Buttery and flaky, this Almond Kringle recipe is easier than ever. Two layers of pastry topped with a delicious almond icing. Tips and tricks included to store and freeze your delicious danish.
Love almond desserts? Our Almond Bars are a sweet cookie bar as well as a reader favorite! Perfect for sharing and freezing. Or give our wedding cake cupcakes a try soon, with their sweet almond flavor and raspberry filling!
What is an Almond Kringle?
If you’re unfamiliar with a kringle, you’re probably not from the midwest! My grandma would serve these often in my childhood. While we lived in Illinois, Wisconsin is where these are most famous.
A kringle is a sweet pastry usually stuffed with nut filling or fruit, shaped into an oval, semi-circle or log and then baked. As if that didn’t already sound delicious enough, it’s finished off with a layer of sweet creamy icing on top.
Kringle has Scandinavian origins and I’ve seen several variations on this puffed pastry dish over the years. My very favorite, though, is this Almond Kringle, just like the ones Grandma used to serve.
- Layers upon layers of buttery pastry perfection, that doesn’t take hours to slave over.
- No yeast dough!
- Makes TWO kringles…great for sharing or freezing!
If you love melt in your mouth almond treats, be sure to try our almond cookies next!
Ingredient Notes
Simple pastry ingredients are all you need. You could add a layer of nut filling or thinly sliced apples (between the crust and filling layer), if desired.
My family just loves this simple, easy, basic almond version!
- Flour- all-purpose flour is our choice. Make sure you measure the flour correctly!
- Butter- unsalted butter is what I usually use in baking. The sliced almonds add the salt needed, however, salted butter would work fine in today’s danish.
- Eggs- provide structure and texture to the filling, and help the pastry create delicious layers.
- Almond extract- this extract provides all the nutty flavor for today’s kringle recipe. Not a fan? You can use vanilla extract instead.
- Powdered sugar– just a couple Tablespoons is all you need. This dough isn’t overly sweet, and the icing provides the sweetness in this recipe.
How to Make a Kringle
STEP 1. Make the pastry bottom layer. The “crust.”
Mix crust ingredients together into a ball. Separate the dough into two small balls. On two cookie sheets, pat into two large horseshoes, about 2-3 inches wide (my baking sheet is 12 inch).
Just a note: The dough will be very sticky at this stage. You will think you are doing something wrong, just trust me, it’s supposed to be gooey! Resist the urge to add more flour.
STEP 2. Make the “filling”. Or second layer of pastry dough.
In a small saucepan, heat 1 cup water and ½ cup butter to boiling. Remove from heat, beat in 1 cup flour. Add eggs, one at a time. Add powdered sugar and almond extract. This will be paste-ish. It’s ok.
Spread on top of crust layers. Bake for 40-45 minutes in a 375 degree oven. Cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack.
STEP 3. Make the icing.
While the Kringle is cooling in the oven prepare frosting by beating butter with powdered sugar, almond extract and milk. Continue to beat until smooth.
Frost the Kringle while warm and sprinkle with sliced almonds (optional), slice into pieces and serve.
Tips and Tricks
- If desired, you can also garnish the frosted Kringle with thinly sliced almonds or chopped walnuts. It looks and tastes great either way!
- I used a horseshoe shape here because it’s what I’m most familiar with. Kringle is also shaped into ovals, twisted into pretzels or baked in a simple log shape. Make whatever shape Kringle recipe you like; the point is that it’s DELICIOUS!
- Freeze your kringle by wrapping in plastic wrap then wrapping in a double layer of foil. Or freeze slices of danish in a large ziploc freezer bag.
- Store baked kringle at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Fillings: fill with almond paste or homemade lemon curd. Canned pie fillings (cherry and apple) are delicious to.
- Serve your kringle with a mug of homemade hot chocolate or a steaming cup of apple crisp macchiato. A glass of pumpkin cream cold brew wouldn’t be terrible either, ha!
Recipe FAQs
Our almond kringle recipe is made with layers of buttery pastry dough, with a nutty flavor from the almond extract and sliced almonds.
Kringles are definitely best when served the same day or within the first 24 hours however, if kept in airtight container, they last for up to 5 days.
Most kringles are served at room temperature. However, warming up a slice is a delicious option too.
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Almond Kringle
Ingredients
Bottom Crust layer:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 2 Tablespoons water
Filling:
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 large eggs
- 3 Tablespoons powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
Frosting:
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter softened
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1-2 Tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- For the bottom crust layer, combine flour with butter using a pastry cutter. Combine until you get coarse crumbs. Add water and mix ingredients together into a ball. Seperate into two equal pieces.
- Using your hands, roll dough into a long log shape. On two cookie sheets, shape each log into a large horseshoe, patting flat until it's about 2-3 inches wide (my baking sheet is 12-inch pizza stone). Dough will be sticky, dip fingertips in flour if needed to prevent sticking.
- For the filling, in a saucepan, heat water and butter to boiling. Remove from heat, beat in flour. Add eggs, one at a time. Add powdered sugar and almond extract. This egg mixture will be paste-ish. Spread on top of crust layers.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes. Allow to cool at least 10-15 minutes before sliding onto a wire rack.
- While cooling, prepare frosting by beating butter with powdered sugar, almond extract and milk. Continue to beat until smooth. Frost kringles while warm and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
More Breakfast Recipes
Everyone loved this Almond Kringle and I’ve made it a few times since that first try. Enjoyed for breakfast or as a dessert to share, a flaky Dutch Kringle is always a welcome sight!
If the filling is thin & running off, there is either too much water or egg. The filling is essentially a choux paste like the kind used for cream puffs & eclairs but with some almond flavoring. And like many things in baking sometimes it takes all the egg, sometimes it doesn’t depending on flour, humidity, relative egg size, etc. The flour should form a thick ball when added to the water/butter so if it’s thin at that point add more flour. It should be a good arm workout to add the eggs (or use a mixer.)
I love Kringles- my Mom makes them for all the WI church ladies bake sales. ?
I tried yours. My issue is that the filling is so thin that it doesn’t stay on the crust. I had to spread the crust thinly on the bottom is the entire huge cookie sheet and then pour the filling on top. It even then ran off the crust a little bit.
Any ideas what I did wrong? I used small eggs in the filling, so that should not have caused the extra thinness. I am stumped. Thanks.
I tried this recipe and I had some issues. There details missing that made it hard to accurately recreate the Kringle. Was the butter for the crust melted? How thick should the crust be? How thick should the layer of paste be? When you say 50-55 minutes, can you tell us what we’re looking for?
I also had issues with the paste not sticking to the crust. Any ideas what would have caused that?
I’m confused. Do you make 2 kringles out of this, or 1? After you put the paste/filling on, do you put the second crust on top of that? Or is the paste/filling on the very top? Thank you! 🙂
It makes two kringles (two horseshoes as I called them). The paste/filling is the top.
That’s not what you wrote- you need to fix this recipe. It reads horribly.
That was confusing to me also, so I scrolled through the comments hoping to find clarity on that.
Thanks for asking that question; the instructions were not clear about that.
I’ve never made anything like this before, so I thought the recipe seemed odd too, but I went with it anyway, and these turned out SO delicious. I made the dough into 4 “logs” about 3″x6″. I had a little extra filling, but I saved it and am going to make a little more of the crust later this evening. I added sliced almonds and a sprinkle of red sugar (they are Christmas gifts). They are so pretty and, more importantly, delicious! For those who are skeptical, the egg mixture bakes up nice and thick and the frosting provides the sweetness. Just make them, you won’t regret it! Thanks for the recipe!
Thank you!!! It’s such a special treat, I agree! I’m glad you tried it and came back to report your feedback. Merry Christmas!!
This was SO easy to make and tasted great! I added a chocolate mint topping. http://imgur.com/IObPmrg Like another poster, I did end up with way more topping than crust. I think it might be best to spread the crust out in a large, thin layer before adding the topping. But either way, it was a hit. Thank you!
is the recipe shown correvt?? it seems something is missing, mayebe a top crust??
When it bakes it should form a crust. My mother had this same recipe, Danish Puff, as was noted by Sarah.
is this recipe a joke, no way this can work, made too much topping for 2 small balls of dough and the topping is running off of the dough. i only used half of the topping i made. please advise what is wrong.
It will work. Trust me! The topping is very paste-ish. It will bake up nicely. If you look at the photo above, I made TWO of those rings with one recipe. you can do this!
Or try spreading the balls out flat – very flat – about 2″ or less. If spread out too much you won’t have enough topping, will come out too flat. I usually judge the size by the cookie sheet. This should come out as a crust and should have enough topping for both pieces. The topping won’t overflow. This recipe reminds me of cream puffs – top crust with moist inside.
Looks very similar to a recipe my mom has, hers is called Danish Puff and is in 2 long “logs” for lack of a better word. Delicious! I’ll definitely have to try this one!
My mother also had this Danish Puff recipe – same ingredients, except for the frosting and not rolled like a log. Instead of the log, take 2 balls of this recipe and press flat on a baking sheet. Does not need to have the sheet buttered. I always use foil. It has to be pressed flat and may seem like there isn’t enough, but there is. For the frosting melt a little bit of butter and milk. Add powdered sugar and also add cherry juice. Keep adding the sugar and juice until you have the right consistency, depending on your choice. Then frost and decorate with cut up cherries and almonds. This has always been a big hit with everyone. We would always beg our mother to save us some for breakfast the next morning after having friends over for cards. So I finally decided to learn how to bake this myself.
This looks so flaky and delicious, Aimee! My kind of dessert! 🙂 Thanks for linking up to Melt in Your Mouth Monday!
This looks delicious! I don’t think I’ve ever tasted one before but I know I would love it. So glad you decided to visit and post on Sweet Indulgences Sunday. Kim
I am just going to ignore the last part you said about it NOT being low-cal, so I can keep it all to myself and eat as much as I want 😉 Thanks for linking up to Fat Camp Friday this week! See you next Friday!
@ Miz Helen- I’m sure you will love it. Plus it makes TWO- does it get any better than that???
@ anonymous- so funny! Just when you think you’ve created your own recipe, it’s already been done 🙂
Hi Aimee…just wanted you to know, I have had this rescipe for at least 50 years. I found it in a Racine cookbook. Any kringle is a favorite for the family. Keep up the good cooking
Yummy!
Your Almond Kringle would be a great hit here at The Cottage. We would just love it. Thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday!
Aimee, It sounds so good!
I am adding it to my “to make file”.
🙂
As always thanks for linking up!
Meaghan, I hope you try it, so worth it. And surprisingly, it doesn’t need the almond paste, although you could certainly add it! Or toasted almonds on top too…oh the possibilities!
-Aimee
i am surprised not to find any almonds or almond paste in this recipe but, cannot argue with how amazing it looks! yummm, i am from chicago/madison originally so, i am a fan of this classic. thanks for sharing, loves it 🙂
-meg
@ http://clutzycooking.blogspot.com