For a truly indulgent afternoon tea, few biscuits can compete with the delicate, buttery charm of a Viennese finger. Pastry chef and cookbook author Benjamina Ebuehi has shared her definitive recipe for these moreish treats, revealing her secrets for achieving the perfect melt-in-the-mouth texture every time.
The Secret to Perfectly Pipeable Biscuits
Ebuehi ranks these elegant biscuits among her top three favourites of all time, praising their simple yet irresistible combination of a rich, buttery crumb and chocolate-dipped ends. She acknowledges that while the recipe is straightforward, the main challenge often lies in piping the dough. The key is achieving a consistency that is rich in butter yet firm enough to hold its shape during baking.
Her professional tip to avoid cramped hands and burst piping bags is twofold: add a teaspoon of milk to the dough to improve its pipeability, and always use a large, open-star piping nozzle, such as a Wilton 8B. This makes the process smoother and helps create the biscuit's classic ridged appearance.
Benjamina Ebuehi's Step-by-Step Method
The recipe requires just seven accessible ingredients and a total hands-on preparation time of only five minutes. You will need 130g of very soft salted butter, 50g icing sugar, half a teaspoon of vanilla extract, 170g plain flour, 2 tsp custard powder, 1 tsp milk, and 70g milk chocolate for dipping.
Begin by heating your oven to 180C (160C for fan ovens)/350F/gas 4 and lining a large baking tray. Using an electric whisk, beat the soft butter with the icing sugar and vanilla for three to four minutes until the mixture is pale and creamy. Next, add the plain flour and custard powder, mixing until a smooth dough forms. Incorporate the milk to loosen the mixture slightly.
Spoon the dough into a piping bag fitted with that all-important large star nozzle. Pipe 10 finger-shaped biscuits directly onto your prepared tray. Chilling them for 15 minutes before baking is a crucial step to help them hold their shape. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes until they turn a light golden brown, then let them cool completely on the tray.
The Final Chocolate-Dipped Finish
While the biscuits cool, melt the milk chocolate gently, either in a microwave using short bursts or in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. The final, signature touch is to dip each end of every biscuit into the melted chocolate. Place them on a wire rack to allow the chocolate to set and firm up before serving.
This recipe from Benjamina Ebuehi demystifies the process of creating these classic bakery-style biscuits at home. With her expert guidance on the dough consistency and piping technique, you can confidently produce a batch of sophisticated, melt-in-the-mouth treats that are sure to impress at any teatime gathering.
