5  Swedish lent buns - Fastlagbullar (Semlor)

Dough (yields approx 24 buns):
2 tsp active dry yeast (25 g fresh yeast)
250 g milk
250 g water
1 egg
150 g granulated sugar
150 g butter, cold
5 g (1 tsp) salt
10 g (1 Tbsp) cardamom seeds, to grind
850 g bread flour, unbleached

Almond filling:
500 g almond paste
50 g raw almonds, to ground (or 50 g almond meal)
50 g raw almonds, to chop
5 g (1 Tbsp) ground cardamom
20 g (2.5 Tbsp) vanilla sugar
90 g powdered sugar (confectioners’ sugar)
150 g milk

Serving:
1000 ml heavy cream
granulated sugar
powdered sugar (confectioners’ sugar)

Dough:
1. Grind the cardamom seeds about the size of coarsely ground black pepper.
Follow the instructions on the yeast package to activate it.
Warm the milk and water until finger-warm, not warm nor cold to the touch, and put aside.
Combine ⅔ of the flour with the remaining dry ingredients.
Pour the milk mixture into a bowl of a stand mixer and add the activated yeast.
Add the flour mixture and the egg, and mix on low speed. Add the butter, cut into thin slices, while the mixer is running. When the butter seems incorporated into the mixture, add the remaining flour.
When the mixture has come together into an even mass, increase the speed until medium and mix for another few minutes. The dough should start coming clean away from the sides of the bowl, look glossy, and feel elastic. This will take approx 10 mins in total.

  1. Transfer the dough onto a floured surface and fold it into a package. (If you mixed the dough by hand, don’t worry too much if the dough isn’t completely smooth, it’ll improve after the first rest).
    Put the package back into the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rest for approx two hours at room temperature. Alternatively, let the dough rest in the fridge overnight (up to 10 hours).

  2. By now, the dough should have proofed notably during the rest.
    Transfer dough onto a floured surface and flatten it out a little with your hands. If you let the dough rest in the fridge overnight, take it out about one hour before starting working with it.
    Cut the dough into strips and then into pieces, each about 60 grams (alt. 75 grams). Weigh the first few ones to get an idea of how big the pieces need to be.
    Shape each piece into a ball. As you form the balls, put them, well spaced, onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
    Cover the sheets with plastic wrap and let the balls proof until doubled in size, approx two hours.

  3. Preheat the oven to 435 F (225 C) (or 415 F /210 C for 70 or 75 grams buns) at least 30 mins before you want to start baking.

  4. Make the egg wash by whisking the egg with a pinch of salt and 1 tsp cold water until a darkly yellow and runny mixture.
    Lightly and carefully brush the egg wash onto the rolls.
    Place one sheet at the time into the oven (middle) and bake until deep golden brown color on top and bottom, approx 10-15 minutes (approx 10 minutes for the 70 gram buns and approx 12 minutes for the 75 grams buns). If they start getting color quickly, cover with a piece of aluminum foil until fully baked.
    Remove the buns from the oven and place them on a wire rack to cool. Cover with a kitchen towel while cooling.
    When buns are cooled, transfer them into a plastic ziplock bag to avoid drying too fast. If you are not going to eat them the same day, freeze them.

Filling:
1. Roast 100 grams of almonds at 325 F for approx 10-12 mins. 1. Grind half of them (50 g) into almond flour, and chop the remaining half into small pieces, about 3 mm (⅛ of an inch).
1. Grind the cardamom seeds. About 1.5 tsp seeds will yield 1 Tbsp ground cardamom.
1. Cut the almond paste into chunks, and using a fork or handmixer, mix with the milk. Start with half the milk, adding more as you mix. 1. Combine the remaining ingredients and add them to the mixture. Mix until all is well incorporated into a smooth and fairly soft mixture. Fill a piping bag with the almond mixture and set aside. 1. Cut a triangular lid off the top of each bun with a pair of kitchen scissors, or, alternatively, cut off a (circular) lid from the top of the buns, no more than ⅓ of the height if the bun. Remove some of the crumb in the middle of the bun, to create a little shallow crater. Fill the bun with almond mixture.

Serving:
1. Pour the cream into a mixing bowl and add enough sugar to have it lightly sweetened. Whip the cream to soft peaks but hard enough to hold their shape and fill a piping bag (fitted with a star tip) with the cream. 1. Generously swirl the cream on top of the almond filling and around the top of the bun. 1. Press the lid lightly and carefully onto the cream swirl. 1. Using a fine-mesh tea strainer, dust the top of the assembled bun with powdered sugar and serve immediately.

5.1 Notes

Adopted from Pain de Martin-En God Semla (buns) and Mitt Kök-Roy Fares Semlor (filling)
25 g fresh yeast corresponds to approx 2 tsp dry yeast. You may need to adjust the amount depending on how quickly or slowly your dough is proofing.
Use whole cardamom seeds and grind them in a mortar (or electric mill) just before use. This gives the freshest fragrance and flavor.
Freeze buns that will not be eaten the same day. They hold about one day in room temperature before starting to become dry.
Any almond filling left over can be frozen and kept in the freezer for about two weeks.