Danish Knots (Kringler) Light Flaky Baked Whipped Cream Cookies

During my travels in Denmark, I fell in love with Danish treats. This is a very old, authentic recipe for a slightly sweet Danish cookie. The addition of whipped cream makes a tender, delicate texture.

• Ready In: 32 mins
• Yields: 5 dozen

Ingredients

• 2 1⁄4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1  tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1  teaspoon baking powder
• 1⁄2 cup firm butter (do not use margarine)
• 1  cup heavy whipping cream, chilled
•  crushed loaf sugar, for sprinkling (or granulated sugar)

Directions

1. Sift flour, sugar, and baking powder together in a bowl. Cut in butter until particles are the size of rice kernels. (I allow butter to slightly soften at room temperature while I gather my ingredients to make cutting it into the flour easier, but it should still be mostly firm).
2. In a separate bowl, whip heavy whipping cream until soft peaks form. (Whip it until it is the consistency of whipped cream used for topping a slice of pie).
3. Mix in cream with a fork and knead lightly with fingertips until mixture makes a ball.
4. Roll a fourth of the dough at a time into a 6 by 4 inch rectangle. Sprinkle crushed loaf sugar over the dough, pressing in lightly. (I use granulated sugar instead of loaf sugar.) Cut into 6 by ¼ inch strips. Form into figure eights or loose knots to resemble pretzels. Place on ungreased parchment paper-lined cookie sheets. (Note: when making pretzel shapes, press the dough down where the strips overlap to make the same thickness as the sides of the cookie for even baking. Otherwise, the sides will cook too quickly leaving the thicker layered of dough still raw).
5. Bake at 400F degrees about 12 minutes or until lightly golden. (Because oven temperatures vary, I bake mine for 16 minutes to achieve lightly golden color all over. Watch closely for they burn easily.) Store in an airtight cookie tin at room temperature.