{"id":8456,"date":"2026-10-19T23:32:06","date_gmt":"2026-10-19T14:32:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/parade.kyoto\/?post_type=sweetlore&p=8456"},"modified":"2026-10-31T19:10:16","modified_gmt":"2026-10-31T10:10:16","slug":"buchteln","status":"publish","type":"sweetlore","link":"https:\/\/parade.kyoto\/en\/sweetlore\/buchteln\/","title":{"rendered":"Buchteln"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The tops take on a golden-brown color, while the sides that touched their neighbors bake up pale and soft. Buchteln are a Central European sweet made by packing small parcels of yeast dough together in a pan, baking them, and pulling them apart one by one. They came from Bohemia to Vienna and took root in Austria, Czechia and the surrounding areas. Some are larger and wrapped around a fruit filling, while others are small and have no filling. Even though they are baked packed together in the same way, they taste different.<\/p>\n

\n\"Buchteln\n
Buchteln pulled apart. You can see the browned tops and the pale sides that had been touching the neighboring dough (February 19, 2006). Photo: Gerhard Juengling at de.wikipedia \/ Wikimedia Commons<\/a> \/ CC BY-SA 3.0<\/a>. Full-size image obtained. No content alterations or cropping.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

Spreading butter between the filled pieces of dough<\/h2>\n

Flour is combined with yeast, milk, eggs, sugar and butter to make a smooth dough. Some versions start with a preferment and then add the remaining ingredients, while others knead everything together from the start. After the dough has risen well, it is divided into small pieces. Each piece is rolled out into a circle and topped with filling, and the edges are gathered together to close it.<\/p>\n

Typical fillings are apricot jam and powidl, a thick plum spread made by cooking plums down. Poppy seeds, Topfen and nuts are also used. The sweetness and acidity of fruit, the mild flavor of dairy and the fine, grainy texture of poppy seeds each give a filling its own character. The filling is not kneaded into the dough. Instead, it is wrapped and tucked into the center.<\/p>\n

Some poppy seed fillings also include milk or fat. In an example from the Tsuji Culinary Institute’s correspondence course, blue poppy seeds are steeped in milk, sugar and honey, and cake crumbs are added. This mixture is combined with marzipan, butter, egg yolk, rum and cinnamon and then wrapped in the dough. The result is a soft filling that combines the fine seeds with crumbs of baked cake and milk.<\/p>\n

Each piece is dipped in melted butter and placed seam-side down in a greased pan. The pieces are set close together, with room left to expand as they rise, and are left to rise once more before baking. The butter between them keeps the pieces from sticking together too much, which makes the baked buns easy to pull apart one by one. A crust forms on top, while the parts that touch neighboring pieces bake up soft.<\/p>\n

\n\"Buchteln\n
Homemade Buchteln baked packed together in a blue baking dish (February 20, 2019). The top of each bun has risen, and the buns sit side by side. Photo: Olivia Fries \/ Wikimedia Commons<\/a> \/ CC BY-SA 4.0<\/a>. Reduced-size version obtained from Commons. No content alterations or cropping.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

Small unfilled Buchteln and vanilla sauce<\/h2>\n

Dukatenbuchteln are a small version named after the ducat, a gold coin. They are baked without filling and served with vanilla sauce. With fruit-filled Buchteln, the dough and filling are enjoyed together. With unfilled ones, the sauce adds sweetness and a moist texture. The sauce coats the small pieces of dough, and the aromas of milk and egg come together in a single bite.<\/p>\n

The sauce is also made in different ways. Some sauces are thickened by heating milk and egg yolks, some also use starch, and others fold half-whipped cream into a chilled egg-yolk sauce. The sauce is served either warm or cold. Flavor and texture vary not only with size but also with whether there is a filling and which sauce is served alongside.<\/p>\n

\n\"Two\n
Homemade Buchteln served with vanilla sauce (February 20, 2019). Pale sauce has been poured over the sides of the separated buns. Photo: Olivia Fries \/ Wikimedia Commons<\/a> \/ CC BY-SA 4.0<\/a>. Reduced-size version obtained from Commons. No content alterations or cropping.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

A name from Czech and the journey to Vienna<\/h2>\n

The Czech word buchta<\/em>, its plural buchty<\/em> and the diminutive buchti\u010dky<\/em> are the source of the Austrian Buchtel<\/em>, plural Buchteln<\/em>. In western Austria and neighboring Bavaria they are also called Rohrnudeln<\/em>, and in dialect Wuchteln<\/em>. The name of this sweet changed form as it crossed from one region to another.<\/p>\n

In the 18th and 19th centuries, cooks from Bohemia came to work in the homes of Vienna’s townspeople, and dishes made with yeast dough spread along with them. By the Biedermeier period (1815\u201348), Buchteln were known in Vienna too. The dough used in homes and shops is said to have shifted from coarse rye flour to wheat flour. It is not known which household first made them.<\/p>\n

An anecdote from Hermannskogel near Vienna tells of M. Nebenhay, a shopkeeper of the Biedermeier period, who sold \u201cTernobuchteln\u201d with winning numbers for the number lottery \u201cTerno\u201d baked inside. They are said to have been popular with pilgrims on St. Agnes’ Day and on the Feast of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist.<\/p>\n

A specialty of Caf\u00e9 Hawelka<\/h2>\n

At Caf\u00e9 Hawelka in Vienna, co-owner Josefine Hawelka baked Buchteln from her own family recipe and served them to guests, and they became the caf\u00e9’s specialty. This homemade sweet, baked packed together in a pan and pulled apart one by one, also came to be loved in a caf\u00e9 setting.<\/p>\n

The Buchteln that Josefine baked were passed down to her son G\u00fcnter. In an interview with the Vienna Chamber of Commerce, her grandson Amir said that he still follows the original recipe and serves them from 8 p.m. Unlike sweets that can be ordered with coffee at any time, they are a house specialty that guests wait until evening to enjoy.<\/p>\n

Eaten with the liquid from stewed dried fruit or with bean dishes<\/h2>\n

Regional ways of eating Buchteln are not limited to jam-filled sweets. In the Innviertel, they were once made with rye on weekdays and wheat on Sundays, and eaten with the liquid from stewed dried plums or dried pears. In the Weinviertel, there is also a fast-day meal in which unsweetened, unfilled dough is served with a bean dish. Depending on the region, they may be a sweet treat, a bread eaten as part of a meal, or a sweet main dish.<\/p>\n

In the Tennengau area of the state of Salzburg, people once believed that eating Rohrnudeln on Easter Sunday would ward off stomachaches in the year ahead. This local custom is recorded in the official register of traditional foods. This baked sweet also had a place on the table during annual festivities.<\/p>\n

Buchteln belong to the same family of yeast-dough dishes as steamed Dampfnudel<\/a> and boiled or steamed Germkn\u00f6del<\/a>, but they differ in cooking method and brown on top. Packing the dough together and baking it in the oven produces both the shape that can be pulled apart and served one piece at a time and the crust on top.<\/p>\n

Glossary<\/h2>\n

Buchta \/ buchti\u010dky<\/strong>: Czech word forms. They are the source of the Austrian name Buchtel.<\/p>

Bohemia<\/strong>: A historical region centered on what is now western Czechia. It is the home of the flour-based dishes from which Buchteln derive.<\/p>

Josefine Hawelka<\/strong>: Co-owner of Caf\u00e9 Hawelka in Vienna. She baked her own Buchteln and served them to guests.<\/p>

Powidl<\/strong>: A paste-like food made by cooking plums down until thick.<\/p>

Topfen<\/strong>: A fresh cheese used in Austria and elsewhere. It is also used as a filling for sweets.<\/p>

Preferment<\/strong>: A mixture of yeast with flour or liquid that is fermented in advance. In Austria it is called Dampfl.<\/p>

Dukatenbuchteln<\/strong>: Small Buchteln without filling. Named after a gold coin, they are paired with vanilla sauce.<\/p>

Dampfnudel \/ Germkn\u00f6del<\/strong>: Flour-based dishes in which yeast dough is finished by steaming or other methods. They are close relatives of oven-baked Buchteln.<\/p>

M. Nebenhay<\/strong>: A shopkeeper at Hermannskogel near Vienna during the Biedermeier period. He appears in the anecdote about Buchteln containing lottery numbers.<\/p>

Ternobuchteln<\/strong>: A sweet sold at a shop on the outskirts of Vienna during the Biedermeier period, said to have had lottery numbers baked inside.<\/p>

Cake crumbs<\/strong>: Baked cake broken into fine pieces. Here, they are mixed into the poppy seed filling.<\/p>

Marzipan<\/strong>: A paste made by kneading almonds with sugar and other ingredients. One example recipe adds it to a blue poppy seed filling.<\/p>

G\u00fcnter \/ Amir Hawelka<\/strong>: Josefine’s son and grandson. They carried on the family caf\u00e9 and its sweets.<\/p>

References<\/h2>\n
  1. \n

    Austrian Federal Ministry, Register of Traditional Foods No. 175, \u201cBuchteln\u201d<\/a> \u2014 Exchange between Bohemia and Vienna, the Biedermeier period, alternative names, fillings and regional meals, the small version and sauce, and method.<\/p>\n<\/li>

  2. \n

    Czech Academy of Sciences, Czech Language Institute, \u201cEtymology of buchta\u201d<\/a> \u2014 Borrowing of the Czech word into the Austrian name.<\/p>\n<\/li>

  3. \n

    Austria.info, \u201cBuchteln mit Vanillesauce\u201d<\/a> \u2014 Rising, dividing the dough, fruit filling, dipping in butter, the Dukaten type and sauce.<\/p>\n<\/li>

  4. \n

    Wien.info, \u201cBuchteln mit Vanillesauce\u201d<\/a> \u2014 Preferment, placing the pieces seam-side down, and a recipe that adds cream to a chilled sauce.<\/p>\n<\/li>

  5. \n

    Caf\u00e9 Hawelka, \u201cLeopold & Josefine\u201d<\/a> \u2014 How Josefine served Buchteln made from her own recipe to guests.<\/p>\n<\/li>

  6. \n

    Austrian Federal Ministry, Register of Traditional Foods, \u201cBuchteln\u201d (detailed version)<\/a> \u2014 Bohemian household cooks, word forms, the shift from rye to wheat, and Ternobuchteln. The original early cookbooks are not cited.<\/p>\n<\/li>

  7. \n

    Tsuji Culinary Institute Correspondence Education Department, Student Diary, \u201cViennese Pastries (2): Buchteln\u201d (2021-04-13)<\/a> \u2014 The ingredients and steps for the blue poppy seed filling were read directly in this source. It is an example by a course participant published by the school, not a rule common to all products. Its explanation that the name comes from \u201cthe spine of a book\u201d does not match the existing Czech-language sources and is not adopted.<\/p>\n<\/li>

  8. \n

    Vienna Chamber of Commerce, WIENerLEBEN, \u201cHawelka\u201d<\/a> \u2014 An interview with Amir himself confirms that Buchteln are served from 8 p.m. onward and that the original recipe has been carried on. The caf\u00e9’s general opening-hours section does not match the official information and is not used.<\/p>\n<\/li><\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Buchteln are a soft, yeast-raised sweet enjoyed in Austria, Czechia and elsewhere. Small balls of dough are wrapped around a fruit filling or other fillings and baked packed together in a pan. The tops are golden brown, while the sides that touch are pale and soft. Pull one away, and a sweet filling appears from inside the white dough.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":7494,"menu_order":227,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_parade_sweetlore_meta":{"en":"Buchteln","subtitle":"Small buns baked packed together, with a fruit filling","topics":"Wrapping yeast dough one piece at a time \/ Putting melted butter between the pieces \/ The version served with vanilla sauce","country":"Austria, Czechia and elsewhere","show_toc":true,"ingredients":["fruit","butter","egg"],"texture":["moist","smooth"],"occasion":[],"method":["baked","fermented"],"season":[]},"footnotes":""},"sweetlore_category":[166],"class_list":["post-8456","sweetlore","type-sweetlore","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":{"sweetlore_related_products":null,"sweetlore_related_faqs":null,"sweetlore_related_voices":null,"sweetlore_related_mode":"auto","sweetlore_related_articles":null},"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t