Viennese Biscuits

The recipe, step by step

These irresistible Viennese butter biscuits are delicate and moreish, featuring tantalizing flavours of orange and pistachio that are sure to captivate your taste buds and leave you craving more.

These biscuits are incredibly easy to prepare. Even if you’re not an expert at piping, they’ll still look amazing once baked. They’re so simple and delicious, making them a wonderful option for homemade edible gifts.

Inspired by Austrian pastries, these biscuits have become a beloved British treat, popularized by Mr Kipling, known for his delightful cakes, pies, and baked goods. Traditionally, they consist of two shortbread biscuits piped into a whirl or long finger shape and then sandwiched with buttercream and jam.

While many Viennese biscuit recipes don’t include eggs, I like to add the yolks as they make the biscuits more delicate in texture and give a much richer taste. Another fantastic aspect of these biscuits is the wide variety of flavours and fillings you can use. Check out my variations section for ideas.

If you like this biscuit recipe, you might also like my raspberry pistachio biscuit.

RECIPE HIGHLIGHTS

• EASE: easy
• TASTE & TEXTURE: a soft delicate texture with a sweet, buttery, orange, and chocolaty taste
• SERVING: alongside a cup of tea or coffee
• QUANTITY: 20 biscuits
• TIME: 27 minutes

INGREDIENTS

For this Viennese biscuit recipe, all you need are these ingredients:

• Butter – adds structure and flavour. I use salted butter for most of my baking as it intensifies the flavours, but feel free to use unsalted if you prefer. Make sure it’s at room temperature before using.

• Powdered / icing sugar – adds refined sweetness and structure, as well as ensures that melt-in-the-mouth texture.

• Medium egg yolks – build structure and richness to the recipe, as well as making them more delicate. Make sure they are at room temperature before use.

• Vanilla – I use Taylor & Colledge vanilla products, they add a delicious taste to your recipes and enhance the other ingredient flavours: pure vanilla extract, vanilla paste or vanilla pods.

• Plain or all-purpose flour – to build structure, as we do not use any other raising agents.

• Orange zest – adds that perfect citrus flavour. See the variations section for alternatives.

• Dark or milk chocolate – any good chocolate works well for adding that beautiful flavour.

Chocolate recommendations: bars – Lindt Excellence dark 70% bar 100g, Montezuma’s darkside 51% bar 90g, Menier dark cooking chocolate 100g, Green and Black’s Organic dark Chocolate 100g, 1kg bags – Callebaut dark chocolate, Callebaut milk chocolate, Callebaut white chocolate.

• Crushed pistachios – for that added flavour and decorative colour.

• Vanilla – I use Taylor & Colledge vanilla products, they add a delicious taste to your recipes and enhance the other ingredient flavours: pure vanilla extract, vanilla paste or vanilla pods.

• Salt – I highly recommend adding a good pinch of fine sea salt to your biscuit dough. It may seem unusual in a sweet recipe, but salt helps balance the sweetness, soften any bitterness and bring out the flavour of ingredients such as chocolate, vanilla, citrus and spices. It should not make the biscuits taste salty; it simply makes every flavour brighter and more rounded.
  I like to use Maldon Sea Salt flakes or Cornish Sea Salt, crushed finely before adding, but any good-quality fine sea salt will work well. Do not be tempted to leave it out—it is often the small ingredient that makes the biggest difference.

WHAT VARIATIONS CAN I MAKE?

• Biscuit flavours – can easily be changed. Try some of these flavours:
  • Lemon and cardamom (add the zest of a lemon and 2 tsp of ground cardamomto the biscuit dough)
  • Dried cranberry and tahini (add 50g dried cranberry and 1 Tbsp of tahini to the biscuit dough)
  • Walnut and maple syrup (add 50g chopped walnuts and 1 tbsp of maple syrup to the biscuit dough)

And if you want to create a two-tone effect, add 1 tbsp cocoa powder to half the mixture and fill both mixtures next to each other in the piping bag.

• Decorate – with different finishes such as sliced almonds, crystalised orange, sprinkles or even powdered freeze-dried fruit.

• Fillings – can take these biscuits to the next level. Sandwich the biscuits together with some buttercream or even a little jam. A simple buttercream using 100g soft butter, 200g icing sugar and a little vanilla mixed together is all you need.

Nutrition

Serving: one Viennese biscuit

Nutrition information is provided as an estimate and may vary depending on the ingredients and portion size used.

STORAGE

These biscuits are best enjoyed on the day of baking, alternatively, store them in an airtight container for up to 3 days, they will soften as time goes by.

Freezing the baked biscuits – cool the biscuits completely after baking and place them in a freezer bag or airtight container. They will last up to 1 month. When you are ready to serve, allow the cookies to reach room temperature before serving.

TOOLS YOU’LL NEED

Here is some kitchen equipment that I use and recommend for this recipe.

• Breville Classic Combo Stand and Hand Mixer | 3.7 Litre Stainless Steel Bowl | Swivel Control, Whisk, Dough Hooks and Beaters

I like this model of electric hand mixer because it comes with a large stand, meaning you don’t have to always hold it.

• Silicone Spatulas, Heat Resistant, Non-Stick Coating with Steel core, (3PCS)

These spatulas are so useful for baking. I use them every day and not just for baking. They have good rigid handles, excellent for scraping out bowls, dishes and frying pans. The large spatula is not flat, it has a raised centre, which makes it very strong.

• Piping Bags for Cake Icing or Decorating, 3 Pack of Cotton Re-Usable
• Disposable Piping Bags 16″ & 12″ 200 Pieces

I use both a reusable piping bag and disposables, I think it is down to your personal preference and how much icing you are going to be doing.

• Round Piping Nozzles, 5pcs Large Round Piping Tips Set
• Piping Star / rosette nozzle 3-piece, stainless steel rust-proof
• Wilton Cupcake Piping Tip Set with Silicone Stand, 7 Pieces 

I have listed both sets of round and star nozzle sets and a mixed set. If you are starting out a mixed set is probably enough.

• Silicone Baking Mat, Standard, 2 Count, 42 x 29.5 cm

I love using these baking mats. They stop everything from sticking to the baking tray and are really easy to clean.

RECIPE TIPS

Piping nozzle size – is quite important. The biscuit dough is fairly firm, and you will want to use a large nozzle. I use a star shape, which has a 1.5cm opening which works well for me.

Make different shapes – you don’t have to stick to long finger shapes. Pipe S shapes or circles.

I highly recommend chilling the biscuits before baking so they hold their shape in the oven. I pipe the biscuits onto the lined tray, then pop the tray in the fridge for about 20-30 minutes. If the tray you are using doesn’t fit in the fridge you can cut the baking paper in half and place them on a tray that fits. Then when you remove them from the fridge, just slide them onto your baking tray.

Melting chocolate – this method is called the double boiler method and it is super easy if you follow these tips: 1. Choose a saucepan that is not too big and a heatproof bowl that fits snuggly on top. 2. Fill the saucepan with enough water that it will not run dry while boiling. 3. Make sure there is a gap between the bowl and the water, they must not touch. 4. Keep the water to a simmer only. No water or steam must go inside the bowl with the chocolate, or it will seize up.

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