Viennese Whirl Mince Pies

Viennese Whirl Mince Pies combine two British favourites. Melt-in-the-mouth, buttery shortbread and the classic Christmas mince pie full of spicy dried fruit preserve.

Disclosure: this post may contain affiliate links. If you buy via my links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Jump to Recipe

For me, Christmas just isn’t Christmas without a few fruity, spicy (and boozy) sweet mince pies. While I’ll happily forgo traditional Christmas cake and Christmas pudding, I can’t resist good, homemade Traditional Mince Pies. But this year, alongside a batch or two with the familiar shortcrust pastry lids, I’ve been making Viennese Whirl Mince Pies. And they’ve gone down a storm.

VIENNESE WHIRLS

Despite their name, the Viennese whirl biscuits popular in Britain aren’t Austrian at all. Although said to have been inspired by Austrian and German Spritzgebäck, here the light, crumbly and buttery shortbreads are most often seen as two rounds sandwiched together with buttercream and jam. You can also find them as individual biscuit fingers and swirls, either plain or half covered in chocolate.

What they have in common with the original Spritzgebäck though, is that they’re piped. In fact, in German spritzen means to squirt or spurt and their name refers to the dough being squeezed through the patterned nozzle of a piping bag. It’s this which gives Viennese whirls their distinctive ridge pattern.

Bringing two classics together, Viennese Whirl Mince Pies pair the melt-in-the-mouth buttery shortbread biscuit with the iconic fruity and spicy Christmas pie. The result, I think, is something rather special.

VIENNESE WHIRL MINCE PIES

If you’re not experienced at piping, don’t worry that you won’t be able to make this recipe. I’ll be the first to admit that piping is not my strong point! But I don’t care. Because your Viennese Whirl Mince Pies will still taste wonderful.

Anyway, after a final dusting of icing sugar, I defy anyone not to want to tuck into one of these beauties. And especially with a glass of port or rich Pedro Ximénez sherry on the side.

You’ll find ingredient amounts and full instructions in the recipe card at the end. But I recommend you read the rest of this post before starting.

THE MINCEMEAT

Ideally, for the very best mince pies, you’ll have some Homemade Christmas Mincemeat in the cupboard. If you’re reading this post at least 2-3 weeks before Christmas, then you just about have time to make some and let it mature.

It really is dead easy. All you do is stir up your choice of dried fruit, nuts, spices, (I include traditional suet in mine too), optional booze etc. then leave overnight to soak. In the morning, just pop it in a low oven for a couple of hours and it’s ready to pot up.

But if you’ve left it too late, find the very best quality mincemeat you can by reading the label. Personally, I’d avoid palm oil, cheap fillers like apple pulp, and ingredients that are indicators of ultra processed foods such as glucose-fructose syrup. Do, however, put a reminder in your calendar for next autumn to start a batch of homemade mincemeat.

ALL-BUTTER SWEET SHORTCRUST PASTRY

I think it’s a shame that so many people believe that shortcrust pastry is too complicated and time-consuming to make at home. Because it really is simple and quick to make, even if you do it by hand rather than in a food processor. In the recipe card at the end, I give instructions for both methods.

While you can sometimes find all-butter shop-bought pastry, it will cost you a lot more than making your own. And don’t bother buying shortcrust pastry that doesn’t mention butter on the packet. You’ll most likely just be paying for margarine made with palm oil.

Most standard shortcrust pastry has half the weight of butter to flour. However, I make the pastry for mince pies extra buttery. As well as tasting wonderful, the pastry is really easy to work with. You don’t even need to chill it before rolling out.

VIENNESE WHIRL TOPPING

For the easy Viennese whirl topping you’ll need butter, icing sugar, plain flour, and cornflour. Ideally using electric beaters to save your arm, start by beating the butter and sifted icing sugar together until very light and fluffy. Then sift the plain flour and cornflour into the bowl and keeping beating until everything is combined. You want it as light as possible, although it will still be quite firm. It is, after all, a shortbread dough.

Now you transfer the dough to a piping bag fitted with an open star nozzle. I recommend a large nozzle as this will be easier for the dough to squeeze through. By the way, you can also use this same dough for making Viennese biscuits of any kind.

With these three simple elements (mincemeat, shortcrust pastry, shortbread topping) you’re ready to make irresistible Viennese Whirl Mince Pies.

HOW TO MAKE VIENNESE WHIRL MINCE PIES

Now pipe a swirl of Viennese shortbread dough over the mincemeat. Start from the outside edge and finish in the centre. I don’t have particularly strong hands, so really do have to squeeze the piping bag quite hard. It does get easier with practice, but you can help things along by holding and squidging the dough in the bag between your hands – the warmer the better – to soften it.

If convenient, the mince pies can be chilled at this point and baked later. But it’s worth chilling for at least 30 minutes anyway: if they go into the oven cold the whirls are less likely to lose definition during baking.

BAKING & STORING VIENNESE WHIRL MINCE PIES

In my fan oven preheated to the temperature shown in the recipe card, these mince pies take around 18 minutes to bake. However, appliances do vary, so allow anything from 13 to 20 minutes. When done, the pastry bases should be cooked through and the topping lightly golden.

Take the tin from the oven but DON’T try to remove the pies yet. You need to let them cool and firm up a little first or there’s a danger of crumbling. After 5 – 10 minutes you can carefully loosen the pies with a round bladed knife and lift out. It often helps if you gently rotate them first.

Place the mince pies on a cooling rack until just warm and dust with extra sifted icing sugar to serve. To store, cool completely before putting in an airtight container and/or freezing them.

I make several batches of mince pies each year and freeze almost all of them. This means they’re always fresh and ready for a quick treat over Christmas with zero waste. They take less than a minute to defrost and heat in the microwave. Alternatively, defrost then warm in a moderate oven or air fryer.

Christmas isn’t Christmas without mince pies. Especially with a glass or two of something nice! So why not combine them with another British classic, the Viennese whirl? Together, I think these take mince pies to an even higher level of deliciousness.

Print

Viennese Whirl Mince Pies

Combine two British favourites by replacing the pastry lid of a classic Christmas mince pie with a melt-in-the-mouth, buttery shortbread swirl.

It's recommended that you read the accompanying blog post before starting the recipe.

Course Dessert, Snack, Cake

Cuisine British

Keyword christmas, christmas bakes, christmas baking

Prep Time 40 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Servings 12 mince pies

Author Moorlands Eater

Ingredients

• 1 jar good quality mincemeat (homemade recipe in Notes)
• sifted icing sugar (to serve)

For the shortcrust pastry base

• 150 g plain flour (plus extra for dusting)
• 1 pinch salt
• 100 g cold butter (diced)
• 50 g caster sugar
• 2 - 3 tbsp iced water

For the Viennese whirl topping

• 150 g soft butter
• 50 g icing sugar
• 150 g plain flour
• 25 g cornflour

Instructions

Make the shortcrust pastry

1. Using a food processor

   Put the flour, salt, and butter into the food processor and whizz until the mixture looks like very fine breadcrumbs.

   Add the sugar and process again to combine.

   With the motor still running, add iced water, 1 tbsp at a time, until the mixture comes together.

   Making by hand

   Stir the flour and salt together in a bowl. Rub in the butter so the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

   Stir in the sugar.

   Using a round bladed knife, stir in iced water 1 tbsp at a time until the mixture starts coming together. Use your hands to finish bringing it together.

2. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead into a smooth ball.

   Tip: pastry can be wrapped and chilled at this point, but it isn't necessary.

Cut out and fill with mincemeat

1. Lightly flour your work surface and roll out the pastry thinly (approx. 2mm).

   Stamp out 12 circles to fit the bases and come up the sides of a deep 12-hole non-stick muffin/bun tin: you will need to gather the scraps and re-roll to make all 12 circles.

2. Place the circles in the holes of the muffin/bun tin then spoon mincemeat into each one to a level just below the pastry rim.

   Tip: if your mincemeat is quite firm, very gently heat the jar (with the lid off) in the microwave for a few seconds or in a low oven for a few minutes.

Add the Viennese whirl topping

1. Preferably using electric beaters, beat the butter and icing sugar together until very light and fluffy.

2. Stir the plain flour and cornflour together then sift into the bowl with the butter and icing sugar. Continue beating until well combined.

3. Fit a piping bag with a star nozzle (large will make piping easier) and fill with the mixture.

   Pipe a swirl over the mincemeat on each pie, starting from the outside edge and finishing in the middle.

   Tip: the dough is quite firm so you will need to squeeze hard, but will be easier if you warm the filled bag in your hands to soften it.

   Pies can be chilled at this point and baked later if convenient: chilling for a minimum of 30 minutes also means the swirl pattern should lose less definition during baking.

Bake the mince pies

1. Preheat your oven to 180°C /160°C Fan /Gas 4 /350°F with a shelf in the middle position.

2. Put the tin in the preheated oven and bake until the pastry is cooked through and the topping is lightly golden (approx. 13 - 20 minutes).

3. Remove the tin from the oven and set aside for 5 - 10 minutes to allow the pies to firm a little.

   Carefully remove the mince pies from the tin with a round ended knife, rotating to loosen if necessary, and put on a wire rack to cool a little.

Serving and storing

1. Dust with icing sugar to serve.

   Cool completely before storing for 3 - 4 days or freezing.

   Reheat for a few seconds in a microwave or a few minutes in a low oven or air fryer. Add extra time if heating from frozen or defrost thoroughly first.

Recipe Notes

Recipe for Homemade Christmas Mincemeat here Ideally, make at least 2 - 3 weeks in advance so it has time to mature.

MORE RECIPES FOR CHRISTMAS HERE