Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Hump Day Kringle Talk

Raspberry kringle pieceIf you ask someone from Wisconsin where to get good kringle, they'll tell you,"Racine."
My mother will tell you that Lane's Bakery from the old neighborhood has the best Racine kringle (you actually say Racinekringle as if it's one word).
I'll bet you canoli to kringle there's some kind of *cheese-on-pie law requiring every bakery in Wisconsin to carry it.
What's a Racine kringle? Well look at the photo, this particular specimen of flat, flaky pastry is raspberry filled, but don't you wish you had one right now?
There's also almond (very common), pecan (also very popular), cream cheese, cherry cheese, apple, blueberry, maple walnut (yum to that), turtle, strawberry, apricot, banana creme, cinnamon, pumpkin, and on it goes.

Raspberry kringleIt's not the traditional Danish pretzel shape, looking more like the crunchy Italian bread grandpa Farino used to get from Chicago (we lovingly called it toilet seat bread).
Try a piece.

Raspberry kringle cross cutAnd lookey here, the O&H Danish Bakery (in Racine) is having a Win a Kringle contest.
Racine (rah seen´ or ray´ seen if you're making fun of someone from Shee´ boygan) is located somewhere between That 70s Show and Chicago. It's always been my understanding that the place is full of Italians, everyone I've ever met from Racine has been Sicilian, and the city is most famous for its Danish pastry.
The reason I picked up this here kringle was because it's from Olesen's Family Bakery in, wait for it, Racine, Wisconsin. (When we're not calling ourselves "Dempsey" we go by grandpa's less Irish name, Olson.)
I found this thick and generously filled Racinekringle at the Sentry's in Sun Prairie while buying gas that's .07 cheaper. Yes, I know, I'm using gas to drive somewhere to save on gas.
Did you know they have a walk-in cheese cooler there, at the Sentry's not the gas station but wouldn't that be cool, and every time you walk by it automatically opens, hissing, "Buy ssssome cheessse, thissss issss Wissssconssssin, it would be wrong not to."
Buy sssome kringle, do it now, before you're over the hump, it would be wrong not to.
Where to buy
Bendtsen's Bakery
Larsen's Bakery
O&H Danish Bakery (hinky link, but keep trying)
Olesen's Family Bakery (in stores)
Racine Danish Kringles
In the Madison area: Clasen's, Lanes, just about any bakery or grocery store in the state of Wisconsin.

*An urban legend/state law requiring that every piece of pie be served with a slice of cheese

30 comments:

  1. yes, I want some now--I had to click that link and look at all the kringle, and I WANT SOME NOW. *mutter* The almond looks good. *mutter mutter*

    *sigh*

    I'll probably end up buying some on friday. So what's your favorite? I like maple walnut too, but maple walnut kringle?

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  2. Oh jeeeez! When I read the title for this post, I thought: "Oh, crap. Jeanna's going to be in disbelief when I tell her I don't know what a kringle is!!!" Just like the time I told you I didn't know what a funnel cake was! I know, I know. Dang Canadians don't know nuthin', right? LOL!

    Anyway, when the photos came up (computer is slow today), lo' and behold...I DO know what a kringle is!!! Ms.Mamma sent us a few kringles for Christmas two years ago. OMG!!! I damn near ate an entire one by myself!!! Hubby almost ate the other! I think there was a raspberry one, an almond one, and some other one.

    Oh, Jeanna. You are sooooooooo making me want to hop into my vehicle and go to Wisconsin!!

    P.S. Word ver= fariner! The word "farine" in French means "flour"! How apropos is that? :)

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  3. The real Danish kringle is almond, the What's Cooking America post ("kringle" link) has a nice little write up on. Read the bit about rolling butter between 30 layers of dough.
    I love maple or raspberry, didn't like nuts as a kid, but do now, I honestly can't tell you what my favorite is today since I'm not a big kringle eater, yet never pass it up; maybe that's another post.
    I'm intrigued by the key lime and love strawberry.
    I normally don't buy kringle for myself (a taste tester got the rest of the raspberry after shooting it, bang) since it's bought for guests like a coffee cake.
    I see the O&H server is down, so I'm going to add some links to the post for you.

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  4. Oh you crazy Kanooks with your French words and British spellings. It's just another regional pastry like that evil custard filled one w/the name I'll never remember that you like at potlucks.
    That's funny Heidi sent you some, see us Cheds are united in our eating habits, vegetarians or no.
    I usually go for the raspberry, but eat whatever they put on the kitchen counter.
    Very appropriate, now use it in a sentence with the first and last word beginning with the letter "m" (or the last word ending in "m" is fine and very creative).
    Also looks like "Farino" whichs is where all the cooking and eating comes from.

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  5. Heavens to Betsy, that looks good!

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  6. Oh man, I want me some kringle! I like the ones from Larsens.
    When I was a sweet young thing, way back when, I did a special job for one of the engineers at work (who happened to be from Racine)--lo, and behold--I had a nice kringle on my desk the next day!

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  7. Follow a link and buy some, Hula, or better yet watch for a Kringle Contest, I'm surprised at how much people love the stuff.

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  8. LOL, Mary Ruth, that is pretty funny. Should I ask what the job was?
    I never even noticed where we got ours from, besides Lane's, but I really liked the one from Olesen's, it was a little stouter and the filling was quite good.
    Ray seen or Rah seen for you?

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  9. y'know--I know you're not asking me (*whispers, 'cause I don't live in WS*) but I think it should be pronounced "Ray-seen" :)

    Thanks for the links. I thought I was getting a little forgetful in my (er, old)(age, damn...you can't say that without stringing it together, can you?)latter years. I'll check them out and drool.

    hmmm, coffee cake. That's sort of like when I grew up in Hawaii, everyone brought cake as a visiting gift, but no one "bought" cake for themselves.

    My ver is drosc, which almost sounds like Droste (okay, maybe not, but close, very close)and it's very hard to think of a word that works in a sentence, (other than m&m's) that either begins or ends in "m". :)

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  10. I say that to be funny, but it came from somewhere, Jodi.
    Yeah, it's like that, only think Italian which translates into: "I'd rather be caught dead than caught without an excess of pastry and hard salami."
    Very nice, Jodi woman, I'll add it to the entries.

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  11. I'm going to have to ask Heidi which shop those kringles came from! How bad is it that I am willing to pay for cross-border shipping of kringles?! LOL! I have a confession. I actually kept the box that the kringles came in (in event that I'd be jonesing for one and would have to place an order!), but since we've had the renos done on the house, I have chucked everything to make room for the baby. No more boxes or whatnot.

    MUST
    FIND
    OUT
    NAME
    OF
    KRINGLE
    COMPANY

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  12. Chrissy, I get the idea that Larsen's and O&H are very popular, it might be one of those. I'll leave a msg on her blog and ask her.
    I'm gonna have to have that Kringle Contest I think, that and a road trip to one of the Norske Nooks (pies).
    As someone who's car I loved dearly died several weeks ago I say to you:
    I LOVE MY NEW CAR and I'm taking it on a short road trip to Montfort (the place with the windmills, I think I sent you a postcard), which means only one thing: Delicious RR1 Popcorn.
    Talk later.

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  13. I wouldn't know a kringle from a shingle?
    Hey......grandpa any kin to the that boxer fella....Jack Dempsey?

    word verf. kings

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  14. I'm waiting for pics of the new sled!!!!!!!!

    word verf. subbep

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  15. Jeanna--I think I had typed something for him...I was the engineering secretary at the time.
    For me, its RAY-seen.

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  16. We have a cousin named Jack Dempsey and he was a boxer, but not that Jack Dempsey (there's a story about us meeting him in a restaurant when we were kids that gets dragged out from time to time).

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  17. okay, just had to say (hopefully) Norske Nook? Holy Jane and Michael Stern, Batman! I hope you take lots of pictures.

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  18. I think you'd like the kringle, James, you can have it with Irish coffee, Frangelico, or beer.
    Good word vers, king of the what?
    I took some photos for you today, but too busted out to upload them and send.

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  19. People who say Ray seen are always talking about the lake effect cuz der from over der by Mawahkey, da place with all da bubblers.

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  20. That is for another month, perhaps next one, Jodi. It would be quite the trek up north somewheres; I don't know where the hell it is, but it supposed to have the best pies in the state.
    However, I'm skeptical because between one about six miles away and the other a half mile from that, I don't see anything beating them. And I hate when pie makers leave a half cooked crust as so many do. Yuk, as a master baker, how do you feel about that?

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  21. Hey Sweets! I want to say Racine becasue they were the only ones that would ship to Canada. XO

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  22. MM, you crazy cacuzz, they're all Racine kringle, lol.

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  23. Jeanna you have found my weakness! Danish pastries!! Does this place do Vanilla Crowns? They are my all time fave!

    Jim

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  24. I haven't Jim, but I'll keep a look out. I just might have to take a road trip to Racine. There are several different places there.
    Funny, kringle is not one of my favs, just take it for granted, like coffee cake, but Vanilla Crowns sound intriguing.

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  25. Wait! Jimmy doesn't know what a kringle is??? Then it's not because I'm Canadian and don't know these things! I feel a lot better now :) Well, not really. It is Jimbo we're talking about here! ;) Me lub you long time, James.

    Jeanna, you're lovin' your new wheels, eh? Pick Jimmy and Heidi (and True) up, and come on over for some cross border fun :) I'll even cook for you guys!

    Word ver: kinder ...kind of like Kinder Surprise??? I LOVED those when I was a kid! I think I liked the toy inside more than the chocolate. The chocolate wasn't bad though :)

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  26. I would, but (you know how bad I am with names) who is True?
    Kinder, that's a good one, a Kanook or Brit candy?
    You're not missing much with the kringle I don't think, unless I'm missing something which I very well could be.
    Yeah, you know James, if it's not covered in trucknutz, he doesn't know about it.

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  27. I had not heard of kringles - where have I been?

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  28. Umm, Plover?
    Are you telling me there's a grocery store up there that doesn't carry kringle?

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  29. Oh my gosh, your blog makes me hungry!! :)

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  30. I think it's better read with a cup of tea after a full meal, Miss Pants.

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