Step 1

Gather all the ingredients. Let's start by blooming the yeast. Add water and 1 tablespoon of sugar to yeast. Stir and set aside for 5 minutes.

Step 2

Sift flours, dry milk and salt into mixing bowl. Add yeast mixture, eggs, butter and remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar to dry ingredients. Mix to combine until a dough forms. Knead for 8-10 minutes until the dough is smooth and soft.

Step 3

Form into a round and place in a lightly greased bowl and cover. Let it rise for an hour or until it doubles in size.

Step 4

When the dough is resting, make apple filling. Wash, peel, core and dice apple. In a medium sauce pan, tip in sugar, water, cinnamon and cornstarch. Stir and bring to boil, then add in half of the apples. Stir and cook the apples on medium until soft, about 8-10 minutes. Add remaining apples pieces and cook for another 6-8 minutes. Stir often to make sure the apples are cooked. When ready, remove from heat, add butter (and lemon juice if using) and combine well. Set aside to cool.

Step 5

Tip the dough onto a lightly floured work space. Roll dough into a rectangle approx. 20" x 15" (50cm x 38"). Use about ⅓ cup (76g) of the softened butter and butter about ⅔ of the rectangle. Fold ⅓ of the sheet into the middle, starting with the unbuttered side and fold the buttered ⅓ into the middle. Repeat the rolling and buttering 2 more times. Remember to lightly dust your work surface and dough with flour to prevent sticking. If dough or butter is too sticky, pop into the freezer for 10 minutes to make it easier to handle.

Step 6

Cover completely with plastic cling wrap and chill in refrigerator for 1 hour.

Step 7

When ready, score and cut the dough into 3 even pieces. Take one piece and roll into 13½" x 9” (34cm x 23cm) rectangle, then cut into 6 squares. Each square should be approx. 4" (10cm). Repeat with the other 2 pieces to create a total of 18 squares.

Step 8

To shape, fold square in half to create a triangle. Using a sharp knife of pizza cutter, cut about ½" (1 cm) along the edges of the triangle and leaving approx. ½" (1cm) uncut at the top. Open up the square and gently take the cut edge and place over the other cut corner, gently press to set. And repeat with the other side. You would end up with a beautiful diamond shape.

Step 9

Place all the formed squares on a lined baking sheet. Cover and put in warm place to rest, for about an hour. When ready, glaze with egg wash. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).

Step 10

Carefully spoon the prepared apple filling into the center of each pastry. Bake in oven for 15 to 18 minutes, or until the top of pastry is golden brown.

Step 11

When ready, remove from the oven. Place danish pastries on cooling rack. If you like, lightly dust cooled pastry with confectioner's icing sugar before serving.