Viennese biscuits have to be one of my absolute favourites, they are incredibly delicate and buttery, with an extremely short texture which just melts in the mouth; and dipping them in chocolate just takes them to another level of deliciousness. They can be piped into pretty shapes, and on top of all that they are super quick and easy to make.
I was kindly sent some Amedei milk chocolate (said to be some of the finest chocolate in the world) and Boyajian Citrus Oils by Kings Fine Foods to play with and I used both in this recipe. The oils are very strong, with a true, non-artificial citrus flavour, so I didn’t use too much as it would have tasted bitter otherwise. I chose to use the lime oil, as I think the combination of lime and chocolate is underused, overshadowed by the classic orange and chocolate combo, though of course both the orange and lemon oils would have worked perfectly as well, or you can just use vanilla extract for a classic viennese finger. The milk chocolate worked well to tone down and balance the sharpness of the lime a little, but you could absolutely use dark chocolate instead if you prefer. Other brands of citrus oils or extracts may not be as strong so you may need to add a little more to taste.
For more biscuit inspiration check out these fabulous Chocolate Viennese Whirls by Patisserie Makes Perfect, Earl Grey Sandwich Cookies By Supergolden Bakes, Ginger And Cardamom biscuits by Cygnet Kitchen, Sour Cherry And Dark Chocolate Granola Cookies by Vikalinka or Camomile Tea And Lemon Shortbread by me! And apologies for the really short post today, it’s taken me two days to write this, having major mind blank at the moment..
Chocolate Dipped Lime Viennese Finger Biscuits
Ingredients
- 200 g (3/4 cup + 1tbsp) very soft but not melted butter
- 75 g (3/4 cup) icing (powdered) sugar
- 200 g (1 + 2/3 cup) plain flour
- 40 g (1/3 cup) cornflour (cornstarch)
- 1 tsp lime/orange/lemon oil/extract or vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp milk if needed
- 300 g (10.5 oz) milk chocolate, chopped
Instructions
-
Heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4 and line two baking sheets with baking paper.
-
Blend all of the ingredients apart from the milk and chocolate in a food processor or an electric mixer until smooth. The mixture should be pipeable but not sloppy at all, if it is too stiff, add the spoonful of milk.
-
Fit a piping bag with a 1cm open star nozzle and spoon the dough into the bag. Pipe strips of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, slightly spaced apart as they will spread in the oven.
-
Bake the biscuits for 10-12 minutes until pale golden, leave to cool on the sheet for 5 minutes then carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool (the biscuits are very delicate and break easily).
-
Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, or in short bursts in the microwave. Transfer it to a narrow but deep container, such as a mug, to make it easier to dip the biscuits.
-
Dip either end of each biscuit in the chocolate, allowing any excess to drip back into the mug, then place them on sheets of baking paper until hardened before carefully peeling them off.
I am sharing these with Fabulous Foodie Fridays, Fiesta Friday hosted by Hostess At Heart and Spades, Spatulas And Spoons, Foodie FriDIY, Foodie Friends Friday and Friday Favourites
Sarah James @ Tales From The Kitchen Shed
September 28, 2015 at 6:39 pmI love Viennese Fingers, I love the idea of using lime to flavour them. Thanks for sharing.
hannahhossack
October 3, 2015 at 10:27 amThey are one of my favourite biscuits, sooo satisfying!
Eb Gargano
September 29, 2015 at 1:00 pmOooh. Lime and chocolate. I like that idea. I’m going to have to play around with those flavours. Love your viennese biscuits – so pretty!!
hannahhossack
October 3, 2015 at 10:27 amIt’s not as obvious a combination as chocolate and orange but they still work really well together 🙂
Angela - Patisserie Makes Perfect
October 1, 2015 at 9:27 amThese look so delicious Hannah! I love the combination of chocolate and lime, in a biscuit it sounds even more amazing.
hannahhossack
October 3, 2015 at 10:29 amThanks Angela 🙂 I used to love those chocolate lime sweets as a child so it’s a flavour combination I like to play with.
Julie is Hostess At Heart
October 2, 2015 at 1:19 pmThese cookies look and sound delicious! No need to double dip either! Love that you’ve coated both ends.
hannahhossack
October 3, 2015 at 10:29 amThanks Julie 🙂
Arl's World
October 2, 2015 at 5:40 pmThey look very yummy!
hannahhossack
October 3, 2015 at 10:31 amThank you!
bakeplaysmile
October 2, 2015 at 10:32 pmOh wow these are just beautiful!!! I love the flavours you’ve used! Thanks for joining our Fabulous Foodie Fridays party! xx
hannahhossack
October 3, 2015 at 10:32 amThanks Lucy 🙂 have a great weekend! x
Honest Mum
October 3, 2015 at 9:00 amThese look amazing, so similar to the M&S ones I love but homemade and nothing is better than making them yourself. Thanks for linking up to #tastytuesdays
hannahhossack
October 3, 2015 at 10:32 amThanks Vicki 🙂 I agree, nothing beats homemade! x
sarahgiebens
October 3, 2015 at 5:57 pmI LOVE those cookies! They look soooooooooooooooooooooooooo delicious 😀
Liz
October 3, 2015 at 11:06 pmI think I could easily drink that entire cup of chocolate! These look very delicious. Thanks for bringing them to FF.
hannahhossack
October 22, 2015 at 9:04 amI was very tempted to… 😛
Divine Spice Box
October 7, 2015 at 11:18 pmOMG !! i am so much in love with these finger biscuits… thanks for such an amazing recipe 🙂
Louise | Cygnet Kitchen
October 12, 2015 at 12:55 pmI absolutely love Viennese Fingers! I like your idea of using lime rather than orange, Hannah. It definitely pays to use the best quality oils, I have to get some of these from Kings Fine Foods, especially with Christmas coming up! x
hannahhossack
October 22, 2015 at 9:02 amThey are very useful, and the flavour is much stronger and fresher than regular extracts 🙂 x