Kransekake

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If you’ve been following me for any amount of time, you’ve probably heard about the 5 years I lived in Norway and the almost 2 years I worked in delicious little bakery nestled at the end of a fjord (Don’t worry, I won’t bore you with the details again… This time).

While we made many delicious cakes, like the suksessterte (a custard and almond cake) and hvit dame (a sponge cake filled with jam and whipped cream wrapped in marzipan), one of my favorites was the kransekake (pronounced KRANS-uh-kok-uh) if for no other reason than the sheer elegance of it.

Traditionally used for weddings, confirmations and holidays like Christmas and Norway’s Independence Day, the kransekake is a towering cake made out of 18 crisp almond cookies “glued” together with icing.

It’s the epitome of Norwegian baking: Simple, elegant and minimal. Don’t worry, I won’t tell your friends how easy this show-stopper was to make. 😉

Ingredients you’ll need

For a treat this beautiful, you won’t believe how few ingredients it actually requires. Seriously, we’re talking just five ingredients in total. Here’s what you’ll need:

• Almond flour
• Powdered sugar
• Egg whites
• Meringue powder
• Water

A quick note about almonds and almond flour

Many traditional Norwegian kransekake recipes call for blanching almonds, peeling half of them and grinding them yourself.

If you want the full experience of making your almond flour from scratch, you can boil 1/2 lb of almonds for 3-4 minutes. The skin should peel right off. Spread the peeled almonds out on a baking sheet to dry overnight. Grind the peeled almonds with 1/2 lb of unpeeled almonds.

If you’d rather skip this step, you can simply purchase super-fine almond flour straight from the grocery store, which is available both with and without the skin.

A traditional kransekake dough would be made of equal parts blanched almond flour and whole almond flour. If you don’t want to purchase both, either one will work; Just know that it will change the taste and color of the dough slightly (because the skin gives it a little extra flavor).

The kransekake in this post is made with 100% blanched almond flour.

Prefer to watch the process?

How to make a kransekake

First, make the kransekake dough.

Stir together the almond flour and powdered sugar. Add the egg whites and beat until the dough becomes a cohesive clump. It should resemble something similar to pie dough, but it won’t be quite as smooth because of the almond flour.

The dough should be slightly sticky to the touch but shouldn’t be so sticky that it won’t pull away from your fingers. If it is, add almond flour one tablespoon at a time until it’s just slightly tacky.

Second, form the kransekake rings.

Grease your kransekake rings with a cooking spray.

Grab small fistfuls of dough and roll them into strips on a (lightly) powder sugar dusted surface until they’re roughly as thick as your index finger.

Gently press the dough into your kransekake ring mold (affiliate link), trimming the ends so that they just overlap. Gently press the ends together to seal.

Third, bake the kransekake.

Bake at 400F for 8-10 minutes, or until just golden. Allow to cool in their rings.

To remove the kransekake from the mold, gently invert the pan. If they don’t immediately come out, run a butter knife around the edge of the ring and invert again.

If you continue to have issues removing them, it may be because they undercooked. If this is the case, simply return them to your oven for 1-2 minutes before trying to remove them again.

Finally, make the icing and assemble the cake.

In a bowl, whip the meringue powder and water until frothy. Add the powdered sugar and whip until you reach a piping consistency.

Pro tip: Despite your best efforts, sometimes the rings don’t come out perfectly even, which means your kransekake might lean if you’re not careful. To avoid this, I like to stack my kransekake without icing so I can turn it as needed to ensure the rings stack up evenly and straight.

Fill a piping bag with the icing, pipe it onto the rings and stack.

Kransekake variations

Don’t feel like making a whole 18 ring cake? Kransekakestenger is a common variation that makes individual size pieces. Instead of forming the dough into rings, the dough is formed into 5″ logs and baked on a baking sheet at 400F for 8-10 minutes or until golden. The kransekakestenger are then dipped in melted dark chocolate.

You can also make a 9 ring kransekake by halving the recipe. Just be sure you’re filling the correct rings of your mold with dough, otherwise it won’t stack correctly.

Tips for making a kransekake

• Purchase a kransekake mold: To ensure your kransekake don’t spread while baking, you’ll want to use a kransekake mold. This is the kransekake mold I use (affiliate link).
• Sticky dough: The dough should be slightly sticky to the touch, but if you find it’s clinging to things, it may need some more almond flour. Add one tablespoon of almond flour at a time until it’s just slightly tacky.
• Making a half batch: If you don’t want to make a full size cake, you can halve the recipe, but be sure you’re filling the right rings in your cake form.
• Sticking to the mold: Use a high quality mold and be sure to grease it with a cooking spray prior to adding your dough. If you find the rings are hard to remove once they’ve cooled, run a butter knife around the edge before inverting the pan. If they continue to stick, they made need to be baked a few minutes longer.
• Freezing kransekake: Unfrosted kransekake keeps well in the freezer. Simply places the rings in an airtight plastic bag. Thaw at room temperature until no longer frozen.