Cream Cheese Coffee Cake, Penzey's

Simple and delicious, this coffee cake is great served warm, or refrigerated and served cold. The recipe came from an older Penzey's spice catalog. Uses frozen puff pastry. Makes a great dessert. I usually make 1/2 recipe in 8" square pan, still using the whole egg yolk in the filling and whole egg white in the topping.

• Ready In: 35 mins
• Yields: 12-16 pieces

Ingredients

• Crust

• 1 (17 1/3ounce) package frozen puff pastry, 2 sheets

• Filling

• 2⁄3 cup sugar
• 1  pinch salt
• 1  egg yolk
• 16  ounces cream cheese, softened
• 2  teaspoons vanilla

• Topping

• 1  egg white
• 1⁄3 cup  cinnamon sugar
• 1⁄2 cup pecans, finely chopped (optional)

Directions

1. Remove the sheets of puff pastry from the box, let thaw. Preheat oven to 350 . Lightly grease a 9x13" cookie sheet. Unfold one sheet of puff pastry, roll lightly with a rolling pin until the sheet is a bit bigger than the cookie sheet. Be careful not to tear the sheet. Flour isn't necessary when rolling puff pastry.
2. Place the sheet of puff pastry on the cookie sheet. With a mixer blend sugar, room temperature cream cheese and vanilla together on medium speed until creamy Spread over the pastry sheet, leaving the outer inch or so uncovered.
3. Roll out the second sheet of pastry to roughly equal the size of the first sheet,then lay it on top. Tuck the bottom edge up and under, then pinch the sides firmly all the way around with your fingers.
4. Beat the egg white until foamy-about I minute on medium speed, Brush the crust with the egg white, then sprinkle on CINNAMON-SUGAR and nuts If desired.
5. Bake in preheated 350’ oven for 25-30 minutes, until the pastry crust is puffy, golden brown and flaky. Remove from oven and cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. The pastry will lose some of its puffiness as it cools.