Mary Berry Viennese Whirls Recipe

Viennese Whirls are delicate, buttery sandwich cookies characterized by their signature piped spiral shape and a sweet filling of vanilla buttercream and raspberry jam. Ideally the piped dough should be chilled in the refrigerator for at least fifteen minutes before baking to ensure the intricate ridges remain sharp and do not melt into flat discs in the heat of the oven.

Jump to Recipe

Mary Berry Viennese Whirls Recipe Ingredients

For the Biscuits:

• 250 g (9 oz) extremely soft unsalted butter
• 50 g (2 oz) icing sugar, sifted
• 225 g (8 oz) plain flour
• 25 g (1 oz) cornflour
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

For the Filling:

• 100 g (4 oz) unsalted butter, softened
• 200 g (7 oz) icing sugar, sifted
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 75 g (3 oz) high-quality raspberry jam

How To Make Mary Berry Viennese Whirls Recipe

1. Preheat and Prep: Preheat your oven to 190°C (170°C fan/Gas 5). Line two large baking sheets with non-stick baking parchment. On the reverse side of the parchment, draw twelve circles of about five centimeters in diameter on each sheet, using a glass as a guide, to help you pipe uniform cookies.
2. Cream the Base: In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the two hundred and fifty grams of softened butter and fifty grams of icing sugar together until the mixture is very pale, fluffy, and light.
3. Add Flavor and Flour: Beat in the vanilla extract. Sift in the plain flour and cornflour. Using a spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the butter mixture gently until just combined. The dough should be soft enough to pipe but firm enough to hold its shape.
4. Pipe the Whirls: Fit a large piping bag with a medium star nozzle. Spoon the dough into the bag and pipe twenty-four swirls onto the prepared baking sheets, following the circles you drew.
5. Chill and Bake: Place the baking sheets in the refrigerator for fifteen minutes to firm up the dough. Bake in the center of the oven for thirteen to fifteen minutes, or until the biscuits are a very pale golden brown.
6. Cool: Let the biscuits stay on the baking sheets for five minutes to firm up before carefully transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. They are very fragile when warm.
7. Make the Buttercream: Beat the one hundred grams of butter, two hundred grams of icing sugar, and vanilla extract together until the mixture is white and very smooth.
8. Assemble: Spread a small amount of raspberry jam onto the flat side of twelve biscuits. Pipe or spread a layer of buttercream onto the flat side of the remaining twelve biscuits. Sandwich them together gently and dust the tops with a little extra icing sugar.

Recipe Tips

• Butter Softness: The butter for the dough must be exceptionally soft—almost to the point of being a paste—but not melted. If the butter is too cold, you will find it nearly impossible to squeeze the dough through the piping nozzle.
• The Cornflour Secret: Mary Berry uses cornflour because it breaks down the gluten in the plain flour, resulting in that classic “short” texture that melts on the tongue.
• Uniformity: Drawing circles on the parchment paper is a vital step. If your whirls are different sizes, they will bake at different rates, and the sandwiches will look messy.
• Avoid Over-browning: These biscuits should remain quite pale. If they turn dark brown, they lose their delicate buttery flavor and becomes brittle rather than melt-in-the-mouth.

What To Serve With Mary Berry Viennese Whirls

Viennese Whirl accompaniments are classic British tea-time additions frequently served to celebrate a successful afternoon bake. Ideally the hot beverage should be a delicate tea like Darjeeling to allow the rich vanilla and butter notes of the whirls to shine through without being overpowered.

• A cup of Darjeeling or Earl Grey tea
• Mary Berry Lemon Swiss Roll
• Fresh raspberries (to echo the jam filling)
• A small glass of dessert wine like Sauternes

How To Store Mary Berry Viennese Whirls

• Airtight Container: Store the completed whirls in a single layer in an airtight container for up to three days. If you stack them, the moisture from the jam may soften the biscuits.
• Temperature: Keep them in a cool, dry place. If the kitchen is too warm, the buttercream filling may begin to soften and ooze out of the sides.
• Freeze: You can freeze the baked (unfilled) biscuits for up to one month. Once filled, freezing is not recommended as the jam can make the biscuits soggy upon thawing.

Mary Berry Viennese Whirls Nutrition Facts

• Calories: 215 kcal (per sandwich)
• Carbohydrates: 22g
• Protein: 1g
• Fat: 14g
• Fiber: 0.2g
• Sugar: 14g

Nutrition information is estimated per cookie based on twelve sandwiches.

FAQs

Try More Recipes:

• Mary Berry Lemon Yoghurt Cake Recipe
• Mary Berry Banana Cake With Oil Recipe
• Mary Berry Blackcurrant Cheesecake Recipe