As regular readers know, we have a strong Swedish thread through the blog (not least due to co-author Caroline being Swedish). Back in October, I spent a few hours in the Peters’ Yard bakery – a wonderful experience. I was lucky enough to meet the man behind their fabulous recipes Jan Hedh was in Edinburgh to talk about his new book Swedish Breads and Pastries
-which I recommend for the serious baker.
Now, I know you are all frantically busy, but you might just want to try this recipe when you have some time. Easier still, pop into the bakery and try them.
Saffron Buns - Lussekatter
Preparation time
Cooking time
Total time
This recipe is courtesy of Jan Hedh and Peter's Yard Bakery, Edinburgh. You'll need to set the raisins to soak a few hours in advance. Saffron is best used in moderation, you might just want to use a few strands the first time you make the recipe.
Author: Edinburgh Foody
Recipe type: Bread
Cuisine: Swedish
Serves: 8
Ingredients
- !Dough starter
- 350gr wheat flour with high protein content (e.g stone ground or spelt)
- 13gr castor sugar
- Half a pint of tepid milk
- 14gr dried yeast
- Second stage:
- !Dough starter
- 250g flour
- 90g castor sugar
- 10g salt
- 10g ground cardamom seed
- ½ a lightly whisked egg (save the other half for glaze)
- 125 butter at room temperature
- 2 to 3g saffron ground mixed with a dash of white rum to bring out the flavour and colour
- 40 or so raisins which have been soaked in water for several hours
Instructions
- Put dough starter in bowl, add the sugar, salt, saffron, cardamom and egg
- Add the flour gradually while mixing
- Mix at low speed for 5-6 mins
- Increase speed work the dough until elastic for another 10 mins
- Tip the dough onto a clean surface and leave it to raise for 3+ mins,
Making the Lussekatter
- Separate the dough into pieces of 60g, roll these into long sausage shapes and leave to rise for 5 mins under cover
- Make lussekatter according to picture (looks like the figure 8 normally)
- Decorate with a raisin in each of the two twists (see photo)
- Brush lightly with a beaten egg mixture and leave to raise for 45mins
- Put oven on at 200 degrees centigrade for a fan oven
- Bake until golden for approx 15 mins
Recipe and photograph courtesy of Peter’s Yard
Peter’s Yard Coffee House and Bakery
Quartermile, 27 Simpson Loan
Edinburgh EH3 9GG
0131-228 58 76
Glad to have found your blog. It’s a fresh perspective vs what we’re used to in the US. Plan to both try your recipes complete as well as incorporate some of your ideas into some of our standard recipes. Hope you have a great holiday. Best, Theo
Thank you Theo -we’d appreciate a mention if you do. Lovely to dip into you blog too!
You can also roll out the dough in relatively thin sheets (1/2 cm), smear with butter, a sprinkling of sugar and raisins, roll it up, cut 2cm slices with scissors – not all the way through the roll – and pull the slices to the right or left alternatively to make a kind of braid. A normal size dough will make one or two of these. They stay moist longer than the traditional figure 8 ones and are hugely unhealthy but deeply delicious.