The Nostalgic Pastry Snack From The '60s That's Been Left In The Dust For Far Too Long

Picture this: it's the 1960s, the golden age of convenience foods and TV dinners. You're seeing advertisements for canned soups and powdered mixes left and right, treats and meals meant to make your life easier — a life that appears more futuristic by the day. In 1964, famed food brand Kellogg's introduced Pop-Tarts, those sweet strudels perfect for popping in the toaster and enjoying on the go. Pop-Tarts were marketed towards children and busy families, which left a massive gap in the adult side of the convenience pastry market — but not for long. Soon another snack came into sight, though you may not remember it.

In 1968, riding high on the wave of Pop-Tarts' success, Kellogg's released Danish Go-Rounds, one of 15 vintage snacks no one remembers anymore. Danish Go-Rounds were pastry snacks made of a soft dough and filled with a sweet jam filling, topped with sugar and crumbled icing. The concept was similar to Pop-Tarts, but Danish Go-Rounds were filled with globs of more filling and arranged in a spiral shape, almost like the pastry came fresh out of the oven and was neatly corralled into a never-ending "S." It was more party-friendly than your more traditional Pop-Tart. During its prime, Danish Go-Rounds came in four flavors: strawberry, blueberry, cinnamon raisin, and brown sugar cinnamon, which was arguably the most popular flavor.

The Danish Go-Round was created to be the more mature, grown-up version of Pop-Tarts, with marketing that encouraged adults to enjoy the pastry with a fresh cup of coffee. Much of that early marketing advertised that Danish Go-Rounds were "like having a 24-hour bakery right at home," playing off the growing interest in Danish pastries — or, as we now know them, Danishes. (In fact, here's a unique cream cheese and assorted fruit Danishes recipe, in case you need it.) Commercials touted that Danish Go-Rounds could be enjoyed directly out of the packaging or stuck in the toaster for a warm, crispy finish, just like Pop-Tarts.

Despite initial success, the Danish Go-Round didn't make it past the mid-1970s, getting pulled from shelves before the decade was over and replaced with its upgraded sibling: Danish Rings. Supposedly, Danish Go-Rounds were less durable than Pop-Tarts due to the crumbly nature of the pastry, which meant more and more unsatisfied customers were opening the plastic to find smooshed snacks. The new formula meant Kellogg's stamped a circular shape into pastry dough as opposed to rolling out a spiral shape, which brought more structure to the snack but didn't succeed in gathering a loyal customer base.

Given the continued success of Pop-Tarts and the downfall of Danish Rings, the product was ultimately discontinued and pulled off shelves in 1980. But while Danish Go-Rounds are nowhere to be found these days, you can still enjoy Pop-Tarts, including these 15 favorite flavors ranked worst to best.