, save them all for yourself– with only 1 gram of net carbs, you can easily enjoy more than one or top your keto cheese danish with butter!
How to make a keto danish
- Make the cream cheese filling. Add egg yolk, cream cheese, sweetener, lemon juice and vanilla to a medium bowl and mix!
- Make the danish pastry. Separate the whites from the yolks and place each in small bowls. Add keto pastry ingredients to each as discussed below. Then fold together to form a fluffy, airy pastry batter. PRO TIP: Don’t aggressively fold or mix, the goal is to keep the airiness of the batter in order to get the danish pastry to rise.
- Scoop about ¼ cup of batter on a parchment lined baking tray spacing each scoop about 1 ½ inches apart.
- Make a well in the center of each danish batter to make room for the filling. Scoop the cream cheese filling into the center of the well. Bake at 325 degrees for 15 minutes.
- Make the lemon icing and drizzle over danishes.
Key ingredients
- Eggs – Used for the cream cheese filling and the pastry dough. The egg yolk helps to thicken the cream cheese filling and adds richness to the pastry dough. Whipping the egg whites into a meringue creates a delicate and airy flakiness within the dough.
- Cream cheese – The base for the filling. Cream cheese adds a rich cheesecake-like flavor to each danish. Also helps to neutralize the eggy flavor from the pastry.
- Powdered Sugar Free Sweetener – Acts like powdered sugar, but without all the sugar! Sweetens the cream cheese filling while keeping the texture smooth.
- Unflavored Zero Carb Protein Powder – Used to replace some of the flour in the pastry dough. Zero carb whey protein powder helps to cut down on carbohydrates and adds extra protein to the danishes- perfect for the keto diet. It also helps to puff up our dough with adding too many eggs.
- Almond Flour – Helps create a base for the pastry dough with more nutrients and less carbs than regular flour.
- Sugar Free Sweetener – Sweetens the danish pastry dough. I like using monk fruit blend sweeteners, which is zero carb and has a pleasant taste in baked goods. Can use any 1:1 sugar free baking sweetener.
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Keto Cream Cheese Filling Ingredients
1 egg yolk -
4 oz cream cheese, softened
-
3 tablespoons powdered sugar free sweetener
-
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
-
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Keto Pastry Dough Ingredients
-
3 eggs, yolks and whites separated
-
2 tablespoons unflavored zero carb protein powder
-
2 tablespoons almond flour
-
2 oz cream cheese, softened
-
1 tablespoon sugar free sweetener
-
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Sugar Free Icing Ingredients
-
3 tablespoons powdered sugar free sweetener
-
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
-
1-2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
Step by Step Instructions
Step by Step Instructions
Make cream cheese filling
To a medium bowl, add one egg yolk, cream cheese, sugar free sweetener, lemon juice and vanilla. Mix until creamy and smooth. Set aside.
- 1 egg yolk
- 4 oz cream cheese (softened)
- 3 tablespoons powdered sugar (sugar-free)
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Separate the eggs
Separate the egg whites from the egg yolks and place each in a clean, dry small bowl.
- 3 eggs
Yolk mixture
To the bowl with the egg yolks, add in low-carb protein powder, almond flour, softened cream cheese and sugar-free sweetener. Mix with an electric mixer until smooth. Set aside.
- 3 egg yolks
- 2 tablespoons protein powder
- 2 tablespoons almond flour
- 2 oz cream cheese (softened)
- 1 tablespoon sugar free sweetener
Make meringue
To the bowl with egg whites, mix with a clean and dry electric mixer at a low medium speed until the mixture turns frothy. Add in the cream of tartar and turn the speed of the mixer up to high, continue mixing until stiff peaks form.
- 3 egg whites
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Fold together
Carefully fold the yolk mixture into the egg meringue until combined.
Scoop, form, fill and bake
Scoop about ¼ cup of batter on a parchment lined baking tray spacing about 1 ½ inches apart. Using the back of a spoon make a well in the center of each danish batter to make room for the filling. Scoop a few tablespoons of cream cheese filling into the center of the well. Bake at 325 degrees for 15-18 minutes.
Drizzle icing
To make the icing, combine powdered sweetener, lemon juice and whipping cream. Adjust the amount of whipping cream to create a thin icing capable of drizzling. Drizzle over danishes.
- 3 tablespoons powdered sugar (sugar-free)
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1-2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
Nutrition disclaimer
The nutrition information provided is an estimate and is for informational purposes only. I am a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.); however, this content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your physician or other qualified health provider before making any lifestyle changes or beginning a new nutrition program.
These came out so fluffy and the slight tang from the lemon juice in both the filling and icing really brightens the flavor. I loved how the texture mimicked real pastry without all the carbs. This is definitely my new favorite keto breakfast treat.
Delicious? YES! But such a frustrating recipe to follow. Why not give the ingredients and then the method like other recipes do? I ended up using my three egg yolks in the pastry, then not having one for the filling, so I added a tablespoon of chia seeds. Yes, it worked, but why give the recipe this way? It made it more difficult and time consuming. I added a touch of almond extract as well as the vanilla as well. Very eggy, but delicious and guilt free.
I'm sorry this directions were confusing. I see what you are saying and I'm updating them. Thank you!
This was great but my dough turned out very runny and baked flat. Maybe my meringue wasn’t stiff enough?
Maybe or the meringue lost its air when you folded the yolk mixture in. It should still be foamy like.
I was wondering if you have ever added an extract to the dough? Almond or vanilla?
I haven't but you could! Almond extract would be delicious!
I think this is one of the best keto recipes I've made! Thank you for sharing it with everyone!
Which Unflavored Zero Carb Protein Powder do you use? The link to amazon no longer works.
I use isopure zero carb protein powder. https://amzn.to/3Tcrrr8
Is this recipe for one serving or ten?
It's for 10 servings
I meant *cool, not "cook"
How do you remove the pastry from the parchment? Mine are sticking. They look and smell Amazing tho. But I don't want to ruin them trying to peel them off the parchment. :(
There was no clear direction for after baking. Such as, how long to cook for before trying to remove, best time to apply icing....etc.
O…..M…..G….! I cannot give this recipe enough praise. WOW! I am not a sweets fan. And I do not eat breakfast. I fast and this cut into my fasting time. It also made me a sweets eater! I did the cream cheese filling. A game changer for me for sure!
How much sugar substitute goes in the meringue?
one tablespoon