Buchteln (or wuchteln) are pull-apart style Austrian sweet yeast rolls typically filled with jam. They originate in Bohemia, and there are many cultures throughout Central and Eastern Europe that enjoy variations of these sweet buns. They're perfect for breakfast or dessert!
Austrian buchteln (pronounced BOOGH-teln) also colloquially called wuchteln go by many other names. They're called buchta or buchty (plural) in Czech, Rohrnudeln in Bavaria, buhteljni in Slovenian, buhtle in Serbian and Croatian, and bukta in Hungarian. Regardless of what they're called, they're all essentially the same slightly sweet yeast rolls that are often filled with jam or poppy seed paste.
This recipe for buchteln features an apricot jam filling which is very common particularly in Austria. Powidl is another common filling both in Austria and also other parts of Bohemia like the Czech Republic. It's a very specific type of plum jam, but it may be difficult to find in other parts of the world unless you make it yourself.
You can enjoy these stuffed sweet rolls for breakfast, dessert, or even as a snack. Honestly, they are delicious and enjoyable regardless of the time of day. They're fluffy and pillowy soft when still warm, but still fantastic once they cool to room temperature.
Ingredient notes
- Milk: The fat content of the milk used for this recipe is quite flexible. I've made it with low-fat milk but you can also make it with whole milk and anything in between. There is plenty of richness coming from melted butter that the fat content of the milk is less important in this case.
- Yeast: This buchteln recipe uses active dry yeast. I have not tested it with different types of yeast, however I will provide general substitution guidelines in case you need to try them.
- Instant yeast: reduce the amount of yeast by 25% and mix the yeast directly into the flour mixture. Proceed with the recipe as directed.
- Fresh yeast: double the amount of yeast and crumble it into your warm milk mixture. Proceed with the recipe as directed.
- Flour: This recipe uses all-purpose flour. When measuring flour, weight measurements are most accurate using a digital scale. This is what I recommend, and what I use. To measure in cups, spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level it off, don't scoop. Scooping flour packs the flour into the cup, and you will end up with more flour than you expected.
- Jam: Austrian buchteln is made either with no filling at all, or is usually filled with a small amount of apricot jam. The dough and process for making Austrian buchteln is basically identical to Czech buchty, but with different fillings. Buchty usually uses a poppy seed paste or powidl, a traditional Bohemian jam made from zwetschge plums without any additional sweeteners or gelling agents. It's dense and dark brown. You can easily swap out the apricot jam for another flavor of smooth jam if you prefer. You'll only need about 1 teaspoon per roll.
How to make it
Combine warm milk and yeast and allow to stand for about 10 minutes to activate the yeast.
In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add flour, sugar and salt and give it a quick stir just to combine. Add the milk-yeast mixture, melted butter, egg, and vanilla extract, and mix together on medium speed for about 5 minutes.
The dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl, be very elastic, but not sticky. You should also be able to stretch a small piece of dough with your hands so it is thin enough and nearly transparent without it ripping (windowpane test).
Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel or plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise in a warm spot until doubled in size (about 1 to 2 hours but really depends on ambient temperature) (PHOTOS 1-2).
Brush melted butter in a baking dish. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface, deflate it, and divide it into 12 equal pieces (each weighing about 55 grams) (PHOTO 3). For each ball of dough, fold the edges under the middle a couple of times so you will get a nice ball with a smooth surface on the top, then flip them over so the smooth side is on the bottom (PHOTO 4).
Flatten each ball with your palm to a circle with a diameter of 3 to 3 ½ inches. Put 1 teaspoon of jam into the center of each disc of dough (PHOTO 5), then lift up the edges of the dough, bringing them together and pinch to seal, smoothing out the dough as best you can (PHOTO 6).
Be sure to avoid getting jam on the edges of the dough because it won’t stick together to seal. Flip the ball over so the sealed side is on the bottom and the smooth side is on top. Set aside. Repeat with the remaining dough and jam until you have 12 sealed balls.
Transfer the sealed balls of dough with the sealed side down into the prepared dish. It’s ok if they are touching. Brush the buchteln all over with melted butter (PHOTO 7). Loosely cover and proof again in a warm-ish spot for about 30 minutes until puffed up (PHOTO 8). If they appear dry afterwards, you may brush them all with a bit more melted butter.
Preheat the oven to 375°F / 190°C with the oven rack in the center. Bake the buchteln for about 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown (PHOTO 9). Cool for about 15 to 20 minutes, then dust with confectioners’ (icing) sugar and serve (PHOTO 10).
You can also serve these sweet yeast rolls with a vanilla sauce which is quite traditional, especially if you are enjoying them for dessert (versus breakfast). Store leftover buchteln in an airtight container at room temperature.
Please scroll to the bottom of the post for the full recipe (in a printable recipe card) including ingredient amounts and detailed instructions.
Expert tips and FAQs
Buchteln are softest when freshly baked and still a bit warm or at room temperature. They will become a bit more firm-textured by the following day, and the powdered sugar will dissolve into the top crust once they are covered. You can refresh them for a few minutes in an oven or toaster oven at 350°F to just warm them back up and re-soften them, if desired.
If the dough for your sweet rolls is very sticky after mixing, sprinkle in another teaspoon of flour and mix a couple minutes more and repeat if needed until the texture is correct. If the dough isn’t sticky but you can’t do the windowpane test, knead it another couple minutes and check again.
If your house is particularly cool or drafty, and you don’t have a warm spot to proof the dough, try this technique. Turn on your oven (at any temperature) for just 30 to 60 seconds or so. Turn it off the moment the oven feels slightly warm but not hot (just keep opening the door and checking). Then cover your dough and place it in the slightly warm oven and let it proof in there. This works great during winter months. On a warm summer day, regular room temperature should be sufficient.
Other recipes you may like
- Cremeschnitten (Austrian Cream Slices)
- Vanillekipferl (Austrian Vanilla Crescent Cookies)
- Apfelstrudel (Austrian Apple Strudel)
- Topfenstrudel (Quark Strudel / Cheese Strudel)
- Donauwelle Kuchen (Danube Wave Cake / Snow White Cake)
- Chorek (Armenian Sweet Bread)
- Viennoise au Chocolat (Vienna Bread with Chocolate)
- Zopf / Butterzopf (Swiss Braided Bread)
- Sally Lunn Buns
- Jean-Louis Palladin's Brioche
- Russian Pirog with Apricot Preserves
Tried this recipe? Please leave a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page. You can also follow me on social media on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
Buchteln (Austrian Stuffed Sweet Rolls)
Ingredients
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons (150 ml) milk, heated until warm (100 to 115°F)
- 1 ½ teaspoons (5 g) active dry yeast
- 2 ¾ cups plus 2 tablespoons (355 g) all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
- 3 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons (40 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 5 ½ tablespoons (77 g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
To Assemble and Finish:
- 4 tablespoons smooth apricot jam or powidl
- 1 tablespoon (14 g) unsalted butter, melted for the pan and topping (or more as needed)
- Confectioner’s (icing) sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Combine the warm milk and yeast in a liquid measuring cup or bowl and allow to stand for about 10 minutes to activate the yeast.
- In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add the flour, sugar and salt and give it a quick stir just to combine. Add the milk-yeast mixture, melted butter, egg, and vanilla extract, and mix together on medium speed for about 5 minutes. The dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl, be very elastic, but not sticky. You should also be able to stretch a small piece of dough with your hands so it is thin enough and nearly transparent without it ripping (windowpane test).
- Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel or plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise in a warm spot until doubled in size (about 1 to 2 hours but really depends on ambient temperature).
- Brush some but not all of the 1 tablespoon melted butter in a baking dish (rectangular, oval, and round will all work) approximately 12-by-7-inches in size give or take (about 1.75 to 2 quarts volume).
- Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface, deflate it, and divide it into 12 equal pieces (each weighing about 55 grams). For each ball of dough, fold the edges under the middle a couple of times so you will get a nice ball with a smooth surface on the top, then flip them over so the smooth side is on the bottom.
- Flatten each ball with your palm to a circle with a diameter of 3 to 3 ½ inches. Put 1 teaspoon of jam into the center of each disc of dough, then lift up the edges of the dough, bringing them together and pinch to seal, smoothing out the dough as best you can. Be sure to avoid getting jam on the edges of the dough because it won’t stick together to seal. Flip the ball over so the sealed side is on the bottom and the smooth side is on top. Set aside. Repeat with the remaining dough and jam until you have 12 sealed balls.
- Transfer the sealed balls of dough with the sealed side down into the prepared dish. It’s ok if they are touching. Brush the buchteln all over with the remaining melted butter (remelt it if necessary). Loosely cover and proof again in a warm-ish spot for about 30 minutes until puffed up. If they appear dry afterwards, you may brush them all with a bit more melted butter.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F / 190°C with the oven rack in the center. Bake the buchteln for about 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.
- Cool for about 15 to 20 minutes, then dust with confectioners’ (icing) sugar and serve. You can also serve them with a vanilla sauce which is quite traditional. Store leftover buchteln in an airtight container at room temperature.
Notes
- Buchteln are softest when freshly baked and still a bit warm or at room temperature. They will become a bit more firm-textured by the following day, and the powdered sugar will dissolve into the top crust once they are covered. You can refresh them for a few minutes in an oven or toaster oven at 350°F to just warm them back up and re-soften them, if desired.
- If the dough is very sticky after mixing, sprinkle in another teaspoon of flour and mix a couple minutes more and repeat if needed until the texture is correct. If the dough isn’t sticky but you can’t do the windowpane test, knead it another couple minutes and check again.
- If your house is particularly cool or drafty, and you don’t have a warm spot to proof the dough, try this technique. Turn on your oven (at any temperature) for just 30 to 60 seconds or so. Turn it off the moment the oven feels slightly warm but not hot (just keep opening the door and checking). Then cover your dough and place it in the slightly warm oven and let it proof in there. This works great during winter months. On a warm summer day, regular room temperature should be sufficient.
- In the Austrian version of this recipe, apricot jam is very traditional. For the Czech version (called Buchty), the filling is usually poppy seed paste or powidl, a traditional Bohemian jam made from zwetschge plums without any additional sweeteners or gelling agents.
- Adapted from Li'l Vienna
Nutrition
*All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.*
Renate says
I had a hard time sealing the edges, they would not stick....and there was no jam touching the edges
Victoria says
Hi Renate,
I'm sorry to hear that. It's possible that your dough was a little too dry and not sticking to itself to seal. Did you measure the ingredients in volume or weight? You may have added a bit too much flour or used a little more flour than needed when portioning the dough into balls. That's my initial guess as to what would cause your dough not to stick to itself to seal. It's also possible that the natural humidity in your kitchen can impact the texture of the dough. On a humid day your dough may be wetter and stickier and on a dry day the dough may end up with a drier texture.
Scott Michaels says
My Great Grandmother was from Vienna, Austria. She passed away 50 years ago while I was in high school in Memphis, TN. One of my fondest memories of her was her dedication to cooking for others. In particular I remember her favorite dish โฆ Wuchteln. I can still smell the rolls baking in her kitchen.
Seeing your Wuchteln recipe on your website made my heart stop. It is the closest recipe to what she used to make. After 50 years of thinking Iโd never taste her dish again (she never wrote any of her recipes down โฆ) Iโve finally found what she used to make. Being able to resurrect some fond, family history is beyond words.
Thank you for your hard work and research and for sharing these recipes. Have been waiting 50 years!
Annie says
These are very good! I used plum jam instead of apricot but otherwise followed the recipe exactly.