Raspberry Cream-Cheese Kringle

Dissolve a bit of the sugar into the milk and stir in the yeast. In the bowl of a food processer, combine the flours, the rest of the sugar, and the salt. Pulse to blend. Then add the butter and pulse a few times until the butter is in small chunks.

Once the yeast shows signs of activity, beat one egg into the milk. Dump the flour into a medium bowl. Stir in the egg mixture until all the flour is moistened. Quickly knead the dough just until it holds together. Pat into a rectangle, then enclose in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

While the dough is chilling, prepare the fillings. If they’re chilled, they’ll be firmer and easier to handle during assembly.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, stir together raspberries and sugar until sugar is dissolved. Stir together water and cornstarch, pour into the raspberries. Stir until thickened and bubbly. Let cool, then chill.

Whip together cream cheese and sugar until fluffy. Beat the egg into the cream cheese mixture. Mix in lemon juice and vanilla, then chill.

On a lightly-floured surface, roll the chilled dough into an 8×15‑inch rectangle. Fold the dough by thirds like a letter. Keeping the folded edge on the left, roll out again to another 8×15‑inch rectangle, fold by thirds, wrap in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes. Repeat the roll, fold, and chill process twice more.

Beat the egg and set aside. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Unwrap the dough and cut in half. Roll each half into a 6×24‑inch rectangle. Spread a layer of cream cheese filling in an even strip about 2½‑inches wide down the center of each rectangle. Spread the raspberry filling on top of the cream cheese.

Though it’s tempting, don’t fill too much: the dough needs to fold over the fillings without them spilling over or leaking. There’s about twice as much filling as needed: you will have some left over.

Fold one long edge of the dough over the filling, leaving the remaining third of the dough exposed. Brush the exposed edge with beaten egg, then fold the edge over top of the other edge. Pinch to seal the seam. Form the filled pastry tube into an oval ring, inserting one end into the other, and pinch to seal the ring closed. Repeat to create the second kringle.

Flip the rings seam-side down onto the baking sheets. Cover lightly with plastic wrap or clean tea towels. Let rise in a warm spot for about 45 minutes, until slightly puffy.

Preheat oven to 375° F, setting two racks near the center. Beat a tablespoon of water into the remaining beaten egg, and brush the top of the pastries with the egg wash. Bake until golden, about 20 minutes. Swap racks and rotate the baking sheets half-way through for an even bake. When the pastry comes out of the oven, gently flatten one pastry with the other sheet pan, and repeat with the other pastry. Allow to cool.

Once the pastry is completely cool, whisk together the icing ingredients. Add enough cream that the icing is just barely pourable and still a little thick. Spread the icing over the top of the kringles. Let the icing set completely before serving.

The kringle can be frozen for several months. If making kringle to freeze for later, it’s better to wait to apply the icing until after it’s been thawed, rather than before freezing.