This is an easy recipe for soft and fluffy Easter Pinzen. In Austria, these soft brioche buns are very popular for Easter!
What are Easter Pinzen?
These light and fluffy brioche rolls, called “Osterpinzen” in Austria, are traditionally made for the Easter holidays. In fact, they are only available to buy around Easter time. You’ll get them at bakeries, markets and grocery stores – but they are best when homemade and fresh out of the oven!
The “Osterpinze” is a type of Easter bread made with enriched yeast dough, which is flavored with white wine, anise, and lemon zest. I usually omit the white wine and anise since I am not the biggest fan of those flavors in these baked goods but you can totally add them for the most authentic taste. I’ve made a note in the recipe card below in case you want the traditional anise flavored Pinzen.
Origin of Easter Pinzen
The Easter Pinzen’s origin can be traced back to Italy. From there, they made their way north to Austria’s southern provinces. That’s why Easter Pinzen are widely spread in Carinthia and Styria, the southernmost regions in Austria, just a hop away from Italy.
The name “Pinzen” also derives from the Italian word “pinza”, which means pliers or scissors. The buns are cut into 3 sections with scissors after rising and before baking – that’s where they get their name and distinctive appearance from.
How to make Easter Pinzen
I’ve kept this recipe as simple and fuss-free as possible. The lightly sweet yeast dough contains one whole egg instead of the usual 3 egg yolks. It works as well and you don’t have to fuss around with leftover egg whites.
The dough needs to rise until doubled in volume. I then cut it into 10 portions, form into balls and let them rise again until puffy.
After this second rise comes the special part: You will have to cut them using scissors into 3 sections. Then I brush them with egg-wash and bake them. Easy as that!
Video: How to shape Osterpinzen
I’ve made a short video on how to cut Easter Pinzen. Hope this helps.
How to eat and serve Osterpinzen
Easter Pinzen make for a great breakfast and brunch (Easter Sunday!) but are also widely enjoyed in the evening for “Jause” – usually served in combination with a charcuterie/cheese board. These Easter rolls with their subtle sweetness will go great with the traditional Austrian Easter Jause with colored hard-boiled eggs, ham, and grated horseradish.
More recipes for Easter
Did you make this recipe? Let me know in the comments how it turned out and also leave me a star rating if you want :)
Austrian Easter Brioche Buns (Osterpinzen)
Ingredients
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons (270 ml) lukewarm milk
- 2 1/4 teaspoons (7 g) instant dry yeast
- 5 1/3 tablespoons (75 g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon (65 g) sugar
- 1 egg (large in the US, medium in Europe)
- zest of 1 organic lemon
- 1 teaspoon (6 g) fine salt
- 500 g (about 4 cups) bread flour (also works with AP-flour)
For brushing:
- 1 egg yolk + 1 tablespoon milk
Instructions
Make the dough and 1st rise:
- You can make the dough by hand or in a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment. In a large bowl add warm milk, sprinkle instant yeast on top and let it sit for 1 minute (or 5 minutes if using active dry yeast). Meanwhile, melt butter and let cool.
- Add sugar, egg, lemon zest, melted butter, and salt to the bowl with the milk. Briefly mix everything with the dough hook or a cooking spoon. Add roughly half of the flour and stir until combined and then add the rest of the flour.
- Knead 7-10 minutes until the dough is smooth, moist, and elastic. If kneading by hand, I usually do it directly in the bowl since the dough is pretty tacky. The dough should clear the sides of the bowl towards the end of the kneading time. If not, add a bit additional flour (tablespoon by tablespoon).
- Let the dough rise, covered, at warm room temperature until doubled in size, about 1 to 1½ hours. At cool room temperature it takes a bit longer. See note if you want to do a cold, long rise. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
Shape dough into balls and 2nd rise:
- Divide the dough into 10 equal portions and shape into balls. To do so, flatten each piece on an unfloured working surface and fold the edges inwards to the center, then pinch the ends together. Turn seam-side down and roll the ball under your palm on the counter to get a smooth shape.
- Transfer balls to the prepared baking sheets. Combine egg yolk and milk for the egg-wash. Brush balls with egg-wash (keep leftovers for later). Let buns rise, uncovered, until puffy, about 30-45 minutes. You can put them in a slightly warm oven to speed up the rise.
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C) or if using a fan-oven to 350°F (175°C). At the end of the 2nd rise, brush buns again with egg-wash (thin with more milk if there is too little left). Let the egg-wash dry for 1-2 minutes.
Score buns and bake:
- Cut the buns 3 times from the centre to the edge with a pair of scissors (make deep cuts, see video above for reference). If you have leftover egg-wash, you can brush the cut surface too. The sections will grow back together while baking and will result in the distinctive Pinzen shape.
- Add sheets to the preheated oven and bake until the buns are risen and golden brown, about 15-20 minutes. If using a fan oven, add both sheets at once. If using an oven with top and bottom heat bake one sheet at a time or if baking both sheets at once, swap half-way through for even browning.
- Let the Pinzen cool for a bit and enjoy when still warm. The Pinzen taste best on the baking day. Store leftover buns in an airtight container (they keep a few days) and reheat in the microwave for a few seconds until warm before serving – this way they will soften. Or reheat at 300°F (150°C) for 5 minutes in the oven.
