Cruller

A traditional cruller (or twister) is a fried pastry often made from a rectangle of dough, with a cut made in the middle that allows it to be pulled over and through itself producing twists in the sides of the pastry. Crullers have been described as resembling "a small, braided torpedo" and having been "a staple of the New England diet since the Pilgrims' day". Some other cruller styles are made of a denser dough somewhat like that of a cake doughnut formed in a small loaf or stick shape, but not always twisted. Crullers may be topped with plain powdered sugar; powdered sugar mixed with cinnamon; or icing. However, a "French cruller" is a fluted, ring-shaped doughnut made from choux pastry with a light airy texture.

History and origin

The name comes from early 19th century Dutch kruller, from krullen "to curl". Crullers are traditionally eaten in Germany and some other European countries on Shrove Tuesday, to use up fat before Lent. In Danish they are known as "Klejner" and in Swedish as "Klenäter", both names deriving from Low German. In Scandinavia crullers are common at Christmas. Crullers are believed to have been introduced to the New World by Sebastian Croll.