My gluten free Viennese Whirls recipe

There are a few recipes that get frequently requested – and gluten free Viennese Whirls are one of them! I’m excited to bring you this recipe, because these elegant biscuits are an absolute classic.

I spent many days in the kitchen getting this recipe right, and it’s definitely one of my more fiddly bakes. However, if I can do it – so can you! I promise they’re not too tricky.

Gluten free Viennese Whirls are absolute treat: two golden, buttery biscuits sandwiched with a jam-and-buttercream filling.

They just melt in your mouth and are so moreish – plus these gluten free Viennese Whirls are the perfect baking project for the weekend! 

I vaguely remember them making Viennese Whirls on The Great British Bake Off a few years ago (cannot WAIT for this to return in August!) and I tell you, I bet they’re all glad they weren’t gluten free!

These certainly need to be handled with care, but it’s worth it for the most buttery, delicious, melt-in-your-mouth biscuit ever! The biscuits are so light, it’s like they’re baked with fairy dust!

Making the perfect gluten free Viennese Whirls

So what is the secret to the perfect gluten free Viennese Whirls? I’ve spent two whole days testing this recipe and I think I’ve cracked it! I first tried a ‘normal’ recipe, substituting for gluten free flour, but they just fell apart at the touch.

In fact, I barely had to look at them and they crumbled into dust! I find gluten free flour tends to provide a crumblier bake (which is why I use xantham gum in my bakes, as it replicates the texture of gluten) so I needed to make them slightly more robust.

In the end, I ended up adding more cornflour, and a tad more icing sugar, as the extra flour took some of the sweet flavour away. I only have a small oven so I baked mine on trays of 5-6 biscuits, which took about 6-7 minutes.

Basically as soon as they go golden, take them out! Undercook and they will crumble – overcook and they will burn. 

How to pipe your Viennese Whirls 

A few tips for making these gluten free Viennese Whirls, before we start! Firstly, I find these best to pipe in the same way you would icing a cupcake.

That is, you want to do one swirl starting in the centre and working out – and then swirl back into the centre, so they’re almost like a double layer? This will help to get the swirly look, otherwise I find they tend to flatten.

You’ll want to use a large piping bag for the swirling – I used a re-useable one I bought from Sainsbury’s – and a star-shaped nozzle. This will help to get the lovely swirl.

You can use the same bag and nozzle for the buttercream as well, to make life a little easier! And when you’ve baked the biscuits, let them cool on the tray completely before carefully moving them, as they will be fragile!

My gluten free Viennese Whirls recipe

Ready, set, BAKE! It’s time to get cracking on my gluten free Viennese Whirls recipe. These are best made and eaten on the same day. Because the biscuits are so light they will go a little soft if left for a few hours with the filling.

If you want to make these in advance of an event, I recommend you bake the biscuits beforehand but fill them just before serving. I love seeing it when you make my recipes, so don’t forget to tag me on Instagram and use #theglutenfreeblogger if you give this a go!

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Gluten free Viennese Whirls

My gluten free Viennese Whirls recipe are so beautiful! A light, melt-in-your-mouth butter biscuit sandwich with a jam and buttercream filling. Who needs Mr Kipling, right!?

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Ingredients

For the biscuits:

• 200 g unsalted butter, (softened)
• 65 g icing sugar
• 175 g plain gluten free flour
• 60 g cornflour
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp xanthan gum

For the filling:

• 100 g unsalted butter
• 180 g icing sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 8-10 tsp strawberry jam

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180'C and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. Add the butter and icing sugar to a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric whisk for 3-4 minutes until pale and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and beat again until combined.
3. Sift in the flour, xanthan gum cornflour and baking powder. Fold into the butter and sugar mix until fully combined. You want quite a thick dough, but still pipe-able. Spoon the mixture into a large piping bag with a star nozzle.
4. On the baking sheet, pipe 10 swirly circles. They should be approx 5cm in diameter with approx 3-4cm between them to allow for spreading. To pipe, start in the centre of the circle and swirl out, then swirl back into the middle so it resembles an iced cupcake-type shape.
5. Bake in the oven for 7-8 minutes (I baked one at a time, if baking at the same time you may need to switch the trays in the oven half way through) until golden on top. Remove from the oven and cool completely on the trays.
6. To make the filling: Beat the butter, icing sugar and vanilla extract for 2-3 minutes with an electric whisk until smooth. Spoon into a piping bag with star nozzle fitted.
7. Gently take one biscuit and turn upside down. Spread 1 tsp of jam onto the biscuit, then pipe on the buttercream in a swirl. Place a second biscuit on top (swirl-side-up) and very gently press down to create your sandwich. Repeat until all the biscuits are filled.

Notes

1. These are best eaten within 1-2 hours of being filled. If making in advance, make the biscuits and store in an airtight container, then fill just before serving. 
2. Biscuits will be very fragile - use a spatula or fish slice to help lift them from the baking sheet once completely cool. 

Need some more gluten free baking inspiration?

Want to have a go at some of the other classic gluten free biscuit recipes on the blog? Give some of these other gluten free recipes a try! There are plenty to choose from – here are a couple to get you going:

• Gluten free Wagon Wheels recipe
• My gluten free Jammie Dodgers recipe
• Gluten free Jaffa Cakes recipe 
• Easy gluten free peanut butter and jelly thumbprint cookies

If you do make this recipe please let me know! I’d love to see your photos using #theglutenfreeblogger, share them in my Facebook group or tag me on Instagram. And if you have any recipe suggestions, please let me know in the comments what you’d like to see next! Oh – and don’t forget to sign up for my e-newsletter where you’ll know about all my latest posts and competitions first!

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