Gluten-free sourdough loaf with whole buckwheat groats
A gluten-free sourdough loaf of about 1 kg. A buckwheat and quinoa starter leavens a dough with cooked whole buckwheat groats, millet and a dark gluten-free bread mix, baked in a lidded pot.
Kaisersemmel / Kaiser roll
Kaisersemmel · Wiener Kaisersemmel · Handsemmel
The Kaisersemmel is an Austrian wheat roll with a five-part star, associated with Vienna and the Viennese breakfast. The formula below is a technical bakery batch of 30 rolls from the Austrian ministry.
Identity and Vienna
The Kaisersemmel is a wheat roll with a five-part star cut into its top. The Austrian ministry identifies it especially with Vienna and the Viennese breakfast, where it is a standard morning roll.
Sources for this section
Competing origin stories
The ministry reports two stories and does not settle between them. One account places the earliest mentions around 1487, during Friedrich III’s reign, and some sources link the name to him. Another story credits a Viennese baker named Kayser around 1730; it says he noticed that much of the flavour comes from the crust and that the notches increase its share. The inventor and the name’s origin remain uncertain. The ministry also records Kaisersemmeln at Maria Theresa’s court in the eighteenth century.
Sources for this section
Why the steam and the notch matter
The ministry describes steam at the start of the bake and the turned-over shaping as two controls. Steam keeps the skin soft so it stays crack-free and can expand. The star cut opens the surface to the oven, which the 1730 account links to crust area.
Sources for this section
Ingredients
Yield 30 rolls · Scaling: source batch only
1000 g
Type 700600 g
Yeast
40 g
Baking malt
20 g
Fat
10 g
Butter or baking margarine20 g
Method
- Mix the dough by the direct method. The total recipe weight is 1690 g. Replacing about a third of the water with whole milk gives a softer crumb and deeper crust.
- Hold the dough at 25 to 27 C. The longer the dough rests, the lower the temperature should be. Let it rise in the bowl for under 1 to 2 hours.
- After dividing and rounding, rest the pieces 15 to 20 minutes so the dough relaxes before shaping.
- Shape the rolls and place them star side down for the final proof, as the source directs.
- Final proof for about 45 minutes at 30 to 35 C and 80 percent humidity.
- Turn the rolls over before baking. Introduce steam at the start of baking (Beschwadung), which keeps the skin moist and the crust free of cracks.
- Bake for about 20 minutes at roughly 200 C, star side up. A light spray of water before baking gives a glossy crust.
Conditions
Yield30 rolls
Fermentationup to 2 h
Temperature200°C
Places
Vienna
Traditional preparation · Country evidenceThe ministry associates the five-star roll with Vienna and the Viennese breakfast. Its inventor is uncertain.
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Sources
Austrian Federal Ministry for Agriculture, Forestry, Climate and Environmental Protection, Regions and Water ManagementMethod · History · Inspiration
KaisersemmelBakery dough example, proofing, steam and baking.
Vienna association and the competing 1487 and 1730 origin stories, with the inventor uncertain.
Cited in: Identity and Vienna; Competing origin stories; Why the steam and the notch matter