Program

Hungry for History®

Subject

Food, Site

Location

5910 WI-20, Mt Pleasant, WI 53406, USA

Lat/Long

42.719626, -87.85208

Grant Recipient

Visit Racine County

Kringle is a Danish pastry that has a flaky, buttery dough with a filling at its center and topped with frosting or sugar. The fillings are dependent on the type of kringle. Some examples are fruit, nuts, cream cheese and chocolate. Kringle was originally made in a pretzel shape. However, the desire to more room for filling led to the oval shape made today.

The Danish heritage is strong in Racine, Wisconsin, with a significant population traveling from Europe as early as the 1840s (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, December 19, 2023). They brought with them their culture and food, including kringle which was proclaimed the official Wisconsin State Pastry in 2013 by the state legislature. The O&H Danish Bakery flagship store, along with several other bakeries in Racine, are the founding kringle bakeries in Wisconsin.