There’s something irresistible about spreading Panera’s honey walnut cream cheese on a freshly toasted bagel. The first time I recreated this Panera favorite at home, my family was amazed by how perfectly it captured that sweet, nutty creaminess we love! Now this 5-minute Panera honey walnut cream cheese recipe is our go-to for weekend brunches and quick breakfasts.
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This Panera honey walnut cream cheese copycat recipe captures everything you love about the bakery version – that perfect balance of sweetness, subtle spice, and crunchy walnuts. What makes it even better? You can make this Panera honey walnut cream cheese in just 5 minutes with simple ingredients you likely already have in your pantry!
The secret to perfect Panera honey walnut cream cheese lies in the combination of honey, molasses, and brown sugar that creates that signature Panera flavor without any complicated techniques. It’s bakery-quality Panera cream cheese made simple.
Equipment Needed
- Medium mixing bowl
- Spatula or spoon for mixing
- Measuring spoons
- Airtight container for storage
Ingredients and Their Purpose
- Walnuts – Provides essential nutty flavor and crunchy texture that defines Panera’s honey walnut spread
- Cream Cheese (unflavored) – Forms the creamy, tangy base of Panera’s honey walnut cream cheese spread
- Honey – Provides natural sweetness and floral notes essential to Panera’s honey walnut flavor
- Molasses – Adds depth and complexity to mimic Panera’s distinctive honey walnut cream cheese taste
- Brown Sugar – Creates caramel-like sweetness that enhances Panera’s honey walnut cream cheese’s rich flavor
- Cinnamon – Adds warm spice notes that balance the sweetness in Panera honey walnut cream cheese
How to Make Panera Honey Walnut Cream Cheese Spread
It doesn’t get much simpler than this honey walnut cream cheese recipe.
- Let the cream cheese soften at room temperature for a few minutes.
- Combine cream cheese with the honey, cinnamon, molasses, and brown sugar in a large bowl and mix well.
- Fold the chopped walnuts into the cream cheese mixture.
All that’s left to do is spread it on your favorite bagel or baked good!
Panera Honey Walnut Cream Cheese Recipe Tips and Variations
- Make ahead: This Panera honey walnut cream cheese actually tastes better after flavors have time to meld in the refrigerator
- Toast the walnuts: For enhanced nutty flavor, lightly toast the chopped walnuts in a dry skillet before adding them to your Panera honey walnut cream cheese
- Texture options: Chop walnuts finely for a smoother spread or leave larger pieces for more crunch in your Panera honey walnut cream cheese
- Sweetness control: Adjust honey and brown sugar amounts to match your preference for sweetness in Panera honey walnut cream cheese
What Goes Well with Panera Honey Walnut Cream Cheese
There’s nothing like the pairing of a bagel and cream cheese, especially when it’s a high-end spread like Panera honey walnut cream cheese. A spread like this one can pair well with any of Panera’s sweeter bagel options like cinnamon swirl, blueberry, chocolate chip, or cinnamon crunch (or their supermarket-bought or homemade siblings.)
Plain bagels are always a solid choice, and more adventurous eaters may enjoy pairing the spread with savory bagel options like everything or asiago.
You’re certainly not limited to just bagels. This recipe works just as well as a homemade cream cheese spread for bread, English muffins, biscuits, and more. It can even be enjoyed as a dip with fruit or crackers.
How to Store
Homemade Panera honey walnut cream cheese is as easy to store as it is to make and enjoy. Keep it refrigerated in an airtight container. Freezing isn’t recommended, so only prepare as much as you think you’ll use in the near future.
It’ll stay good for up to ten days in the fridge, but with a recipe this delicious, it may not last that long anyway.
If you love another great schmear for your bagel, try my copycat recipe for Zabar’s Cream Cheese Spread.
Homemade Panera Honey Walnut Cream Cheese
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon molasses
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon chopped walnuts
Instructions
- If you wish, toast the walnuts in a skillet over medium-high heat until they just turn fragrant. Watch the skillet closely – there is a short time between the nuts being toasted and burnt. Take the nuts off the heat and allow them to cool completely.
- In a small bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, honey, molasses, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Stir until all of the ingredients are well blended.
- Stir the walnuts into the honey cream cheese.
- Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.
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Nutrition
Love Panera Bread? Try these copycat recipes
- Copycat Panera Bread Broccoli Cheddar Soup
- Panera Apple Muffin Recipe
- How to Make Panera Mac and Cheese
- Vegetarian Autumn Squash Soup Panera
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- How to Make Scallion Cream Cheese
- Cream Cheese Clam Dip
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- Chicken Cream Cheese Enchiladas Recipe
- DIY Cream Cheese
Sweet Cream Cheese Recipes
- Strawberry Cream Cheese Spread
- Blueberry Cream Cheese Dessert
- Cream Cheese Cookie
- Easy Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
Be sure to take a look at the best restaurant copycat recipes and CopyKat favorites.
Let me know in the comments how your homemade Panera honey walnut cream cheese turned out! Don’t forget to share your creations by TAGGING ME ON INSTAGRAM and sign up for my newsletter so you never miss a copycat recipe!
This is delicious! Thanks so much for sharing! I added a little vanilla extract to round out the flavor (although it’s still excellent without it!).
Just made it today and had to taste before putting in fridge and it tasted amazing!!!! Why did I never think of making my own…. with your recipe of course. This is my favorite flavor from Panera and now I can have it whenever I want!!!! Thank you so much…. waiting for it to chill is the hardest part!!!!😅😅😋😋☺️☺️
Excellent recipe!!! Taste is spot on!!
I have made this several times now, it is absolutely delish!
Delicious even with vegan cream cheese!!! Thank you for this recipe! I miss so many of the dairy foods I could once eat and this tastes sooo much like the Panera cream cheese I used to love 🙂
I haven’t tried the original (Panera) version of this but made some to serve with banana bread and sampled on a piece of toasted French bread. Yummy!!!!!🤤
Dear Stephanie, my pregnant self cannot thank you enough for this recipe. Never knew why I waited so long to look up the recipe when I love the honey walnut recipe from Panera so much and am always buying ( and it is not cheap). Made it today and love it.
Thank you thank you and thank you again.
Love love love this cream cheese! Do you think you could do your magic and turn this into a cheese cake recipe? I really enjoy your site and look forward to the emails everyday! Thank you for all that you do!
I will keep this in mind! Thank you!
Great copycat recipe, thanks for sharing.
This cream cheese spread is just like Panera’s! I would maybe add just a tad bit less molasses. Overall AMAZING!!!
My husband was really craving the Panera Honey Walnut Cream Cheese spread, and since I had all the ingredients at home, I gave it a try. Super easy to make and absolutly delicious. Tastes as good or better as Panera. Thanks for the recipe!
I am glad you enjoyed this!
My family would love you forever if you could figure out the raspberry almond thumbprint cookies recipe. 🙂
Does the molasses add quite a bit? It’s not an ingredient I have on hand or would use very often. Just wondering if it’s one of the key ingredients for making it taste just like Panera’s!
It does help a bit. It is an ingredient in their cream cheese spread if you read their label. You can try it without, and see what you thin.
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Thank you so much!!! I love this spread and have everything on hand to make my own tonight for my breakfast tomorrow =)
I’ve never had Panera anything, but that doesn’t matter, this looks like something I would love! Thank you.
You don’t know what your missing. You have to try Panera Bread, OMG!!!
My Favorites
-cheddar broccoli soup
-bacon turkey bravo sandwich
-tuna salad sandwich
-cinnamon crunch bagel
-cobblestone
-chocolate chip cookie
-braided pecan twist
-lemonade
And the list goes on
Can you copycat their granny smith something or other (I can’t remember what its called but it’s made with green apples) dressing? I’ve looked EVERYWHERE FOR IT and Pantera doesn’t sell it by the bottle.
This sounds fabulous. I just had to pin it. Thanks for sharing the Recipe!
Thank you very much. I hope you enjoy the spread.
I’m sure I will. I love all the ingredients. We don’t have a Panera Bread near us so I’ve never had the chance to try this type of spread but when I read your recipe I knew I had to pin it to try it soon.
omg … I love the honey walnut cream cheese spread at Panera! Thanks so much for figuring out the recipe!
Anytime! Thank you for dropping by!
Got anymore copycat recipies from panera bread or and other company
Yes I do, here is a link to all of my Panera Bread Recipes
https://copykat.com/tag/panera-bread-recipes/
I love a good copycat recipe from Panera! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you. I look forward to doing more recipes from there.
I bet it costs less too:) We were denied walnuts as a child since my mother didn’t like them. I can’t resist a good walnut recipe today:p
Isn’t it funny what we get denied as children because our parents don’t like them.