Cream Cheese Filled Crescent Roll Pastries Recipe

Name: Cream Cheese Filled Crescent Roll Pastries
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 8 ounces refrigerated crescent rolls ((recommend: Pillsbury)); 6 ounces cream cheese (room temperature); 1 cup sugar; 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract; ¼ cup butter (melted); 2 tablespoons sugar; 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon; Honey, for serving ((optional))

In need of a quick and easy dessert or a decadent breakfast? These Cream Cheese Filled Crescent Rolls are sure to be a new family favorite.

4.7 from 147 votes

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

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Cream Cheese Filled Crescent Roll Pastries are made with convenient, refrigerated crescent rolls filled with sweetened cream cheese. So quick and easy!

Even though I enjoy cooking, I’m really not much of a baker. Baking is too precise with all the measuring. It’s just…”fiddly.” And I’m not a fiddly cook.

That’s why this recipe for Cream Cheese Filled Crescent Roll Pastries is perfect for me!

Not only are cream cheese crescent rolls quick and hassle-free, they’re versatile! You can make them for an indulgent breakfast for birthdays and holidays, or surprise the family after dinner with a cheesecake-like dessert that will have them singing your praises.

They’re so easy! All you have to do is roll out some crescent rolls, fill them with sweetened cream cheese, then bake and you’re done. Now you have a heavenly cheesecake crescent roll that is light, flaky, and oh so scrumptious. I personally believe refrigerated crescent roll dough to be one of the greatest inventions of mankind.

Close up view of one serving of the finished recipe.

👩🏻‍🍳 Refrigerated Crescent Rolls Are a Baker’s Best Friend

In my opinion, pre-made crescent roll dough is one of the most versatile “convenience” products in the grocery store. They can go either savory or sweet and can be used as a substitute for many types of dough — pie crust, puff pastry, and even pizza dough!

You can use them in all sorts of recipes and they will save you hours of mixing, kneading, and rising. There have even been entire cookbooks written about using refrigerated crescent roll dough. For me, they’re more than convenient – they’re essential.

I once heard someone say “give a southern girl a can of crescent rolls and she’ll make a party!” Darn right.

I have quite a few go-to recipes that use them: Crescent Roll Breakfasts Stacks, Prosciutto Ricotta Pinwheels, Italian Style Hand Pies, Sausage Swirls, and Sausage-Pineapple Rollups, to name a few.

This one, with its sweetened cream cheese filling, is very much like a cheese danish pastry or a cheesecake filled croissant. Tender, melt in your mouth, flaky dough with a lovely sweet filling.

Next time you’re looking for a crowd-wowing dessert to bring to a pot luck or family get together, these cream cheese filled crescent rolls are the way to go. I hope you enjoy them. I know my friends and family love them!

❤️ Why We Love This Recipe

Quick and Easy (10 minutes to prep; 20 minutes to bake)
Kid Friendly (Kids love these pastries!)
You can serve it for breakfast or dessert

🛒 About the Ingredients

Ingredients needed for the recipe from left to right: vanilla extract, refrigerated crescent rolls, cream cheese, sugar, cinnamon-sugar mixture, and butter

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Vanilla extract
Refrigerated crescent rolls (I like the Pillsbury brand, but honestly any will work just fine)
Cream cheese (Plain, unflavored, nothing fancy)
Sugar
Cinnamon
Butter

There’s nothing fancy in these ingredients. They’re so simple you probably already have most of them in your refrigerator and pantry.

You’ll find detailed measurements for all ingredients in the printable version of the recipe at the bottom of this post.

🔪 How to Make Cream Cheese Filled Crescent Roll Pastries

Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees.

A layer of crescent roll dough in a baking dish. — **STEP 1.**

Cream cheese mixture in a bowl. — **STEP 2.**

Unroll half a package (4 rolls) of crescent rolls. Press the seams together and place them on the bottom of an 8×8 baking pan.
In a medium bowl, combine softened cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla. Stir with a wooden spoon until thoroughly combined.

Baking pan with crescent roll dough and cream cheese filling spread on top. — **STEP 3.**

Baking pan with crescent roll dough filled with cream cheese mixture and topped with second sheet of crescent roll dough — **STEP 4.**

Spread over the crescent rolls in the baking dish.
Unroll the remaining crescent rolls, press the seams together, and place them on top of the cream cheese layer in the baking dish.

Prepared and filled crescent roll dough in pan topped with melted butter. — **STEP 5.**

Prepared crescent roll dough filled and sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. — **STEP 6.**

Top with melted butter.
Sprinkle top evenly with sugar and cinnamon.

Baked, filled crescent roll dough in pan. — **STEP 7.**

Bake for 20-30 minutes, until bubbly and slightly browned. Allow to cool, then slice and serve. May be topped with a drizzle of honey, if desired.

Several servings of Cream Cheese Filled Crescent Roll Pastries on serving plates.

🍚 Storage and Reheating

On the off chance that you have leftovers, you’ll need to store them in an airtight container or resealable bag (make sure to gently squeeze out any excess air) in the refrigerator. They should keep for 3-5 days.

To reheat, I recommend using your regular or toaster oven at 300 degrees for 5 to 10 minutes. Make sure to keep an eye on them, checking them frequently to avoid burning the crescent dough.

I don’t recommend microwaving these pastries as you’ll lose that flaky, crisp texture of the dough that makes this recipe so amazing.

❓ Questions about Cream Cheese Crescent Pastries

What can I use in place of crescent rolls if I’m out? Is there a substitute?

If you don’t have any crescent rolls on hand, you can use pie dough or even frozen puff pastry. Note that the cooking time will vary for each type of dough — make sure to check the baking instructions for the dough you’re using.

Can I use a store brand of crescent rolls or should I always use the “big name” brands?

I typically use Pillsbury crescent rolls, but you can use any brand that your local store carries. It doesn’t have any impact on the taste or recipe outcome. Just use any brand that you like. They’re all fairly high quality.

Is puff pastry the same as crescent rolls?

No, it isn’t. While puff pastry and refrigerated crescent rolls have a similar flaky texture, they are not the same. They’re prepared in different ways with the main difference being that crescent rolls contain yeast and baking powder where puff pastry is strictly flour, water, and butter.

My cream cheese crescent rolls weren’t done after baking for 30 minutes! What did I do wrong?

You probably did nothing wrong. It could be that your oven isn’t calibrated correctly and the temperature is off. Just give them a few more minutes in the oven while keeping a close watch on them so that they don’t burn.

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HAVE YOU TRIED THIS RECIPE?

I’d LOVE to know what you thought!
Leave a rating below in the comments and let me know how you liked it!

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📖 Recipe