Vínarbrauð

"Viennesse bread" – Danish pastry

This pastry is very popular in Icelend. You can get it in nearly every supermarket and bakery. However, the recipe has its origin not in Iceland, but in Austria. From there it was brought to Denmark and then to Iceland. In Denmark it is called “Wienerbrød “, which is literally the same as the Icelandic “Vínarbrauð”, meaning “Viennesse bread”. In Vienna it is called “Kopenhagener Plunder“, referring to Denmark’s capital Copenhagen. In the U.S. it is known as "Danish pastry".

Ingredients for the dough

500 g white flour

50 g sugar

50 g soft butter

1 egg

1 pkg dry yeast

250 ml lukewarm milk

200 g cold butter

Ingredients for the vanilla cream

250 ml milk

1 tsp ground vanilla

150 g sugar

5 egg yolk

150 g potato starch

50 g soft butter

250 ml whipping cream

Ingredients for the chocolate glaze

100 g chocolate

50 g butter

Preparation of the dough

Mix flour and sugar. Add the soft butter and the egg and knead together.

Add the dry yeast. Pour in the lukewarm milk. Mix everything and process into a smooth, smooth dough. Let it stand for about 15 minutes.

Then roll out the dough between two pieces of baking paper to a thin square. 

Cut the cold, hard butter into thin slices. Use the first quarter of the butter to cover half of the dough with its  slices, but leave a border of about 1 inch (2 cm) free. Fold the other half of the dough on it and press the edges together.

Carefully roll out the dough thinly again. Fold it up, fold it and fold it again. Place the package in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes.

Now process the 2nd quarter of the butter in the same way:  Roll out the dough to a thin square. Cover one half with the butter slices. Leave the edge free. Then fold, roll out thinly and fold. Then refrigerate again. 

Do the same with the last two quarters of the butter. At the end place the dough again in the refrigerator.

Preparation of the pudding cream

Heat 250 ml milk with vanilla in a saucepan and bring to a boil briefly. 

In a separate bowl, beat 5 egg yolks with 150 g of sugar and 150 g of potato starch until frothy. Add the warm vanilla milk in portions and stir. 

Then put everything back in the pot and cook gently, stirring constantly, until the cream thickens. 

Pour the cream into a cold bowl and add 50 g of butter. 

Beat the whipping cream (250 ml) until stiff and mix with the vanilla cream.

Finally, let the cream cool a little in the refrigerator.


Final preparation of the Viennesse Bread

Preheat the oven to 400 °F  (200 °C) upper/lower heat. 

Remove the prepared dough from the refrigerator, roll it out on a work surface lined with baking paper and cut into two long strips. Place the dough strips on a baking tray lined with baking paper. 

Carefully spread the vanilla cream on the middle of each of the dough strips. Then fold up the dough, but leave a little space in the middle.

(I placed baking cups between the two dough strips on the baking tray so that the "breads" do not run too far apart in width... not perfect, but it worked!) 

Bake in a preheated oven at 350 °F (180 °C) for about 20 minutes until the dough has turned golden brown.

 

Now melt the butter for the glaze. Add the chocolate to the hot, melted butter and gently stir everything until smooth. When the Vínarbrauð comes out of the oven, brush it right in the middle. Then cut into thin strips and let cool well.