Viennese whirls are piped shortbread sandwiches filled with vanilla buttercream and raspberry jam, baked in swirls from a star tip. That makes them a bakery looking Christmas cookie for a cookie exchange or a gift box, and they need no cutters and no rolling. Makes 18 sandwiches.
Beat the butter longer than the recipe says and make sure it is properly soft first. There is no liquid anywhere in this dough. Air is the only thing that gets three sticks of butter and three cups of flour through a star tip.
The buttercream makes about twice what you need. Eighteen heaping teaspoons is all the assembly calls for, so halve it unless you want a bowl of frosting left over. The jam, by contrast, measures out exactly.
Viennese Whirls
Course: DessertCuisine: British, AustrianDifficulty: Medium4
servings30
minutes40
minutes300
kcalA soft butter and cornstarch dough piped into rosettes and baked until the bottoms turn gold. Each pair is joined with vanilla buttercream and a spoon of raspberry jam.
Ingredients
- For the Cookies:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
- For the Vanilla Buttercream:
1 3/4 cups confectioners’ sugar, or half for exactly enough
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tablespoon milk
1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- To Fill:
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons raspberry jam
Directions
- Mark the sheets: Set oven racks in the upper and lower thirds and heat to 350 degrees F. Line three baking sheets with parchment, draw twelve 1 1/2 inch circles on each sheet, then turn the paper over so the ink never touches the dough.
- Make the dough: Combine the flour, cornstarch and salt in a medium bowl. Beat the butter and granulated sugar in a stand mixer on medium until light and fluffy, giving it a good 4 to 5 minutes rather than the minimum. Drop to low, add the flour mixture and beat just until combined.
- Pipe the whirls: Load the dough into a sturdy pastry bag fitted with a large open star tip and pipe a swirl inside each circle. If it resists, the butter was not soft enough, so warm the bag in your hands rather than forcing it.
- Bake in two rounds: Bake two sheets at a time, chilling the third while they are in, and rotate them top to bottom and front to back halfway. They take 19 to 22 minutes, until golden brown underneath. Cool completely on the sheets, about 30 minutes, then bake the last sheet.
- Fill and sandwich: Beat the confectioners sugar, butter, milk, vanilla bean paste and salt on medium for 2 to 3 minutes, until smooth. Spread a heaping teaspoon on the flat side of 18 cookies, spoon a teaspoon of raspberry jam on top of each, and press a second cookie on to close them.
Notes
- The buttercream recipe makes roughly double what the assembly uses, so halve it to avoid waste. The jam is exact, since 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons comes to 18 teaspoons for 18 sandwiches. The 338 calories a sandwich checks out.
FAQs
Why draw circles and then flip the parchment?
The circles give you a guide so all 36 cookies come out the same size, which matters when every one has to match a partner. Flipping the paper keeps the pencil or ink away from the dough. Twelve circles to a sheet, three sheets, 36 cookies, 18 sandwiches.
What size star tip should I use?
A large open star, around half an inch across, since anything smaller clogs with this stiff dough. A closed star gives tighter ridges but fights you more. Use a sturdy bag, because thin disposable ones split under the pressure.
Why chill the third sheet while the others bake?
Piped ridges soften and slump as they sit at room temperature, and sharp ridges are the whole point of a whirl. The fridge holds the shape until the oven is free. It also stops the butter weeping out of the dough.
Can I skip the buttercream and use only jam?
You can, and the cookie still works, but it turns much sweeter and the halves slide apart without the buttercream holding them. Use a thicker jam if you go that way. A similar pairing of filling and firm cookie shows up in these chocolate orange sandwich cookies.
How long do they keep?
Three days once filled, since the jam softens the cookie from the inside. Unfilled they hold two weeks in a tin and freeze for three months. Bake them ahead and assemble on the day, the same way you would with classic shortbread.
