Eggnog Danish Kringle Pastry! The flavors of a favorite winter beverage shine though in this tender, glaze-covered treat that can be served for breakfast or dessert. This less labor-intensive version of the mouthwatering Danish pastry will become a holiday treat to treasure!
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Do you have any favorite holiday recipes that you like to make year after year? Kringle pastry has become one of my favorite things to make, gift, and serve around the holidays.
Once you have the hang of making this, it's easy to throw together and is perfect for serving for Christmas breakfast, brunch or dessert. I've even placed it on a pretty platter, wrapped it up and gifted it to neighbors and friends!
I love that that flavor combinations are endless, making it fun to experiment with the fillings, toppings and extracts added to both the dough and the drizzle to create new and unique versions each year.
This year, I've decided to infuse my Danish Kringle with the flavors of Eggnog to give it a festive seasonal twist!
Looking for more breakfast treats for the holidays? Try my Raspberry White Chocolate Almond Kringle, Cranberry Streusel Coffee Cake, or Cinnamon Rolls with Apple Pie Filling!
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What is a Danish Kringle?
Danish Kringle is a traditional Danish pastry made up of thin layers of butter and dough that are shaped into a ring, baked and glazed with sweet icing. Some versions contain fillings such as fruit, cream cheese, jam, or nuts, while others are simply made up of the flaky, dough.
Racine, Wisconsin is home to various bakeries that offer the authentic version of this popular treat, including O & H Danish Bakery which has been cranking out Kringles since the 1940's. They offer more than 20 Kringle flavors from Birthday Kringle to Christmas Kringle and everything in between.
How is this version different than the original?
In the traditional method {which takes at least 3 days to make}, layers of butter and dough are rolled into a thin sheet that envelop the desired filling. This method, while absolutely delicious and inimitable, is labor-intensive and messy.
Most at-home bakers wouldn't have the time, skill or energy to make Kringle in the authentic way, and quite frankly, I wouldn't expect for you to set aside the hours during the busy holiday season even if you had all three.
This much easier version of Danish Kringle, adapted from King Arthur Flour, is made by using two types of dough to create a pastry with a rich, flaky bottom and a light, eggy top.
The bottom layer is similar to a wetter version of biscuit or pie dough. It is carefully molded into rope-like pieces, then linked together into an oval shape on a baking sheet and lightly flattened to act as the base for the next layer.
The top layer is basically a classic "choux" pastry dough. Choux is the type of pastry used in eclairs and cream puffs. It's made by boiling water and butter, then stirring in flour and finally adding in eggs and flavorings to create a smooth sticky dough that creates steam as it bakes due to its high moisture content, resulting a light, airy pastry.
While this is certainly not a spot-on substitute for the original Kringle, it is a great way to get a similar type of sweet treat on your table without the profanity, and it's both beautiful and delectable!
Ingredients
Despite the complex look of this pastry, the ingredients needed to make it are very basic. All you'll need is:
- Butter
- Flour
- Salt
- Water
- Nutmeg
- Eggs
- Eggnog
- Powdered Sugar
You might be surprised to find out that the Kringle dough itself contains no sugar! But don't worry your pretty little sweet tooth... the simple glaze that serves as the crowning glory to this doughy masterpiece will give you the sugar rush you crave for the holidays.
Tips for Making Danish Kringle Pastry
While this recipe does take a few different steps and techniques, I don't consider it terribly difficult to make. That being said, here are a few tips that can make your Kringle-making experience a bit more seamless:
- Use cold butter for the base dough. Butter, straight from the fridge cut into pats or diced is your best option. Cold butter will make for a flaky base, similar to to a pie crust or biscuits. You can "cut in" the butter with a pastry blender, or simply throw it into a stand mixer and beat it into the flour until it forms small pea-sized pieces.
- When forming the initial ring with the base dough, it's best to wet your hands so that the dough is easier to handle. Take about ¼ of the dough at a time and roll it between your hands to form a 4-5 inch long "rope". Repeat with the rest of the dough and then connect the four dough ropes to create an oval shape. Carefully fuse them together by pinching the ends and then lightly flatten out the entire oval. If you were to add a topping like nuts or filling, it would go on top of this flattened piece of dough.
- The top layer of choux dough is easiest to spread and shape by piping it onto the flattened base. Simply scoop your prepared choux dough into a large piping bag or zip-top bag, snip the tip, and pipe it evenly over the base. Then, use an offset spatula to spread it evenly and cover the base {and any filling you may have chosen to add}.
- Bake the Kringle until it is puffed and golden brown, then make sure to cool completely before icing.
Follow these tips and you'll have an eye-catching Kringle in no time. It may just become part of your holiday baking traditions!
Did you make this recipe? Leave a comment and rating below to let me know how you liked it!
Eggnog Danish Kringle
Ingredients
Bottom Layer
- ½ cup unsalted butter cold
- 1 cup flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup cold water
Top Layer
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup butter unsalted
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup flour
- 3 eggs
- 2 tablespoons eggnog
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
For Glaze
- 1 cup confectioners' sugar
- 2 tablespoons eggnog
- 1 tablespoon crumbled gingersnaps optional for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
Make Bottom Layer of Kringle:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer {or in a large bowl}, beat together cold butter, flour and salt until it becomes crumbly. Add cold water and beat until it forms a smooth, soft dough.
- Now comes the tricky part: Wet your hands and scoop out about ¼ of the dough. Mold it as well as you can into a "rope" and place on the lined baking sheet. Keep in mind, the end goal here is to form an oval ring shape that is about 12 inches long and 8 inches wide.
- Wet your hands {it really makes a huge difference in handling the dough} and scoop out another ¼ of the dough and do the same thing, attempting to connect to the previous piece and slowly forming that oval ring shape.
- Continue to wet hands and arrange the dough until it forms a completely closed oval, then pat it down slightly to flatten it out to about 1½ inches wide.
Make the Top Layer of the Kringle:
- In a small saucepan, heat the water, butter and salt over medium-high heat until it comes to a boil. {Be careful, once it boils it'll bubble over quickly if you're not paying attention.} Dump in the flour all at once and stir it in quickly until it comes together into a dough.
- Scoop the mixture into a large bowl {you can use the same one that you used for the other bowl} and beat it for about 30 seconds to let out some of the heat, then add the eggs one by one, stopping after each addition is fully incorporated. Add the nutmeg and eggnog and mix to fully incorporate.
- Scoop the batter out and spread it over the top of the bottom layer ring shape with your spatula, covering the raspberries and the dough completely. {You can also scoop the batter into a zip top bag and snip a large opening to easily pipe the dough out over top to make it easier to distribute it evenly.}
- Bake for about 50 minutes to 1 hour until the kringle is golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool completely. While the kringle is baking, prepare your drizzle and glaze.
For the Glaze:
- Beat together the confectioners' sugar, and eggnog until a thick, but pourable, consistency is reached. {You may want to pour in a little bit of the liquid at a time until you get the right consistency. If it becomes too runny, just add more sugar.}
- When the kringle is completely cool, drizzle with the eggnog glaze. While the drizzle is still slightly wet, sprinkle with crushed gingersnaps or a pinch of nutmeg if desired. Allow the drizzle to set, if desired.
Wendy Klik says
I love Kringle. Thanks for the recipe.