Hello friends,

It’s Ohlaf, Viking baker and pastry explorer.  Today, let’s talk about gluten.

At O&H Danish Bakery, I dream of baking our world-famous kringles for everyone, including gluten-free pastry enthusiasts.  But here's the flaky truth:  Gluten is a critical ingredient in crafting the delicate, airy layers that define our traditional Danish kringle.

Gluten is a protein found in wheat flour.  When mixed with water, it creates an elastic network within dough that traps air and steam when baked.  This creates the magical crispy, flaky layers that we all love in kringle.  It's a bit like edible architecture.  Each layer rises beautifully, finishing crisp yet tender, the way kringle should be.  Alton Brown, one of my favorite culinary scientists, explains gluten’s role in dough development in this episode of his Food Network show.

Finding gluten-free ingredients that mimic this structure has proven a delicious challenge.  We've experimented, but haven’t yet achieved that authentic flaky goodness that defines our kringles.  But I’m not giving up!

In the meantime, for my gluten-free friends, we've baked plenty of tasty alternatives so you never miss out on delicious Danish treats.  We’re dedicated to flavor, quality and inclusivity with our Gluten-Free Blueberry Pancake Jumbo Muffins, Gluten-Free Triple Chocolate Cookies, Gluten-Free Trinity Layer Cake, Gluten-Free Triple Chocolate Brownies—and more.  You can find all of our gluten-free treats on our website.

But stay tuned, pastry adventurers.  We're still working hard to create the perfect gluten-free kringle!

Skål,

Ohlaf