Dessert

Netherlands

Consumed either cold or warm, krentjebrij is a delicious Dutch porridge or a thick soup based on fresh berries as its key ingredient. Apart from the berries, it consists of pearl barley, raisins, currants, lemon peel, and sugar. It is recommended to use strawberries, red currants, blackberries, and raspberries, but any berry variety will do. This dish is traditionally served as a dessert, but it can also be served as a main dish. Krentjebrij is sometimes additionally flavored with cinnamon, and it is said to taste the best when served with a splash of heavy cream on top.

Krentjebrij

These tiny Moroccan cookies are prepared with a shortbread dough that is usually enriched with aniseed and toasted sesame seeds. The cookies are usually associated with Ashura festival&mdash;the tenth day of the first month of the Islamic calendar. On that occasion, they are typically served with a variety of dry fruits and nuts. The cookies are also prepared for other festivities and can be enjoyed as an everyday snack that best pairs with coffee or tea.

Krichlate

Originally a creation of Roman-Catholic monks, and now popular internationally, kringle is a delicious flaky pastry, usually shaped as a pretzel and filled with various ingredients. It was primarily introduced in Denmark, under the influence of Austrian bakers, and later it spread throughout Nordic countries and eventually to the United States, where it gained great success. Each region has created its distinct varieties, using local and seasonally available ingredients. In Denmark, kringle is usually made with either puff pastry or yeasted dough, filled with sweet concoctions that include butter and sugar, marzipan, and raisins. In the 19th century, Danish bakers introduced the tradition of preparing kringle to the United States, specifically Racine Wisconsin, where the pastry was slightly adapted to the now-famous oval shape. Kringle in Racine is always made with traditional Danish laminated dough, in which the pastry layers are generously spread with butter and filled with the lavish combination of fruits, nuts, or cream cheese. Both American and European kringle can be found in bakeries and grocery shops, but while the luscious American creations are usually enjoyed as desserts, the Danish prefer to eat their traditional pastry as an afternoon snack or a perfect accompaniment to coffee or tea.

Kringle

Australia

Krispie is a popular New Zealander toasted biscuit consisting of wheat flour, sugar, and coconut. It is commercially produced by Griffin's Foods, a company that also makes another variety of the biscuits that are coated in chocolate. Krispies have a crunchy texture and are characterized by a toasted coconut flavor. It is recommended to dunk the biscuits into a beverage of choice.

Krispie

Croatia

Kro&scaron;tule are traditional Croatian pastries originating from the regions of Istria and Dalmatia. They are made by deep-frying ribbon-shaped dough. The dough consists of flour, sugar, egg yolks, oil, and milk. It is traditionally flavored with lemon zest, limoncello, or orange liqueur. Kro&scaron;tule are sprinkled with powdered sugar while they are still warm. Nowadays, these deep-fried pastries are typically associated with the festive carnival season.

Kroštule

Kruidnoten are popular Dutch cookies consisting of flour, sugar, butter, and milk. They are heavily spiced with a variety of ingredients such as ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, white pepper, cloves, and nutmeg. The cookies are traditionally baked in a round shape, unlike pepernoten, which are shaped into squares. There is also a chocolate-covered variety of kruidnoten called chocolade-kruidnoten.

Kruidnoten

Italy

Krumiri are typical Piemontese cookies dating back to 1870, when they were invented by a confectioner named Domenico Rossi. These handmade cookies are made with a combination of fresh eggs, flour, sugar, butter, and vanilla. When the texture becomes just right, the combination is left to breathe for a day before baking. They are shaped in the form of a bent cylinder with a rough surface. It's believed that the shape is made in honor of the mustached King Victor Emanuel II. Krumiri are said to taste the best when dunked into tea, sweet wines, chocolate liqueurs, or zabaione.

Krumiri

Krumkake are traditional Norwegian wafer cookies. The batter is made with a combination of eggs, sugar, vanilla, flour, baking powder, cardamom, and butter. Once prepared, the batter is cooked on a special griddle that imprints the wafers with a visually attractive design. After they've been baked, these wafer cookies are rolled, then often filled with whipped cream and dusted with powdered sugar. Krumkake are prepared and consumed throughout Scandinavia, and they're especially popular during the festive Christmas season.

Krumkake

North Macedonia

Krushevo lokum is the North Macedonian version of Turkish delight, made with a mixture of water, sugar, starch, and lemon acid, which is cooked in a large copper vessel. Once ready, the hot lokum mixture is carefully dripped onto wooden trays and allowed to rest for a whole day before it is cut into small cubes and dusted with powdered sugar. Krushevo lokum is handmade, except for the stirring part, and has two varieties: one is sade lokum, or plain lokum with no added ingredients, and the other one is lokum with walnuts. The preparation of this North Macedonian delicacy is a family tradition that started almost 100 years ago. Although the ingredients are simple, they have to be used in the right ratio to produce the desired product. Krushevo lokum is sold in a little sweet shop, called Balkan, located in Krushevo. In this town, it is a custom to serve freshly prepared coffee with lokum on the side. This delicacy is typically consumed during holidays such as Proshteni pokladi, or Prochka, name days, memorials, and weddings.

Kruševo lokum

United States

South Dakota kuchen is the official state dessert, deeply rooted in the German-Russian immigrant heritage that shaped the state's culture. The term kuchen means "cake" in German, but in South Dakota, it refers specifically to a sweet custard-filled pastry with a thick crust. A soft, slightly sweet yeast dough base is filled with a creamy custard of eggs, sugar, cream, and sometimes vanilla, often topped with fruits like apples, prunes, apricots, cherries, or peaches. Baked until the custard sets and the crust is golden brown, it can be enjoyed warm or cold as a dessert or with coffee for breakfast or a snack. Brought to South Dakota by German immigrants from Russia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, kuchen became a cherished part of the state's culinary identity. In 2000, it was officially named the state dessert, further highlighting its cultural significance. Often featured at community gatherings and family celebrations, kuchen is a comforting treat and a delicious reminder of South Dakota's immigrant roots.

Kuchen

Indonesia

Kue ape, also known as serabi Jakarta, is regarded as an Indonesian take on Indian pancakes known as appam. Indonesian version, which is usually associated with Jakarta, is prepared with a batter consisting of wheat flour, palm sugar, coconut milk, and yeast. The pancake is typically crispy on the edges, while the center remains soft. It is often flavored with pandan, which gives these pancakes a distinctive green color. The dish is usually prepared and sold by street vendors that are located at hawker centers and street markets.

Kue ape

Kue cucur is a traditional snack that's also popular in Malaysia (kuih cucur) and Thailand (khanom fak bua). It's made with a combination of palm sugar, fried rice flour, and coconut milk that's fried until crispy. This sweet snack is usually flattened on the edges so that it remains thick in the middle. The most popular Indonesian version is the Betawi variety from Jakarta. In Thailand, kue cucur is similar to a lotus, which is believed to represent love of a newly married couple, so it's often prepared at Thai weddings and festivals. Kue cucur is served hot, warm, or at room temperature, and it's best to eat it while it's still fresh, otherwise it will become sticky and stiff.

Kue cucur

Usually sold by street vendors, this steamed cake is prepared with glutinous rice flour that is flavored and colored with pandan leaves. The mixture is traditionally steamed in bamboo tubes, while the center of the cake is filled with palm sugar. When steamed, the cake is usually dusted with freshly grated coconut. Kue putu and similar varieties of these convenient green-colored snacks are also found in Malaysia and the Philippines, and some believe that they might have been inspired by puttu&mdash;a similar snack of Indian origin.

Kue putu

Kuglice od smokava is a traditional dessert originating from the Dalmatia region. Although there are many recipes, it's usually made with a combination of dried figs, sugar, orange juice and zest, rum, and ground walnuts. The figs are ground twice and mixed with sugar, orange juice and zest, rum, and walnuts. The mixture is worked into a homogenous mass and shaped into walnut-sized balls. The balls are rolled in sugar and served in small paper cups or holders in order to dry a bit more before they're enjoyed as a sweet afternoon treat.

Kuglice od smokava

Kuhan-pečen (lit. Cooked-fried) is a Croatian dessert consisting of eggs, yeast, milk, cream, fat, salt, sugar, and flour. When the dough has risen, it is rolled, cut with a glass, then deep-fried until golden brown. It is then dunked in boiling water, taken out of it, and rolled in granulated sugar which is sometimes combined with vanilla sugar. Kuhan-pečen is then left to dry before consumption. This delicious dessert is also known as macanci and mrazovci.

Kuhan-pečen

Malaysia

Kuih akok (or just akok) is a traditional sweet Malaysian snack originating from Kelantan and Terengganu. It's usually made with a combination of eggs, coconut milk, water, sugar, flour, and salt. A batter consisting of eggs, coconut milk, flour, sugar, and salt is poured into a muffin pan or similar rounded molds, and it's then baked in the oven until the top becomes golden brown. The akok will puff up during the baking process, and once done, it's enjoyed as a snack or a dessert. Cooks in Kelantan use more eggs than flour, while cooks in Terengganu have a smooth-looking akok because they use a higher ratio of flour to eggs.

Kuih akok

Kuih cara manis is a Malaysian dessert that is made with a batter consisting of eggs, flour, and coconut milk. The cakes are baked in specialized pans and are traditionally flavored with pandan leaves, which also give the cakes their distinctive green color. While they bake, these bite-sized cakes are occasionally filled with shredded coconut, coconut jam, or palm sugar. They are usually sandwiched together and are typically enjoyed as a teatime dessert.

Kuih cara manis

This steamed Malaysian dessert is prepared with a combination of rice and tapioca flour, white sugar, alkaline water, and usually dark palm sugar, which gives these cakes their characteristic dark-brown color. The batter is usually steamed in small Chinese cups, and the cakes are traditionally served topped with freshly grated coconut. Instead of brown sugar, modern varieties are often flavored with pandan leaves that give kuih kaswi an appealing, vibrant green color.

Kuih kaswi

Kuih keria are Malaysian deep-fried doughnuts that are made from sweet potatoes. After they are steamed and mashed, the potatoes are combined with flour to form a pliable dough that is then shaped into doughnut rings. Unlike other types of doughnuts, this version is not leavened, resulting in somewhat denser texture. After they have been fried, the doughnuts are usually sugar-glazed or generously coated in white or palm sugar (gula melaka).

Kuih keria

Kue lapis or kuih lapis is a traditional dessert that's also popular in Malaysia, Suriname, Brunei, and Singapore. It is usually prepared as a moist layered pudding-like cake consisting of rice flour, sago, sugar, salt, coconut milk, and red, green, or pink food coloring. The cake is steamed and the final result looks similar to a layered pudding. Before cutting and serving, kue lapis should be left to cool down completely. If properly prepared, this dessert should have a bouncy, sticky, and chewy texture.