I had Great British Bake Off withdrawals for quite a while after this past series ended. I can't imagine what the new version of the show will look like, and I havent made up my mind yet about whether or not I'll watch.
I don't really bake biscuits and cookies very often, as compared to cakes, but I was particularly inspired by Biscuit Week this time around. These Viennese Whirls were the technical challenge in the second episode, and they seemed like something I could pull off.
Making the biscuit dough is quite simple. It's the piping that's challenging. The dough is stiff, so it takes a few tries to figure out how much pressure you need to apply, which is quite a bit. It was much easier when I piped out the second batch, as the heat from my hands had softened the dough a bit. So I'd recommend kneading the dough for a while, in the piping bag, before you start. Also, I knew from watching the show that it's best to freeze the whirls (about 20 to 30 mins should do) before baking them so that they don't lose their shape.
In reality I'm quite sure I wouldn't last a day on the Great British Bake Off, but I was quite proud of myself for successfully making one of the technical challenge recipes from the show. They looked pretty good and tasted even better.
Click here for Mary Berry's recipe.
