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Danish Pastry
Appears in
Published 1995
In Scandinavia, Danish pastry is known as Viennabrød, or “Vienna bread,” and in Vienna as Plunder, or “lumber,” because of the stacked layers of dough and butter. I think the name we use derives from the fact that the bakers of Copenhagen excel beyond all others in the preparation of this type of pastry, and it was they who made its international reputation.
If you have had only commercial Danish pastry, you will be surprised by the complexity and richness of the flavor of the homemade variety. In these recipes the buttery quality of the dough is enhanced, never obscured, by the fillings, all of which are fairly quick to prepare. Each of the variations that follow the dough recipe calls for one third the dough, so that you can bake three varieties from every batch or freeze part of the dough to use later.