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Pain viennois

Sweet Viennese loaf

Pain viennois: soft, slightly sweet scored French baguette, plain or with chocolate chips

Pain viennois is the soft milk baguette of French bakeries, recognisable by its neat diagonal cuts, bought for children's breakfasts and goûters and sliced for sandwiches. The dough is enriched with milk and butter, so the crust is thin and shiny and the crumb soft and fine; many bakeries add chocolate chips. The common mistake is scoring too shallowly, which stops the pattern opening in the oven. Chef's tip: score the loaves with a sharp blade held almost flat, in quick even strokes, just before baking.
Total time
180 min
Difficulty
medium
Serves
8
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Ingredients

Serves8

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Method

0/5 done
  1. Step 1: Mix the 1 ⅛ lb strong white bread flour, 1 oz caster sugar, ⅓ oz salt and ¼ oz instant dried yeast, add the 1 ¼ cups lukewarm milk and knead for 8 minutes. Knead in the 1 ¾ oz unsalted butter for 4 minutes until smooth, then the 3 ½ oz dark chocolate chips if using.

    12 min
  2. Step 2: Cover and rise for 1½ hours until doubled.

    90 min
  3. Step 3: Divide into 4, shape each into a 30 cm baguette and put on lined trays. Brush with 1 egg.

    10 min
  4. Step 4: Prove for 1 hour until puffy. Heat the oven to 400°F (350°F fan).

    60 min
  5. Step 5: Brush again and score with diagonal cuts every 2 cm. Bake for 18–20 minutes until shiny golden brown and hollow when tapped.

    20 min

Nutrition per serving

Calories
280 kcal
Protein
8 g
Carbs
44 g
Fat
7 g
Fibre
2 g

Nutrition values are estimates.

K
Recipe by

KrazyBadal

All recipes by this chef →

Good to know

How long does pain viennois take?
About 180 minutes in total: 160 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
How many people does it serve?
8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
Is it vegetarian?
Yes. It has no meat or fish.
What can I use instead of strong white bread flour?
Plain flour, same amount (the dough will be softer and rise a little less).
What can I use instead of caster sugar?
Caster sugar, same amount.

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