My favourite show, The Great British Bake Off is back and I’m beyond excited! Have you started watching the new series?
Last year, I half attempted to do a vegan bake along and it was my intention to do the same this year. But committing to a blog-worthy bake once a week is a little unrealistic for me so I’m just going to play it by ear this time…
When I saw a clip of this week’s episode (biscuit week) I caught a glimpse of some Viennese Whirls. I’ve been wanting to make a vegan version of these for so long so it was the perfect opportunity!
What are Viennese Whirls?
Vienesse Whirls are a delicious but preposterous creation, originating from Britain. They’re said to be inspired by Austrian Pastries but are completely unrelated. They consist of two butter biscuits, sandwiched together with jam and buttercream.
For the biscuit, I used my Vegan Danish Butter Cookie recipe because I wanted that same buttery, light texture and it worked wonderfully!
The really important thing with this recipe is to use a good-tasting vegan butter. Unfortunately, some don’t taste nice at all and since it’s a big part of the recipe, it can strongly effect the overall outcome. My favourite vegan butters to bake with (in the UK) are Vitalite and Flora’s new dairy-free butter. I’ve heard Earth Balance Buttery is a great option for those in the US.
So how do these compare to classic Viennese Whirls? You’d be hard pushed to tell the difference. They’re DELICIOUS!
The only issue is that the buttercream doesn’t stay firm for long, so if you’re leaving it at room temperature for more than a couple of hours, the two halves don’t stay together very well. However, you can just get around this by keeping them refrigerated.
Another tip: Keep the whirls smaller than you think they should be as they will expand ever so slightly in the oven. Plus, they’re much easier to eat when they’re small. I like to make a circle, starting from the outside, swirling inwards to create the “whirl” shape.
These Viennese Whirls are:
Vegan Viennese Whirls
Delicious shortbread biscuits, sandwiched together with vegan buttercream and raspberry jam.
Ingredients
- 200 g / 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp dairy-free butter, choose a good-tasting one!
- 125 g / 1 cup icing sugar
- 310 g / 2 3/4 cup plain flour
- 1 tbsp corn flour mixed with 2 tbsp cold water
- 2 tsp vanilla paste, or extract
- 1 tbsp dairy-free milk, if needed
For the filling
- 75 g / 1/3 cup dairy-free butter
- 125 g / 1 cup icing sugar
- Seedless raspberry jam
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C / 350F and line two baking trays with baking paper.
- Mix the dairy-free butter and icing sugar together in a large bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the dairy-free milk.
- If the mixture is too stiff/thick, add the dairy-free milk to help thin it out until you have a soft but firm mixture.
- Transfer to a piping bag with a large star nozzle. Pipe the mixture into small circular spirals. Starting from the outside, working your way in. Try and keep them all the same size!
- Bake for approx 12-15 minutes until lightly golden.
- Leave to cool completely.
- Meanwhile, make the buttercream by simply whisking the dairy-free butter and icing sugar together until sweet and thick.
- Spread about a tablespoon of the buttercream onto half of the cookies. Dollop a teaspoon of rapsberry jam onto the other half and sandwich together.
- Serve or keep refrigerated for up to 2 days!
Out now! Get your copy here:
i am in india at the moment and cannot get vegan butter here. can these be made with oil ?
best regards
umesh.
P.P, these look delicious
Can you get margerine? Or sunflower spread? I haven’t tested with oil so cannot say for sure but would use 160 ml of sunflower oil (or other mild tasting oil) in place. Let me know how you get on.
Can you freeze these ahead of time?
Hello! I’m so excited to make these for Christmas this year. How big should you pipe the cookies? Do you have any general measurements you use to get the complete 16 halves? Thank you! :)
I find subbing some of the butter with Trex keeps them holding their shape!
Hi, i tried to make the cookies , all went good except the mixture was not easy going thought the piping bag so i took it out and mixed whit more milk . Still that was not a easy job to use the piping bag . After baking them 14 min and cool them down the cookie inside war a bit moist , is it how it should be or it should be all crunchy texture of the cookie after baking ? The taste was nice , no one would believe its vegan
The texture should be crumbly and melt in the mouth.
I see that the serving size is 8, does this recipe really only make 8 cookies? Just want to confirm as I plan to make A LOT! Thanks so much!
Hi El, yes it only makes 8 sandwich cookies (so 16 cookies in total) – definitely double or triple the batch if you want more!
For the corn flour, is that masa or starch?
Has anyone tried making chocolate versions of these?
Hi there,
Just wanted to ask about storing these lovely swirls. I know it says you can keep them for up to 2 days in the refrigerator….silly question but what do you recommend storing them in? Would a plastic or airtight container make them sweat? Should they be left on a plate open or covered?
Anyway I’m sure you’ll put me right!!!
Many thanks x
Hi Simona, not a silly question! I just use ordinary plastic containers but even a plate and some cling film will be fine. They’ll be alright uncovered for a few hours too though :-)
Hello, these cookies look amazing!What brand of vegan butter do you recommend for these cookies? Thank you, Tatyana
Thanks Tatyana! I live in the UK and use a brand called Vitalite, which is available in most supermarkets. Flora dairy-free is also quite good. If you’re in the US, I heard Earth Balance Buttery spread is a good choice. Let me know if you try them :-)
Hello, these cookies look amazing!What brand of vegan butter do you recommend for these cookies? Thank you, Tatyana
Hi Aimee,
Loved these! Made them today for a group and I have passed on your link, as others loved them too!
I adapted them slightly by adding fresh strawberries!
Ohh thank you so much Hazel!! That makes me so happy. And I LOVE the idea of adding the fresh strawberries x
I made these last week and my family absolutely loved them. It was fun to be able to give my children something I’d enjoyed so much as a child, but know that it won’t irritate their food intolerances. Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Thank you Cate, I saw your instagram photos and absolutely loved the one with your son – SO adorable. Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed them, I love hearing that :-)
How pleased was I to type ‘vegan viennese whirls recipe’ into google the day after last week’s Bake Off and find your recipe?! Made them this evening as part of the little Great Vegan Bake Along challenge I’ve set myself this year https://www.facebook.com/janesgreatveganbakealong/photos/a.284075845318288.1073741828.283985931993946/288646511527888/?type=3&theater and am very impressed with how they look and taste – perfect =) Thanks so much for the recipe!
Your version looked amazing, Jane! Thanks again :-)
Oh my God! Those viennese whirls look so pretty and decadent. I will definitely give them a try sometimes soon. Thank you for sharing :)
Thanks Salwa!
If anyone was wondering, these are delightful using gluten free flour as well!! I used earth balance and miyoko’s butter as well as bob’s red mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour and they came out perfect! i will absolutely be making these again for many christmases to come :)
Thank you so much for letting us know how the gluten-free ones turned out, Ana! Very helpful and I’m glad you enjoyed them :)
Well done! It’s so much fun taking a well-known recipe and making it fit dietary-difference…. These look great!
I made GF ones at the weekend too….. Yay!!! x
I saw yours too and they look AMAZING. Can’t wait to see the post! x
Please could you share the GF recipe :)
Hi Julia, Kate’s recipe is on her blog here: http://www.glutenfreealchemist.com/2016/09/viennese-whirls-gluten-free-in.html
I just made these yesterday and they are truly amazing ! I just added a little less sugar to the buttercream so that it wasn’t too sweet.
Thank you for this amazing recipe. :)
That makes me so happy! Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed it, Julie :-)
These are just gorgeous! I love Viennese cookies and have some success baking them so I’m eager to do it again around Christmastime. It’s wonderful you manage to make them vegan. They’re almost too pretty to eat but I’m sure delicious.
Oh I will definitely be making them again for Christmas! Thanks Monica :-)
They look crazy good Aimee! Even better than Mary Berry’s ;) The swirls are perfect! Maybe you should apply to next year’s GBBO :D
Oh god, I would be an absolute wreck on that show. I get stressed just watching the others haha! Thanks Nadia :-)
These look wonderful and you have got the swirl really perfected. I use vitalite too.
It’s the best I’ve found so far. I tried the biscuit recipe with Pure sunflower and it was not as good. The brand of “butter” really does make a big difference!
I’m so excited the bake off is back, I’m pretty sure your Viennese Whirls would have got full marks they look perfect!
Aw, thanks Tamzin! And YAY for GBBO being back :D
They look absolutely perfect Aimee and much better than any I saw last night. I don’t think you’re alone in the general GBBO excitement ;)
Haha! Thanks my dear :-)
I’m soooooo making them Aimee!!! When I saw them on tonight I thought to myself: ‘hmmm I wonder how easy it would be to make them vegan?’ and then- booooooom! Here you are with this awesome recipe! Awesome!!! Xxx
BOOM! Thanks Anna :D I look forward to seeing your bread creation for the next episode *hint hint* x
Very decadent, but o so pretty! I feel like these call for a tea party!
Aw, I wish we could have a tea party!