Easy Crescent Roll Dessert Recipes Everyone Loves: 12 Desserts to Make with Crescent Roll Dough
Sweet cream cheese crescents with a pearl-sugar top as the featured recipe, then eleven more fillings for the same can of dough, with the exact amount of filling that stays inside and six finishes from egg wash to maple glaze.
- 12 desserts, one dough
- 15 minutes, 375°F
- Filling-amount table
- Printable recipe
The crescents from the pin: deep golden, crusted with pearl sugar, the sweet cream cheese filling showing where one is broken open.
The best crescent roll dessert recipes all come down to one thing: a small amount of filling at the wide end, a tight roll and 12 minutes at 375°F. The cream cheese crescents on the pin are the featured recipe below; the other eleven follow in three groups.
In this post:
- Why one can of dough is twelve desserts
- Sweet cream cheese crescents, scaling 8 to 32
- Four rules so nothing leaks or comes out pale
- How much filling goes in each triangle
- Six finishes: pearl sugar, vanilla, lemon, cinnamon butter, chocolate, maple
- Eleven more: fruit, chocolate and nut, spiced
- Storage, troubleshooting, nutrition and 14 FAQs
Why One Can of Crescent Dough Is Twelve Desserts
One can, twelve desserts
The same eight triangles become cream cheese crescents, apple pockets, cheesecake rolls, s’mores, lemon twists and more. Every recipe here is a filling, a roll and 12 minutes at 375°F.
Fifteen minutes of work
Nothing is kneaded or proofed. Unroll, fill, roll, bake. The slowest recipe on the list is 15 minutes before the oven.
Pantry fillings
Jam, cream cheese, chocolate chips, cinnamon sugar, apples, peanut butter. The table below says exactly how much of each goes in a triangle so nothing leaks.
Looks like a bakery
Egg wash and pearl sugar, or a two-ingredient glaze, and a can of dough comes out of the oven looking like the pin. Six finishes in the tabs.
Sweet Cream Cheese Crescent Rolls: The Featured Recipe
Number 1 of 12. The card makes 16 crescents from two cans. Tap a count and everything updates.
Sweet Cream Cheese Crescent Rolls
Crescent dough rolled around a sweet lemon-vanilla cream cheese filling, egg-washed and crusted with pearl sugar, the crescents from the pin. Fifteen minutes of work, twelve in the oven. Tap a count and the printable card updates.
How many crescents?
Ingredients
- 1 can2 cans3 cans4 cans crescent roll dough, 8-count cans (vegetable-shortening dough)
- 4 oz8 oz12 oz1 lb cream cheese, softened
- 2 tbsp¼ cup6 tbsp½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ tsp1 tsp1½ tsp2 tsp alcohol-free vanilla
- ¼ tsp½ tsp¾ tsp1 tsp lemon zest
- ½ (beat 1, use half)112 large egg yolk (into the filling)
- ½112 To finish: egg, beaten with 1 tbsp milk, for the wash
- 1 tbsp2 tbsp3 tbsp¼ cup pearl sugar or coarse sugar
- 1 tsp2 tsp1 tbsp4 tsp powdered sugar, to dust (optional)
Check the dough label: most crescent dough is made with vegetable shortening and is halal; a few use lard. Chilled filling stays inside; warm filling leaks. A scant tablespoon per triangle, no more. Pearl sugar gives the crackled top on the pin; coarse sanding sugar is the easy swap.
Instructions
Make the filling
Heat the oven to 375°F and line a sheet with parchment. Beat the cream cheese with the sugar, vanilla, lemon zest and egg yolk until smooth. Chill 10 minutes so it pipes and holds; warm filling runs out of the dough.
Unroll and separate
Unroll the dough on the parchment and separate the eight triangles along the perforations, pressing any tears closed.
Fill the wide end
Spoon or pipe a scant tablespoon of filling across the wide end of each triangle, leaving a half-inch border. More than that leaks; the filling-amount table below has the number for every recipe in this post.
Roll and seal
Roll from the wide end to the point, tucking the sides in over the filling on the first turn, and pinch the point underneath. Set them point-side down, 2 inches apart.
Egg wash and sugar
Brush with the egg wash and scatter pearl sugar over the tops; that is the crackle on the pin. Chill the tray 10 minutes if the kitchen is warm.
Bake
Bake 11 to 13 minutes until deep golden with dry-looking seams. Cool 5 minutes; the filling is molten straight from the oven. Dust with powdered sugar if you like.
Four Rules for Crescent Roll Desserts That Do Not Leak
The assembly: triangles on parchment, a scant tablespoon of filling across each wide end, the first ones rolled and sealed.
A scant tablespoon, at the wide end
Overfilling is the only way these fail. One tablespoon or less, across the wide end with a border, and the point tucked underneath.
Cold filling, cold dough
Chill cream cheese and chocolate fillings 10 minutes; chill the filled tray 10 minutes in a warm kitchen. Cold fillings stay put and the dough bakes flakier.
Seal the seams, dry the fruit
Pinch tears and points closed, and pat apples, pineapple and berries dry. Wet fruit steams the dough from inside.
Deep golden, not pale gold
Pale crescents taste of raw dough. Bake until the seams look dry and the tops are deep golden, usually 11 to 13 minutes; add a minute rather than pull early.
How Much Filling Goes in Each Triangle
The amounts that stay inside the dough. More than this and it leaks:
| Filling | Per triangle | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| FillingCream cheese filling | Per triangle1 scant tbsp | NotesChilled; pipe it for neat rolls |
| FillingJam or lemon curd | Per triangle1 tsp | NotesThe leakiest; spread thin |
| FillingChocolate hazelnut spread | Per triangle1½ tsp | NotesPlus 2 banana slices or a few hazelnuts |
| FillingApple or pineapple, diced | Per triangle1 tbsp | NotesPatted dry, tossed with sugar |
| FillingChocolate chips and mini marshmallows | Per triangle1 tsp each | NotesGelatin-free marshmallows for halal |
| FillingCinnamon sugar | Per triangle1 tsp over melted butter | NotesBrush, sprinkle, roll |
| FillingPeanut butter and jam | Per triangle1 tsp each | NotesPeanut butter first, jam on top |
| FillingCaramel and pecans | Per triangle1 tsp caramel, 1 tsp pecans | NotesCaramel at the wide end only |
Six Finishes for Any Crescent Roll Dessert
Up close: the pearl sugar crackle, the flaky layers and the cream cheese filling just set.
Same crescent, a different top. Tap a finish:
Egg Wash and Pearl Sugar
The finish on the pin: one egg beaten with a tablespoon of milk, brushed on before baking, with pearl or coarse sugar scattered over. Shiny, crackled, bakery-looking. Best on the cream cheese, danish and pineapple crescents.
Simple Vanilla Glaze
½ cup powdered sugar, 2 to 3 teaspoons milk, ¼ teaspoon alcohol-free vanilla, stirred until it falls in a ribbon. Drizzled over cooled crescents. Goes on everything; the default when in doubt.
Lemon Glaze
The vanilla glaze with lemon juice in place of the milk and ½ teaspoon of zest. For the lemon curd twists, the blueberry danish bites and the strawberry cheesecake rolls.
Cinnamon Butter Brush
2 tablespoons melted butter brushed on hot crescents, then a tablespoon of cinnamon sugar. For the cinnamon sugar crescents, apple pockets and pumpkin roll-ups. Smells like a bakery at 8 a.m.
Chocolate Drizzle
¼ cup chocolate chips melted with a teaspoon of coconut oil, drizzled from a spoon. For the s’mores, hazelnut, banana and peanut butter crescents; a pinch of flaky salt on top of the caramel pecan ones.
Maple Glaze
The vanilla glaze with maple syrup in place of the milk and a pinch of cinnamon. For the pumpkin spice roll-ups and the caramel pecan crescents; also good on the plain cream cheese ones in autumn.
Fruit Crescent Roll Dessert Recipes
Numbers 2 to 6:
Apple Pie Pockets Autumn
Thin apple slices tossed with a tablespoon of brown sugar and a pinch of cinnamon, a tablespoon at the wide end, sides folded in, rolled and sealed. Bake 12 to 14 minutes and dust with powdered sugar; a teaspoon of caramel inside if you like. The cinnamon butter finish.
Strawberry Cheesecake Rolls Cream cheese
The featured cream cheese filling with a teaspoon of strawberry jam on top of it before rolling. Bake 10 to 12 minutes and finish with the vanilla glaze. Pink inside, the one children ask for again.
Blueberry Cream Cheese Danish Bites Brunch
A teaspoon of the cream cheese filling and five or six blueberries on each triangle, corners folded in over the filling rather than rolled, so they bake as little open parcels. Eleven to 13 minutes; brush with warm jam for shine.
Lemon Curd Twists Twisted
Press the seams closed to make two rectangles, spread a thin layer of lemon curd on one, lay the other on top, cut into strips and twist each twice. Bake 10 to 12 minutes and finish with the lemon glaze. The prettiest on the plate.
Pineapple Coconut Crescents Tropical
Pineapple tidbits patted very dry and mixed with a teaspoon of sugar and a tablespoon of shredded coconut, a spoonful per triangle, rolled and sealed well. Bake 11 to 13 minutes and brush with honey while hot.
Chocolate and Nut Crescent Roll Desserts
The platter: cream cheese crescents, apple pockets, lemon twists, s’mores and cinnamon sugar crescents on a board with the glazes.
Numbers 7 to 10:
Chocolate Hazelnut Banana Bites Kids
A thin layer of chocolate hazelnut spread and two banana slices at the wide end, rolled, brushed with butter and sprinkled with coarse sugar. Ten to 12 minutes; a dusting of cocoa to finish. Eat warm, while the chocolate is soft.
S’mores Crescents Campfire
A teaspoon each of chocolate chips and mini marshmallows (gelatin-free for halal), rolled tightly with the seams pinched hard so the marshmallow stays in. Ten to 11 minutes, then the chocolate drizzle and crushed graham crackers.
Caramel Pecan Crescents Sticky
A teaspoon of chopped pecans and a teaspoon of caramel sauce at the wide end, rolled, brushed with butter and a pinch of brown sugar. Eleven to 13 minutes; a little more caramel and flaky salt on top. The pecan pie of the list.
Peanut Butter and Jam Crescents Lunchbox
A thin layer of peanut butter and a small dollop of jam at the wide end, rolled carefully and sealed. Ten to 12 minutes; a drizzle of melted white chocolate if you want it to look like dessert rather than lunch.
Spiced Crescent Roll Desserts, Storage and Troubleshooting
Numbers 11 and 12:
Classic Cinnamon Sugar Crescents 5 ingredients
Brush the triangles with melted butter, sprinkle generously with a quarter cup of sugar mixed with a teaspoon of cinnamon, roll from the wide end. Ten to 12 minutes, then more butter and sugar on top. The simplest and, in most houses, the most popular.
Pumpkin Spice Roll-Ups Autumn
A third of a cup of pumpkin puree stirred with a tablespoon of brown sugar and half a teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice, spread thin on each triangle, rolled and brushed with butter. Eleven to 13 minutes; finish with the maple glaze.
Make Ahead and Storage
| What | How long | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| WhatAssemble ahead | How long6 hours, covered, in the fridge | NotesBake from cold, 1 to 2 minutes longer; add juicy fruit at the last minute |
| WhatBaked, room temperature | How long24 hours, airtight | NotesCinnamon sugar, jam and chocolate versions |
| WhatBaked, fridge | How long3 to 4 days | NotesAnything with cream cheese |
| WhatReheat | How long300°F oven, 5 to 7 minutes | NotesRe-crisps; the microwave softens them |
| WhatFreezer, baked | How long2 months, wrapped individually | NotesReheat from frozen at 325°F, 10 to 12 minutes |
| WhatFreezer, unbaked | How long1 month on a tray, then bagged | NotesBake from frozen, 3 to 4 minutes longer |
More for a can of dough:
- Holiday: pecan pie crescents
- Savory: chicken pot pie with crescent rolls and the 30-minute pot pie filling
- Leftovers: crispy turkey rolls
- For a party: mummy pastry bites and 24 more party snacks
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| ProblemFilling leaked out | Likely causeToo much filling; seams not sealed | FixA scant tablespoon; pinch every seam; chill 10 minutes |
| ProblemSoggy bottoms | Likely causeWet fruit, or jam at the point | FixPat fruit dry; filling at the wide end only |
| ProblemPale and doughy | Likely causeUnderbaked | FixDeep golden, dry seams; add a minute |
| ProblemUnrolled in the oven | Likely causePoint left on top | FixPoint tucked underneath, seam down |
| ProblemMarshmallow escaped | Likely causeSeams loose | FixRoll tight, pinch hard, chill before baking |
| ProblemBurnt sugar on top | Likely causePearl sugar on a hot oven rack | FixMiddle rack; tent with foil after 9 minutes |
| ProblemDough tore | Likely causeCold dough unrolled too fast | FixLet the can sit 5 minutes; press tears closed |
| ProblemFlat, not flaky | Likely causeWarm dough, warm kitchen | FixChill the filled tray 10 minutes before baking |
Nutrition (approximate, per cream cheese crescent)
One of 16 with the egg wash and pearl sugar. The cinnamon sugar crescents are about 130; the caramel pecan and s’mores about 180.
Crescent Roll Dessert Recipes: FAQs
What desserts can you make with crescent roll dough?
Twelve in this post: sweet cream cheese crescents, apple pie pockets, strawberry cheesecake rolls, blueberry danish bites, lemon curd twists, pineapple coconut crescents, chocolate hazelnut banana bites, s’mores crescents, caramel pecan crescents, peanut butter and jam crescents, cinnamon sugar crescents and pumpkin spice roll-ups. All bake at 375°F for 10 to 14 minutes.
How do you make cream cheese crescent rolls?
Beat 8 oz cream cheese with a quarter cup of sugar, a teaspoon of alcohol-free vanilla, lemon zest and an egg yolk, chill it, spoon a scant tablespoon across the wide end of each triangle, roll, egg wash, scatter pearl sugar and bake 11 to 13 minutes. The card above scales from 8 to 32.
How do I keep the filling from leaking?
A scant tablespoon or less, placed at the wide end with a border, seams pinched closed, the point tucked underneath, and 10 minutes in the fridge before baking. Jam and curd are the leakiest; spread them thin. The filling table above has the amount for each.
Is crescent roll dough halal?
Most refrigerated crescent dough is made with vegetable shortening and contains no animal fat; a few store brands use lard, so read the ingredient line. For the s’mores version use gelatin-free marshmallows. Everything else in this post is pantry fruit, dairy, chocolate and sugar.
Can I use puff pastry or crescent dough sheets instead?
Yes. A crescent dough sheet is the same dough without perforations: cut it into eight triangles. Puff pastry works cut into triangles or squares and baked at 400°F until puffed and golden; it is lighter and flakier.
Can I make them ahead?
Assemble up to 6 hours ahead, cover and refrigerate, then bake from cold a minute or two longer. Unbaked crescents also freeze a month on a tray and bake from frozen. Juicy fruit fillings are best added at the last minute.
How do I know when they are done?
Deep golden tops, dry-looking seams and a slightly firm feel, usually 11 to 13 minutes. Pale gold is underbaked and tastes of raw dough; add a minute rather than pull early.
What glaze works on everything?
Half a cup of powdered sugar with 2 to 3 teaspoons of milk and a quarter teaspoon of alcohol-free vanilla, stirred to a ribbon. The six finish tabs above have lemon, maple, cinnamon butter, chocolate drizzle and the pearl sugar egg wash from the pin.
How many does one can make?
Eight. Two cans make 16, which is the default on the card, enough for a family with leftovers for the next morning. The filling amounts scale with the card.
Can children help?
Yes; spreading fillings, rolling triangles and sprinkling sugar are the whole job. An adult handles the oven and the hot caramel. The cinnamon sugar and chocolate hazelnut banana versions are the easiest for small hands.
How do I store crescent desserts?
Cinnamon sugar, jam and chocolate versions keep 24 hours airtight at room temperature; anything with cream cheese goes in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Reheat in a 300°F oven 5 to 7 minutes to re-crisp; they also freeze 2 months.
Why did mine come out flat instead of flaky?
Warm dough. Keep the can in the fridge until the moment you unroll it, keep fillings cold, and chill the filled tray 10 minutes before baking. The layers in the dough need to be cold going into a hot oven.
Can I make a crescent dough dessert for a crowd?
Yes: tap 32 on the card for four cans, bake two sheets at a time, and make two or three of the twelve so the platter has variety. Cinnamon sugar, cream cheese and apple cover every taste.
What is the easiest one for a last-minute dessert?
Cinnamon sugar crescents: butter, cinnamon, sugar, 12 minutes, five ingredients counting the dough. The cream cheese ones are the second easiest and look the most like a bakery.
Save the pin so the recipe, the filling table and all twelve desserts are one tap away.
More From a Can of Dough
The holiday crescents, two savory dinners, a party platter and two more autumn bakes.
Pecan Pie Crescents
The same dough, the pie filling. See the recipe → SavoryChicken Pot Pie with Crescent Rolls
Dinner from the second can. See the recipe → SavoryCrispy Turkey Rolls
Leftovers, rolled. See the recipe → Party25 Halloween Birthday Party Snacks
Mummy pastry bites and more. See the list → More Desserts30 Non-Pie Thanksgiving Desserts
When the table wants variety. See the list → AutumnPumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies
The other 12-minute bake. See the recipe →A scant tablespoon, a tight roll, deep golden. A can of dough in the fridge means dessert is fifteen minutes away.
Pin these crescent roll dessert recipes for the next last-minute sweet.
