Viennoise Baguette Recipe

The baguette viennoise  (Vienna bread in Spanish) is a bread of Austrian origin very similar to  brioche  (of French origin). This bread stands out for its fine and smooth texture, and it generally has a slightly sweet taste.

To prepare it, you do not need special elements or a large oven. In fact, it is much easier to prepare than other recipes because all the ingredients it requires are commonly used in the kitchen. 

The characteristic that stands out the most in this recipe is that the crust of the bread should be shiny and thin and with several indentations. Thus, it is not easily confused with other loaves of salty bread. When it comes to size, it is highly variable. There are bars of up to 30 and 50 centimeters.

Stuffing is not usually prepared, since the best way to enjoy it is alone or as part of a sandwich. However, there are those who add a few bits of cheese to the dough or a touch of sugar on the topping, to bring out its sweet flavor and turn it into a dessert.

If what you want is to impress your guests or give your family a token of Viennese love, we leave you with this fantastic recipe.

Baguette viennoise recipe

To prepare this bread,  you must take good care of the quantities, because the secret of its spongy texture lies in the relationship between the right amount of ingredients and their correct incorporation.

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons of salt (40 g).
• 3 tablespoons of milk (30 g).
• 4 tablespoons of sugar (40 g).
• 3 teaspoons of yeast (15 g).
• 1 and a half glasses of water (300 g).
• 2 heaping cups of flour (500 g).
• 1 stick of butter, softened (100 g).

Preparation

Place the milk at room temperature in a deep bowl and add the yeast little by little. Stir well until the ingredients are fully incorporated and reserve the mixture for later use.

In a separate container, start adding the rest of the powdered ingredients. You can also use a tray or a previously floured chopping board, do it in the following way:  sift the flour on the surface on which you are going to work, place the salt and sugar, joining all the ingredients until they are very well mixed.

Make a kind of volcano, make a hole in the middle and pour into it a little of the mixture you have made with the milk and yeast. Try not to spill, if possible. Begin to knead and add, little by little, what is left of the milk mixture, until you have included it all. Continue kneading until you have a smooth dough.

When the dough acquires the texture you want, add the softened butter, integrate it well and leave the dough for your viennoise baguette to rest in a container that you will cover with a cloth. The time varies a bit, as the dough must rise and sometimes it does it faster and other times slower. It is generally expected for an hour.

Begin to shape the bread. You can get carried away and play with the dough shapes, make lines, braid it or just make the traditional bars.

So that the dough can cook well and look good. With a knife, make fine indentations in it. On the one hand, make several small horizontal lines, and on the other, make only two vertical lines. This will help the dough to “breathe” while it cooks. In this way, the bread will not be bulging on one side and flat on the other.

When the dough has the shape you want, put it on a baking sheet and let it rest for another hour, with 15 minutes to go, you can preheat the oven to 230 ° C.

Once the dough has rested enough, take the tray to the oven and let it cook for 20 minutes. When this process is complete, you should let the bread cool for a few minutes before bringing it to the table.

Additional tips

• Before you start making your viennoise baguette , you must clean all the surfaces on which you are going to work very well. The dough tends to get contaminated very easily, so be careful. Hygiene in the kitchen is very important and you don’t want your recipe to be ruined by an oversight.
• To facilitate the incorporation of the milk and yeast, we suggest you sift it first, this will prevent lumps from forming.
• Softened butter is one that has been out of the fridge for a couple of hours, therefore it can be worked with easily even though it is not melted.
• To make your viennoise baguette  shine, brush it with an egg white, before putting it in the oven, once there, leave the bread until the white shines. Of course, do not stop observing it from time to time.