Danish pretzels it’s buttery, flaky, sweet and best enjoyed with a cup of coffee or tea! Just like the famous Kringle you can buy at Trader Joe’s, this is all homemade and absolutely delicious!
Because you love my Danish Kringle recipe
- Structure! It’s light and flaky and topped with the perfect amount of sweet vanilla frosting. Paired with a cup of coffee, this homemade dessert is the perfect way to start the day!
- Trader Joe’s Deception! I don’t know about you, but if you’ve ever bought Danish Kringle at Trader Joe’s you understand the level of obsession. Knowing how to make a homemade version is both amazing and terrifying! I usually have to give half of it away because I eat it all myself!
- Classic (sort of)! I’m not Danish, so I can’t say this is a family recipe passed down for generations. It took me many tries to get this recipe perfect. I hope you like my version because I worked hard to make it as traditional as possible!
What is Danish Kringle?
Danish Kringle is a Danish dessert traditionally made of multiple layers of buttery dough and covered in icing. Some people like to put nuts and fruit inside the layers before baking, but I prefer to top it all with chopped nuts at the end.
What you need / Ingredients
Be sure to scroll down to the recipe card below for the full recipe! You can even print it!
- All purpose flour. You will need it for both the shortcrust pastry and the filling.
- Butter. You will use butter in all the steps of this recipe: the pastry, the filling and the frosting. I use salted butter, but you can also use unsalted butter if you prefer.
- Egg. You will need eggs for the filling in this Kringle recipe. I use large eggs in this recipe, as I do in all my pastry recipes.
- Glazing: You will need icing sugar, milk, vanilla extract, nuts and the butter I mentioned above for the frosting. The pastry alone isn’t sweet, so it’s up to the icing to add that delicious sweetness!
Variation ideas
This Danish coffee cake recipe has sweet but subtle flavors. The dough becomes a buttery, pastry-like base that tastes like a homemade pie crust. It is then topped with a butter and egg filling, baked in wide strips and topped with a sweet vanilla glaze. When you stir in the nuts there is a delicious hazelnut crunch in every bite, which ties everything together!
I love the simple vanilla flavor when you enjoy this pastry with a cup of coffee, but there are other flavor combinations you could try! Here are a couple of ideas:
- Orange: You could make an orange-flavored glaze with a little orange zest. The same thing can be done with lemon juice/zest.
- Chocolate: Add chocolate chips with shortcrust pastry, or prepare a chocolate icing instead of vanilla.
- Add-ons: Throw some pecans, almonds, raisins or other fruits into the baking mix.
Tips for the Best Danish Kringle
- Forming the Kringle: Traditional Kringle usually takes the shape of an oval, but I like to bake the dough in squares instead. You’ll end up cutting it anyway, so why not make life a little easier?
- Keep a mixer handy: To make the base layer you will have to combine the flour and diced butter, which you do by hand, so I recommend having an electric mixer handy.
- For a lighter cake: If you’re looking to shave a few calories off this coffee cake, pipe thin stripes of frosting back and forth across the Kringle, rather than spreading it all over.
How do you serve a Kringle?
I like to enjoy this Danish Kringle with coffee, of course, or with a nice cup of tea. If you have children, I suggest serving this pastry with a large glass of milk. Kringle can be served cold, at room temperature or warm: add a drizzle of caramel or a little cinnamon if you want!
How to store Danish Kringle
Store Kringle in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Since the frosting is made with dairy, do not leave it at room temperature.
Press
Description
This Danish Kringle recipe is a puff pastry, filled with custard and topped with sweet sugar icing and nuts!
Pastry shop:
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cold butter, diced
- 2 tbsp waterfall
Filling:
- 1 cup waterfall
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 3 large eggs
Glazing:
- 2 tbsp butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 – 2 spoons of milk
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Pastry shop: Place the flour in a large bowl. Using a pastry cutter or fork, fold in the cubed butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the water and mix until the mixture forms a ball. Divide the dough into three equal pieces.
- Lightly flour a clean work surface and roll each portion of dough into a 9×6-inch rectangle using a rolling pin. Place the dough on the prepared baking sheet. Set aside while you prepare the filling.
- Filling: In a medium casserole over medium heat, bring the water and butter to a boil. Add the flour and mix until a smooth ball forms. Remove from the heat and let it cool for 5 minutes. Transfer the cooled dough to your bowl food processor equipped with paddle attachment and with the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, mixing until smooth (about 30 seconds), scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- Spread the egg mixture evenly over each rolled out pastry and bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. The custard will puff up as it bakes, but will settle once it cools. Allow the pastry to cool for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
- Glazing: In a medium bowl, beat together the butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and 1 tablespoon milk until smooth. If you want a thinner frosting, add the remaining milk. Stir in the nuts until smooth and spread the icing over each of the pastries while they are still warm.
Notes
Serve hot, at room temperature or cold.
Store airtight in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Freeze airtight for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature.
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