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Can anyone recommend an Austrian baking/pastry book?


FoodHacker

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I have been doing a lot of searching online and to be honest I haven't been able to come up with very much, I love baking breads and pastries and I would like to learn more about Austrian baking/pastry given the fact that to me that areas techniques is what most pastries are based on.

Any and all help is greatly appreciated.

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I don't think I've baked from it much, and it's older than I am, but if you can find a copy, The Viennese Pastry Cookbook by Lilly Joss Reich (1970) looks pretty comprehensive and traditional.

Voila, Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Viennese-Pastry-Cookbook-Lilly-Reich/dp/0964360055/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0

Edited by pastrygirl (log)
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Wow, Pastrygirl, I didn't think anyone except myself owned Reich's book. Yes, it is very traditional, based on the author's family recipes going back generations. The author notes that some of the recipes, before she rewrote and tested them, contained the measurement "loth" that was abolished at the time of Napoleon. The author's family was Viennese. They fled Vienna and then Paris during WWII, before coming to the U.S.

I've cooked only a little out of this book myself, with mixed results due more to my pastry skills rather than the quality of the book. The recipes that turned out well were great.

I've also heard good things about Rick Rodgers' Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague, although I don't own the book and have never cooked from it.

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Do you read German? I have a book called 'die konditori' (or similar - I'm away from home at the moment) that I picked up at a charity book sale a few years ago. I have never cooked from it, partly because I don't have the language skills, but it's from the early 30s and seems to be aimed at professionals. It has no pictures, but it does have a wide range of recipes ( including a fair number of Jewish recipes, which I find interesting considering the publication date) and measurements are in metric weight. I could post the details when I get home if you are interested. no doubt it's available on abebooks.

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Wow, Pastrygirl, I didn't think anyone except myself owned Reich's book.

From the bookmark, I must have bought it in about 1997 from a used bookstore where I lived then, in my early years as a baker. If it's been around 40 years and also in paperback, we must not be the only ones. :laugh:

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These are wonderful references. Although not Austrian, I find all of the old Dr. Oetker booklets to be of interest with respect to this type of pastry. We have some in the family. Perhaps they are around on eBay.

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If you read German, I would recommend "Klassische Österreichische Küche" (TBFKA "Das Große Sacher-Kochbuch") by Franz Maier-Bruck. It's not a specialized pastry book, but it includes a large pastry section with extensive notes on the history of each dish. Beware however, the preparations are indeed classical - no modern shortcuts or convenience products are used.

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I've also heard good things about Rick Rodgers' Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague, although I don't own the book and have never cooked from it.

I own this and like it a lot. I'd consider it an "entry level" sort of book, though and not really comprehensive as it's not that long and covers a number of types of desserts (tortes, strudels, tarts, cookies, puddings, etc.). Pretty sure, but not certain, that it does not have weight measures, if that is important. Depends on what the OP is looking for.

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I've also heard good things about Rick Rodgers' Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague, although I don't own the book and have never cooked from it.

I own this and like it a lot. I'd consider it an "entry level" sort of book, though and not really comprehensive as it's not that long and covers a number of types of desserts (tortes, strudels, tarts, cookies, puddings, etc.). Pretty sure, but not certain, that it does not have weight measures, if that is important. Depends on what the OP is looking for.

No, no weight measurements, unfortunately. A while ago, I'd e-mailed the author to ask him what a cup of flour weighed, as he measured it, and he gave me a kind of snarky response to the effect of "These recipes were written for volume measurements so that's what you should use." But it is an enjoyable read, in any case.

MelissaH

MelissaH

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If you read German, I would recommend "Klassische Österreichische Küche" (TBFKA "Das Große Sacher-Kochbuch") by Franz Maier-Bruck.

Absolutely! One of the best cook books I own. Lots of fun history facts and great recipes. Not a cheap book, but worth every penny! And a LOT of the classics are in there, sweet to savory, roast to cake.

"And don't forget music - music in the kitchen is an essential ingredient!"

- Thomas Keller

Diablo Kitchen, my food blog

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  • 1 month later...

I actually own Kaffeehaus and so far the only recipe I have made was the SacherTorte and other than my own mistake of over cooking the chocolate glaze it was delicious .... lots of chocolate but not overly sweet and to be honest the sweet cream is to me what really takes it over the top.

About the only bad thing that I can say so far about the book is the fact that the font is way to small but I knew there was a problem with that before I bought it

Edited by FoodHacker (log)
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