Kringel is something very important in Estonia.
Does not matter. Birthday or christening. Sweet, warm, soft bread is in the place. The smell in the house while baking is divine. Hardly could someone resist this rich and buttery, mouth-watering Kringel.
I have written that Estonians like black rye bread. So Kringel, delicious, fluffy and sweet bread, full of butter and sugar was an important dish during events. Later came the custom, that the girls got for christening a cake and boys got Kringel.
Kringel is so important that we do not use this name only for delicious pastry. If very cold and freezing, we are saying: ” Külmast Kringel/ Cold made from me Kringel” And playful, disobedient, a restless child is “Kringel”
When we celebrate our birthdays in a workplace, Kringel is a very comfortable and easy solution. And there are not only sweet options. Estonians like Kringel with savoury filling: cheese, ham, mushrooms…, as well.
Just name it.
In friendly Kringel family are three delicious members. Kringel is big. And look like a pretzel. The smaller Kringel look like a round wreath. And the smallest Kringel is just a loaf. We call this ” Stritsel”.
Estonian Kringel
A soft, fluffy, warm and sweet Estonian Kringel
Ingredients
- 700-800 g flour
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 tablespoon sugar
- 50 g yeast
- 200 g butter
- 0,5 glass of milk
- 1 teaspoon salt
- cardamom
- 200 g butter
- marzipan and ca 300 g cowberry apple sauce. Look for a recipe.
Filling
Directions
- Sift the flour into a large bowl, add the cold butter and salt, cardamom and rub in with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Mix together egg yolks and sugar.
- Dissolve yeast with lukewarm milk. And mix everything together.
- Mix and knead the dough until it separates from the bowl. Add some more flour if necessary.
- Sprinkle a little flour on the surface, cover the bowl with a towel and place in a warm place to rise until the volume has doubled. This takes 1-2 hours.
- Form the dough into 2 or 3 pieces. Form “hoses”. Roll each dough hose to a rectangle sheet. Use flour when rolling, Spread with butter and Spoon the filling over top. I used marzipan and cowberry apple sauce. But you can add just raisins and sugar, cinnamon. Roll up. Now you have 2 or 3 filled hoses.
- Lift them very carefully on the (greased or baking paper covered) oven plate. And now starts the most interesting part. You must form Kringel. Look at my photos or [gallery ids="11708,11709,11710"]
- Bake for 20-25 minutes at 200 C until golden brown. For the last 10 minutes, you can reduce the oven temperature to 180 C.
using 3 hoses braid as girls plait.
