Ring Cake (Kransekake)

Submitted by insensate

"Ring cake or kransekake cake is a traditional Norwegian wedding cake. It is actually an almond based cookie baked into a total of 18 rings of different size and is stacked to form a tower starting from the largest ring to the smallest. The texture is kind of interesting: Crunchy from the outside and chewy from the inside."

 

• Ready In: 40mins
• Ingredients: 4
• Yields: 18 Rings

ingredients

• 500 g almonds
• 500 g powdered sugar (icing sugar)
• 1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 egg whites

directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F or 180 C.
2. Grind the almonds into fine powder. I used an old fashioned nut grinder. You can use the regular grinder.
3. Add in the sugar and baking powder to the almonds and mix.
4. Now keep on adding the egg whites one by one and kneading the Almond mixture with the whites with gentle hands until a dough is formed.
5. Once the dough is formed time to shape the rings. roll out the dough into sausage shape. Thickness should be about 1/4 inch.
6. Fill in the kransekake pans to form the rings. There will be a total of 18 rings.
7. Bake for 10 minutes in the oven and pull out and completely cool before take out of the molds.
8. While the rings are cooling off you can prepare the icing.
9. Instructions for the icing: Lightly beat 1 large egg white in a bowl. Now keep on adding icing sugar to the egg white little by little (1 tablespoon at a time) until you attain the desired consistency (It should be at a pouring consistency but not runny).
10. Once the rings are completely cooled and the icing is ready its time to form the tower.
11. starting from the larger ring to the smallest build up a tower.
12. Place the largest ring on the plate and with the icing create a zigzag pattern on the ring and when the icing is still wet place the next size ring over it. The icing acts like a glue holding the rings together.
13. Continue until you reach to the smallest ring.
14. Decorate as desired with ribbons, toothpick flags with personal messages and flowers.