Seasons Greetings everyone! I’m always looking for something kind of special to take to holiday parties or to friends and neighbors as Christmas treat. I’ve found something that fits the bill. It has even become a “must have” at family holiday parties. No pastry, no party. Not kidding. Take it from me, and anyone who knows me, baking…not my forte’. So if you’re not a baking wonder, this recipe is still for you. It’s not difficult to make and it comes out beautifully.
Austrian Pastry…mmmmm
Recipe:
2 c. flour
1 c. butter- softened
2 T. water
1 c. water
1 tsp. almond extract
3 eggs – room temperature
chopped nuts (I like walnuts)- optional
powdered sugar frosting with 1 tsp. almond flavoring added
With such common and so few ingredients, I can whip it up in no time.
Just to give you an idea what we’re shooting for, the first step is basically making pie dough (which I
never make except for for this recipe, but it’s not hard). Combine 1 c. flour and 1/2 c. butter and 2 T.
water with a pastry cutter. If you don’t have one (like me, remember, not a baker) just use two butter
knives and cut until you have a pie crust dough texture.
Don’t over work it, you want everything barely mixed together, still a bit crumbly. No getting out the
mixer or even a spoon! When you’re at that crumbly point, divide the dough into halves and with lightly
floured fingers pat each half into about a 12″x 3″ band on a cookie sheet. I think it helps to begin with
it in a line instead of trying to turn a ball of dough into a band. Leave a little space between the two
pastries. Set aside
Now we’re basically making cream puff dough. In a sauce pan bring 1 c. water and 1/2 c. butter to a
boil. Add almond flavoring and remove from the heat. With a spoon (I did it with a hand mixer once…big
mistake), stir in remaining flour. When the mixture is smooth and thick, add eggs ONE AT A TIME. Beat
well, with a spoon, after adding each egg. When each egg is well incorporated, add the next. In the end
you’ll have a shiny dough with some elasticity. It should look like this:
Spread half of the mixture on each pie dough band.
Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until golden brown.
Make your favorite butter cream frosting recipe and replace 1 tsp. of the liquid you use in the recipe
with almond flavoring. When the pastry has cooled, frost the pastry and add nuts. You’re done! Cut it
on the diagonal to serve it. I often want smaller, bite (or 2 or 3) sized pieces. If that’s the case, cut the
whole pastry down the middle after you have cut on the diagonal.
Pair this with cider or wassail and you’ll knock it out of the park! TASTY!!!
Ingredients
- 2 c. flour
- 1 c. butter- softened
- 2 T. water
- 1 c. water
- 1 tsp. almond extract
- 3 eggs - room temperature
- chopped nuts (I like walnuts)- optional
- powdered sugar frosting with 1 tsp. almond flavoring added
Instructions
- Combine 1 c. flour and 1/2 c. butter and 2 T. water with a pastry cutter.
- When you’re at that crumbly point, divide the dough into halves and with lightly
- floured fingers pat each half into about a 12″x 3″ band on a cookie sheet.
- In a sauce pan bring 1 c. water and 1/2 c. butter to a boil.
- Add almond flavoring and remove from the heat.
- With a spoon stir in remaining flour.
- When the mixture is smooth and thick, add eggs ONE AT A TIME. Beat well, with a spoon, after adding each egg. When each egg is well incorporated, add the next.
- Spread half of the mixture on each pie dough band.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until golden brown.
- Make your favorite butter cream frosting recipe and replace 1 tsp. of the liquid you use in the recipe with almond flavoring.
- When the pastry has cooled, frost the pastry and add nuts. You’re done! Cut it on the diagonal to serve it.
Happy Holidays!
{We’re linking up to these parties!}
Peggy says
Isn’t this delicious!! When I was young our neighbor added a thin layer of marzipan between her doughs, talk about divine! It makes me hungry just thinking about it! I guess this is now on my list of to do items for the day, haha!
Thank you for posting this recipe!!
Alison says
…this is Alison…I went over to Amy’s house right after she made this. I timed it perfectly! She gave me some and it was SO good! YUM. Thanks Amy for sharing this recipe.
Abby says
This looks easy enough that even I can make it. Thanks so much for this great recipe!
Bobbi says
This looks like something even *I* could do. I’m certainly not a baker. How well does it keep? Could I make it the day before so we could enjoy it for breakfast on Christmas morning?
amy g. says
A day ahead is just fine, but after that it starts to get stale, like any baked good. Let it cool, then cover it with foil for the night. I think you could ice it either after it is cooled or the next morning. Just depends on how soft you want your icing.
Missy says
YUM!!! This looks so good and possible to pull off for us not so talented cooks. Thanks!
Andre'a says
I made a dozen of these this past week for school parties and such. We have about 2 dozen more to make this week for the neighbor gifts. We make them every year. A friend gave me this recipe 25 years ago as a newlywed but she called them “Danish Puffs”.
amy g. says
This could be a problem. Austria and Denmark would have grounds for war over who could stake their claim on this national treasure. 🙂
HOLY COW! 3 dozen? You go girl.
Mary says
Seriously? That’s it? Oh, I’m so doing this. Soon!
Ruth G says
This looks and sounds almost exactly like something that my grandma used to make at Christmas time – she called it Kringel, I think – but, I never attempted it since it seemed like it would have to be kneaded and I have trouble with kneading! I will definitely have to put this on my to-do list while the kids are off from school so I can share the process with them! Thanks so much for posting!!!!
Linda K. says
Oh, my…went right to the kitchen and whipped this up. It is fabulous! It will be a staple in my kitchen. Thanks.
amy g. says
YAY! That’s what I love to hear. SO glad you enjoyed it.
dragongirl says
Oh my, my! That looks absolutely yummylicious (new word specifically for this). I HAVE to make it! Thank you for such a great tutorial, pics at each step, etc.
Merry Christmas to you and yours.
Sue says
Is it topped with butter cream frosting or powdered sugar frosting?
This recipe looks great, can’t wait to try it!
amy g. says
Very good question! I misspoke. While buttercream is totally yummy, powdered sugar frosting is just fine and what I always use for this because it’s so easy AND because there is no sweetness in the pastry the sweetness of the frosting is a good match. One hard and fast rule: NO TUB O’ FROSTING FROM THE STORE!!! Ick, ick, ick. Right? And powdered sugar frosting is so easy, why buy it?
julesjpod says
ok – I made this and it is yummy. BUT mine is not as fluffy and high as yours. I am also not a baker – so should I have added more flour because I live in high altitude? or should I have stirred the egg/custard mixture more/less.
amy g. says
Okay, here’s what I just learned. I’m not even going to pretend I knew the answer before I went searching for it on the web 2 seconds ago. I know it’s not high altitude because I live in the mountains of Utah!
Possibilities:
Humidity might be an issue. Is it humid where you are? There are ways to counter act this, but I won’t go into it unless this is the problem.
When you combine your flour with the water and butter and then add each egg, it’s slimy at first. Don’t move on to the next egg until you have a smooth texture again and you can make peaks with your dough. Most of the raising happens because of the eggs. Whip them in really well, with a spoon.
Your oven needs to be hot the second that the pastry goes in because the puffing happens very quickly. If your oven tends to be cool, that might contribute.
You could substitute regular flour for pastry flour which is lighter for a more tender pastry. However, I’ve always used normal flour.
Any leads? Let me know.
Linda says
Thank you for the recipe for the pastries. I just made them for our Christmas . I found a recipe for butter cream frosting but it seems a little running. Will wait till it sets up and see how it is them. Now for the dough I added a pinch of almond flavoring, and I also added it to the cream puff mixture . So I am anxious to taste it .
bunbytes says
I’ve made this for years, 36, to be exact. It came from my very old Betty Crocker Cookbook, now backless and tattered. In there it is called a Danish Puff. It’s fabulous and it freezes well so you can make it ahead of time and thaw before serving. Yum! Thanks for sharing this with others.
Rondi Anderson says
I cook this just a bit less brown, pour cherry pie filling down the middle, and drizzle with a simple powder sugar icing and almond slices. Other fillings could be tried, but cherry is our families fave!
Laura says
Oh, wow, this is EXACTLY what I was looking for! My daughter is working on an Austrian display for her school’s World’s Fair, and she wants really yummy food to put out. I need to make a LOT of bite-sized pieces. How many do you usually get from one recipe? Also, I noticed in the comments that it will freeze. I’m wondering if it’s best to freeze it without the icing?
amy g. says
I would definitely freeze it wihout the icing. I’m quite sure it would slide off as it thawed. I’m trying to think of the best way to make it bite sized. My fear is that if you cut it up too much the layers may separate and fall apart. I think the best thing to do is to make more thin bands instead of 3 inch bands. Maybe 1/2 that width. Then after you bake it and ice it you could slice it once down the middle. I often slice my 3 inch bands down the middle but it’s still a 5 bite piece. 🙂 Make a batch with different widths and see how it goes. I’m curious myself! In any case it will be a very tasty experiment!