Wienerbroed

Instructions

1. 1 Combine the flour, sugar, yeast, cardamom, and salt in a large bowl. Add the cold milk and egg, mixing until a cohesive dough forms. Knead for five minutes until smooth but do not over-develop the gluten at this stage. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for thirty minutes.
2. 2 While the dough chills, prepare the butter block by placing the cold butter between two sheets of parchment paper and pounding it with a rolling pin into a fifteen-centimetre square of even thickness. The butter must be cold but pliable, not hard or soft. Refrigerate until needed.
3. 3 Roll the chilled dough into a rectangle roughly thirty by twenty centimetres. Place the butter block in the centre and fold the dough over it like an envelope, sealing the edges. Roll out to a long rectangle, then perform the first fold by bringing one-third over the centre and the other third on top.
4. 4 Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for thirty minutes. Repeat the rolling and folding process two more times, chilling for thirty minutes between each turn. This creates the characteristic flaky layers. After three turns, the dough will have eighty-one layers of butter throughout.
5. 5 After the final rest, roll the dough to half a centimetre thick. Cut into twelve-centimetre squares for pinwheels, or strips for twists and crescents. Place a tablespoon of almond paste or custard cream in the centre of each square. Fold corners to the centre for pinwheel shapes, or roll into crescents.
6. 6 Place the shaped pastries on parchment-lined baking sheets with five centimetres between each. Cover loosely with a towel and let rise in a warm place for forty-five minutes until puffy and nearly doubled. They should feel light and airy when gently nudged.
7. 7 Brush each pastry with egg wash and sprinkle with flaked almonds. Bake at 200 degrees Celsius for twelve to fifteen minutes until deeply golden brown and the layers are visibly puffed and separated. Drizzle with the lemon icing while slightly warm and allow to set for five minutes before serving.