Friday 5 May 2017

Viennese Whirls.



Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

They're the prettiest biscuits for your weekend baking!

These Viennese whirls are a classic British biscuit and something you may have bought countless times in a box from the supermarket.
I must admit that I'd never really been a big fan of them until that is, I made them at home.
We start with a really simple buttery shortbread biscuit that is piped into swirled rounds before being baked. These on their own are delicious enough so if you want to keep things simple, enjoy them as they are.
But, if you are after a real treat, go all the way and make the whirls. All you do is make a simple vanilla buttercream which along with tart raspberry jam is used to sandwich two of each biscuit together. I cheated and used shop bought jam but if you have extra time, make the homemade raspberry jam from this recipe and use it instead. I did that the first time I made these whirls and it was really good.
Whichever route you take, I'm sure you'll love these biscuits as much as we did. I made pretty big ones but you could pipe smaller rounds to make mini ones which would be perfect for a Spring afternoon tea. Enjoy!


A Simple List of Ingredients:

For the Shortbread Biscuits:
1. Butter
2. Icing Sugar
3. Plain Flour
4. Cornflour

For the Buttercream and Jam Filling:
1. Butter
2. Icing Sugar
3. Vanilla Essence
4. Raspberry Jam

Bismillah, let's begin!

So guys, our first job is to get the oven on to 190C. Next, prep 3 baking trays. Line each tray with baking parchment but no need to grease. Then, grab a 5cm / 2 inch round cutter. You may use a smaller cutter, if you want smaller biscuits.

Draw 8 circles round the cutter on each tray. Space them a little apart because the biscuits will spread a little. Turn the baking paper over so that the pencil or pen mark is underneath. Set the trays aside until needed.

Now, let's mix together the biscuit dough. I used a bowl and an electric hand mixer but a stand mixer will be excellant too.

Measure out 250g very soft Butter into the bowl.

Add in 50g Icing Sugar. These biscuits are really delicate so we use the finer icing sugar instead of normal caster sugar.

Beat the two together until really pale and fluffy.

Then, sieve in 225g Plain Flour.

And, 25g Cornflour.

Beat the dough together until well combined.

Scoop the biscuit dough into a piping bag fitted with a medium star nozzle.

The star nozzle will give our biscuits their beautiful swirled appearance.

Pipe swirled rounds over the circles. My method was to pipe a round and then fill in the middle.

The dough will be a little stiff and if you find it very hard to pipe, let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes. Before baking the biscuits, if you feel the biscuits are really too loose, chill them in the fridge for 10 minutes then bake.

Once you've piped on the dough, we can bake! Don't worry if they don't look perfect - once baked, they will spread out and be lovely.

Bake the biscuits at 190C for 13-15 minutes until the tops are pale but the edges are golden.

So pretty, right?

Let the biscuits sit on the trays for 5 minutes then move to a wire rack to cool completely. Continue baking and cooling the rest of the biscuits.


I stored my cold biscuits in an airtight container until I was ready to assemble them. If you don't want to make the whirls, these shortbread biscuits are delicious just as they are.

But, we were in the mood for Viennese whirls, so it was time to make the buttercream filling. Into a bowl, place 100g softened Butter.

Sift in 200g Icing Sugar.

I highly recommend sifting the icing sugar to get a really smooth buttercream.

To give the buttercream the best flavour, in goes 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Essence.

Beat everything together really well with an electric mixer until pale and smooth.

See? Perfect buttercream.

Right, let's assemble our whirls. Scoop the buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle. Put the biscuits into pairs.

Turn over one biscuit.

Jam time! Any will do but we went with Raspberry Jam.

Dollop on 3/4 teaspoon jam onto the biscuit.

The jam is the best surprise in the middle! And, the tart raspberry jam goes really well with the sweet buttercream.

Speaking of ...

... pipe the buttercream around the jam.

You can also pipe more buttercream over the jam too.

Then, it's time to sandwich the biscuits together. Be gentle at this point because the biscuits are delicate.

It's time to serve!




Serve the biscuits with a fresh pot of hot tea. They are the ultimate melt in the mouth treat. So buttery and complimented really well by the raspberry jam centre. Enjoy!

Viennese Whirls.

Prep Time: About 1 hour plus extra time, for cooling.
Bake Time: About 13-15 minutes per batch.
Serves: Makes 10-12 large Viennese whirls.

Ingredients

For the Shortbread Biscuits
250g Butter, very soft
50g Icing Sugar
225g Plain Flour
25g Cornflour

For the Buttercream and Jam Filling
100g Butter, softened
200g Icing Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Essence
Raspberry Jam, to taste

Pre-heat the oven and prep the baking trays:
Heat the oven to 190C. Line but don't grease 3 baking trays with baking parchment. Take a 5cm / 2 inch round cutter and use it as a guide to draw 8 well-spaced circles on each piece of baking parchment. Turn the paper so that the pen or pencil mark is underneath.

Make the biscuit dough:
Place the butter and icing sugar into a bowl. Beat with an electric hand whisk until pale and fluffy. Sift in the plain flour and cornflour and beat again until well combined.

Pipe and bake the biscuits:
Scoop the biscuit dough into a piping bag fitted with a medium star nozzle. Pipe the dough into swirled rounds onto the baking trays using the 8 circles as your guide. Bake each tray for 13-15 minutes at 190C until the biscuits are have golden edges. Let them sit on the tray for 5 minutes then move to wire racks to cool completely. Continue baking and cooling the rest of the biscuits.

Make the buttercream:
Place the butter into a bowl. Sift in the icing sugar and add in the vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth and really pale. Scoop the buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle.

Assemble the Viennese whirls:
Put the biscuits in pairs based on their size. Onto one biscuit, spoon 3/4 teaspoon raspberry jam. Pipe the buttercream round and onto the jam. Sandwich together with the second biscuit. Repeat with the remaining biscuits.

Serve:
Dust the whirls with icing sugar and serve with hot tea. Store in an airtight container for a few days - in the fridge, if your kitchen is very warm.

Recipe Notes

  • If the biscuit dough is really hard to pipe, let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before trying again.
  • If the biscuit dough is really loose before or after piping, let it chill in the fridge for 10 minutes.
{adapted from bbc food}

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Keep me in your duas please, and enjoy your Viennese whirls!

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!


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