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Saturday, May 21, 2011

Pierre Herme's Sable Viennois - Danish Butter Cookies?

Sable 3-1

Sable 1

Sable 7

Still reeling from the light and airy texture of  the Viennese Chocolate Sable I had made last week, I found another Sable Viennois recipe in another Pierre Herme pastry cookbook which I had just bought at Page One in Hong Kong last week. Published in Chinese  Le Livre des fours sees et melleux de Pierre Herme, cost me less than SGD 20 - a steal for the Pastry Master's recipes! That's the beauty of translated cookbook - the price drops to a fraction of the original version - and that is why I always make it a point to prowl the biggest bookshops when I am in Hong Kong, Taiwan or Japan.  So if you read Chinese or Japanese, these are perfect options to add to your library of cookbooks.

This is another easy peasy recipe that can be whipped up in 30mins. Truthful in its original plain vanilla buttery goodness, there is nothing plain about the flavour of these cookies. In fact, when I first tasted these they reminded me so much of the Danish Butter Cookies we used to devour from those famous blue tins... and are still devouring.

I remember my mother's enthusiastic attempts at replicating those famous Danish Butter cookies after taking some lessons at the community centre. Her versions were prepared by rolling the dough into little balls and flattened into a medallion with a fork. They were popular within the household but was no where near the butter cookies that came in the blue tins. It lacked the lightness and crispness.
The Sable Viennois solved that problem completely and possibly too excessively as they were so crisp and light that they border on being over delicate... they crumble at the slightest knock and impact. Hence when I repeated a second batch for this post, I had deliberately inched up the amount of flour added. It got a little sturdier but is still no where near the 'robustness' of the cookies in the blue tins. I am keen to incorporate some egg yolk in the recipe for my next attempt.

Nevertheless, the taste is again wonderful. You won't be able to stop eating this, be warned... watch out for those calories!

Sable 3 (250)

Recipe :

95g               Unsalted Butter
1g                 Fleur de Sel
1/8 tsp          Vanilla paste (the recipe originally asked for 2-3 pinches of Vanilla powder)
40g               Powdered Sugar
15g               Egg White
115g             All purpose flour (I bumped this up to 125g for this post)

Method :
1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2. In a mixing bowl, whisk unsalte butter with Fleur de Sel until creamy.
3. Add in powdered sugar and whisk until homogenous and creamy.
4. Add in egg white. ( The mixture may curdle a little but it will smoothen out after flour is added.
5. Add in flour and mix until well combined.
6. Scoop batter into a piping bag fitted with a star tip. Pipe circles/wreaths on a lined baking tray.
7. Bake at 180C for 10 -12 mins or until golden brown.
8. Cool down and store in air tight container.

55 comments:

CaThY said...

wow, I love danish cookies, yours look so yummy! Makes me drool.. ;)

Joanne said...

Man I love those blue tin cookies! These look so good, definitely going to have to give them a try!

Anonymous said...

I remember the cookies in the blue tin. Grew up eating them. Ur cookies look yummy.

:) christine

La Table De Nana said...

Look at you and your piping bag techniques:) Wonderful..

Min said...

I love Danish butter cookies, especially those with strong butter taste. I like the way you pipe your cookies, they look very elegant :)

Sonia ~ Nasi Lemak Lover said...

My kids love Danish butter cookies, and keep asking me to replicate. Thanks for sharing this recipe so now I can make for them.

Aimei said...

Lovely! Really reminds me of the blue tin... haha.. and did i see speckles of vanilla beans from the vanilla extract? So original! :)

Maria said...

They certainly look like the Danish cookies! What a wonderful treat!

pigpigscorner said...

oh, the buttery cookies from the blue tins, how I miss them!

ICook4Fun said...

oh yea, I remember eating those danish cookies from the blue tin. I will always pick the one with raisins on it. I just bought some vanilla beans. Been thinking of what to make out of it. This cookies will be one of them :)

Passionate About Baking said...

Really looks like Danish cookies! And the design is the same too! I'm sure it taste light and buttery!

grub said...

the blue tin danish cookies are the best! we always buy them after christmas when it goes on sale :D

the sables you made look so neat! and just like the real thing :D

Torviewtoronto said...

delicious soft danish cookies

Jean said...

this man is the king of desserts...everything from him looks really good! :D

Von said...

Guess what? I just made these...:D I've always wanted to make cookies like these, but I wasn't too sure I always knew cookies like these would have a super high butter content and I wan't sure I wanted to fatten up my family...haha- but i had a cookie craving after seeing this so i made them! I don't have a piping bag so I tried using a plastic bag but that didn't work, and I tried using my cookie press, but it felt like it was about to break, so I ended up rolling them into flat circles and baking them. But they still tasted so good! You're right- I can't stop eating them :S Next time, I'll have to at least double this recipe- otherwise, they'll be gone before I get a chance to take a picture of them!

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

Von- you are so fast!!! But then, as I mentioned, you can whip these up in 30 mins so it is not sup rising that you got to try them. What did I tell you, they are GOOD right?? :)

Anonymous said...

Hi Shirley,

If I were to use egg white powder, do you have any idea how much to use? Thanks.

:) christine

Anonymous said...

Hi Shirley,

If I were to use egg white powder, do you have any idea how much to use? Thanks.

:) christine

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

Christine, don't use egg white powder! This is not a meringue - it is just a straight forward simple recipe, no need to complicate it.

daphne said...

oh man, i love these danish cookies. Buttery, melt in your mouth..and now i know we can make them at home! lovely shirley!

Angie's Recipes said...

I love Danish butter cookies..they are seriously rich, melt-in-mouth and addictive! A pure indulgence!

penny aka jeroxie said...

Oh! I used to have these Danish cookies with warm milk or hot chocolate.... thanks for sharing.

AT said...

Dear, may i know wat is Fleur de Sel ? Where can i get it? If i omit this is it ok ?

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

@AT, fleur de sell is a gourmet salt, the crystals of which look like a flower. You can replace with normal salt, no worries.

Anonymous said...

Ooo ok. I'm trying to use up my egg white powder. Jus discovered it in my cupboard. Lol.

:) christine

megan {a dash of megnut} said...

i love danish butter cookies! i will definitely be trying this out

Jo said...

Shirley, these look gorgeous and it looks like you are on a roll with Pierre Herme's recipes.

Mika said...

These look perfect!!! With egg whites you have crisper cookies, with yolks more crumbly ones...because I love crisp cookies I prefer to use egg whites and usually I replace part of the flour with tapioca starch, I think it is perfect for this type of sable... ^_^

Jeannie said...

Another lovely creation, I can't decide which one looks better, the chocolate or this one...so gorgeous but so sinful! Not good for the waist!

Lee said...

Hi Shirley, I have always loved Danish biscuits. Its cheap here so will always get a tin. Lots of fake ones from China too.
Wow, first time I see someone making this.
You re good! Outstanding!'
Anymore left? Ha ha.
Have a great week.
Lee.

Quay Po Cooks said...

Shirley, your Danish cookies looks better than those sold in the bakery. Makes me salivate. This recipe has gone into my "to do" list. Thanks for sharing.

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

@Mika, you are so right. I tried one more batch with egg yolk and it lost its magic!

Xiaolu @ 6 Bittersweets said...

How pretty are these with the piping? I really must try these as I was addicted to the ones in the big round tin as a kid. Oh childhood memories =D

Christine's Pantry said...

Great recipe! Love cookies.

kirbie said...

The chocolate sables you made are already on my to-do list. I'm going to have to add this one as well!

tigerfish said...

yes yes...really looks like Danish Butter Cookies. :)

Trissa said...

Those cookies in the Blue Tins were my favourite Shirley! I will definitely have to try these... and your chocolate cookies in the earlier post too.

chow and chatter said...

these look wonderful came over from Vons blog after she made them

great blog :-)

Rebecca

Anonymous said...

hi, i got the same book too, couldnt wait to try the recipes in the book after seeing such good comments for your beautiful cookies.
By the way, did you notice or try the recipe for Cake Vanille(pg 64)?the recipe for the high protein flour and baking powder was missing from the recipe though it was mentioned in the instructions?
Sem

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

Hi Anoymous, you are right. There must been a typo. Similarly, I don't see the almond meal being used in the recipe. Perhaps it is almond meal instead of bread floury, they are referring to. Also since this is a meringue based recipe, I really don't see the need for baking powder...

Needful Things said...

Just beautiful! I love danish cookies & so I'd love to try these out. Bookmarking for future reference!

natasya said...

Shirley,

I baked these cookies straight away last nite and it was a beauty. Kids love them. Thanks a bunch.

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

@Natasya, great ton hear that you liked it. It's a great recipe :)

mycookinghut said...

Oh wow!! I used to love eating this so much! I definitely want to try out!

Anonymous said...

Hi Shirley,
Wow...they are looked so fantastic, I believe their taste must be the same. I really want to make it but am a bit confuse about Fleur de Sel. Could you please explain it to me, what does it mean and how could I get it?Thanks a lot.
Yenny Chai

My Kitchen Antics said...

hi shirley i made these the other day and they turned out great..thanks for such a nice and easy recipe.

Anonymous said...

Hi Shirley,

May I know where can I get vanilla paste in SG?

Bel

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

Hi Bel, I suggest you get the one from nelson massy. They are pricey here but once you have started using their vanilla extract or paste, you wouldn't want to use anything else. Available from Shermay's Cooking school as well as Lemon zest ( formally Pantry Magic at Chip Bee Gardens)

James & Bel said...

Hi Shirley,

I heard about Nelson massy. Must be real good stuff! Thanks for the info! Can't wait to try baking these precious!

Bel

nikcreate said...

Oh wow! Love those blue tinned cookies as well :D
These look like those! I'm imagining that they are as rich and buttery as those

Moo said...

what is vanilla paste? can I use vanilla extract instead?

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

@Foodie : Yes you can.

Unknown said...

If I substitute vanilla extract for the powder, how much am I supposed to use?

Unknown said...

If I substitute vanilla extract for the powder, how much am I supposed to use?

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

@Unknown : I would suggest that you use 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract.

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