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How to make Swedish Semlor

I know you’ve seen these before but I think I finally have the perfect recipe for semlor! Last time I posted a recipe for semlor was 6 years ago so an update was due. The buns are quite similar, I’ve tried several recipes but I keep coming back to this one. The almond filling is made with whole, toasted, organic almonds which adds a lovely texture and crunch and most importantly there is a LOT of cardamom in the dough. Freshly ground cardamom, one of the most important things in this recipe. Please don’t skip it!

Maybe you noticed in my last post, or maybe you didn’t but either way I started a YouTube-channel! It has been on my mind for some time and I’ve just been dabbling in video making for years but it’s probably one of my favorite things to do. So now I’d love to know if you have any thoughts on things you’d like to see there. Maybe more about photography? Styling? Life? More baking? Mozart? Hehe. You get the idea. Feel free to give me all your thougths, if you have any. Or just go ahead and make these delicious pastries. And make sure to eat them on February 25th (before and after works too), which is Fat Tuesday this year!

SWEDISH SEMLOR

Makes 9

My favorite recipe for Swedish semlor! I’ve tried several different recipes by now but I keep coming back to this one. I can’t stress enough the importance of using freshly ground cardamom for these, so do buy cardamom pods and grind by yourself. These are best served the same day they are made but if you have leftovers, you can eat them in a bowl with hot milk. in Sweden we call this ‘hetvägg’. You can also freeze the buns as soon as they have cooled and fill them later on. UPDATE February 10th 2023: I recommend letting the buns rise for at least 90 minutes- preferably 2 hours. And if you want the buns to look matte and even in color, skip the egg wash.

INGREDIENTS

BUNS

  • 25 g fresh yeast
  • 125 ml (1/2 cup + 1 tsp) cold milk
  • 75 g (1/3 cup) granulated sugar
  • 1 tbsp freshly ground cardamom
  • 1 medium egg
  • 325 g (11.4 oz) all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tbsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp flaky salt
  • 100 g (1 scant stick) very soft salted butter

ALMOND FILLING

  • 100 g (3.5 oz) whole almonds
  • 100 g (1/2 cup) granulated sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • 100 ml (1/3 cup + 1 1/2 tbsp) milk
  • pinch of cardamom

EGG WASH

  • 1 egg
  • 1 tbsp water or milk
  • pinch of salt

    • FILLING & TOPPING

    • 300 ml (1 1/4 cup) heavy whipping cream
    • Powdered sugar, to dust

INSTRUCTIONS

BUNS

  1. Crumble the yeast into the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl if you’re working by hand. Stir in a little bit of the cold milk until the yeast has dissolved.
  2. Add the rest of the milk, sugar, freshly ground cardamom and egg and stir. Combine flour and baking powder in a medium bowl. Add about half of the flour & baking powder mix to the dough, then stir until the dough just comes together.
  3. Add the salt, the remaining flour mix and the butter. Work the dough using the dough hook on a stand mixer, for 10-15 minutes or until the dough is very soft and elastic. The dough will be a little sticky but don’t be tempted to add more flour! Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let the dough rest for 10 minutes.
  4. On a floured surface, divide the dough into 9 equally sized pieces. Using your hands (which should also be floured), shape each piece of dough into a ball using a circling motion until the bun is smooth and shiny. Cup your hand around the bun without too much pressure and swirl it around in a circling motion to shape it into a round and smooth ball (see video!).
  5. Gently transfer the buns to a baking sheet with baking paper, and remember to leave some space between them so they can rise. Cover the buns with a clean kitchen towel and leave to rise for at least 90 minutes, up to 2 hours. Meanwhile, go through the next steps to prepare the almond filling.

ALMOND FILLING

  1. Heat oven to 200°C (390°F). Spread the almonds on a baking sheet and toast in the oven for 8-10 minutes, or until fragrant. Let cool.
  2. Combine almonds, sugar, salt, milk and cardamom if desired, in a food processor/mixer. Pulse until everything comes together, the mixture should be quite runny but with a slightly chunky texture from the almonds. Place the almond filling in the fridge while going through the next steps.

BAKING & ASSEMBLY

  1. Increase the oven temperature to 225°C (435°F). Whisk together the egg, water and salt in a small bowl. Gently brush the buns with the egg wash if you wish.
  2. Bake the buns for 11-13 minutes or until golden brown in color. Let cool on a wire rack.
  3. Cut the tops of the buns to create a lid using a serrated knife, and make a small well in the middle of the bun using a fork. Save the crumb from the buns and add to the almond paste. Add a splash of milk to the almond filling if it gets too thick in consistency. Spoon the almond filling into the well in each bun.
  4. In a medium bowl, beat the cream to soft peaks.
  5. Pipe the cream onto each bun and place the ‘lid’ on top. Dust with powdered sugar. Best eaten the same day they are made.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. beautiful post, and am loving your youtube channel!! yes to more baking and more behind the scenes of your life and ALWAYS more Mozart!! 🙂

    Reply

  2. Love that you are on You Tube. Love to see more recipes and decorations projects, such as your paper stars. And of course, see more of Mozart♥️♥️♥️

    Reply

  3. Thank you for your recipe, but I am a bit confused about yeast being dissolved in cold milk and not in warm milk? I guess I always thought you need warm milk to activate the yeast?

    Reply

    • Cold milks works great! It takes a little longer to rise, but on the other hand I feel like the end result is better. And as you work the dough it will quickly come to room temp 🙂 I think it is a little different when you’re using dry yeast, it needs a higher temperature!

      Reply

  5. Yesssss!!!
    For the longest time I wondered why you haven’t made a YouTube channel because your photography is beautiful. I would love to see you make more recipe videos.

    Reply

    • Hehe, that makes me so happy to hear!! I usually need some time to think about things, now was the time!! Will definitely make more recipe videos 🙂

      Reply

  7. Hi Linda!
    What a beautiful and original recipe. Your amazing photography skills and style always stun me. I am excited to check your channel out! Please post more recipes like this one, style and travel videos!

    Reply

  9. The recipe looks great! I want to bring these to work tomorrow, do you recommend to bake the buns tonight, or let them rise overnight and bake them in the morning? Thank you!

    Reply

    • Sorry for my late response, hope they turned out great 🙂 I’d say it depends on how much time you have in the morning – it takes some time baking them, letting them cool, filling them and so on.. I’ve never let them rise overnight but if I would, I’d do it in the fridge. I’m sure they’d turn out great!!

      Reply

    • Yaay! It’s not a problem unless it’s really hot but it never is in February when I bake these hehe 🙂 Also very important to let the buns cool completely!

      Reply

  11. Hi!

    New reader, and I adore your blog! I’m eager to try this recipe was just wondering, I’m unable to find fresh yeast, is there any way to substitute it for fast acting yeast?

    Thank you, and good luck! x

    Reply

  12. Love the recipe. I need to try it someday! For the whipped cream did you add any sugars or other flavoring/sweetener or did you just use straight up cream?

    Reply

  13. Hej! Testar just ditt recept (tack!) och har försökt följa det till pricka men när jag penslade bullarna (försökte göra så försiktigt jag kunde) pyste dom ihop och blev alldeles platta. Även platta efter gräddning, ser mer ut som tekakor än bullar. Vad har jag gjort för fel tror du?
    Bästa hälsningar Emma

    Reply

    • Hej Emma! Åh, vad tråkigt att det inte blev bra! Det låter som att de kanske var något överjästa, då brukar de bli väldigt känsliga även om man penslar försiktigt. Testa att låta dem jäsa lite kortare tid nästa gång, eller på en svalare plats (om de stod lite varmare nu vill säga). Hoppas det blir bättre nästa gång!

      Reply

  14. Hi! I love this recipe and have made it multiple times. However, I do sometimes have troubles with the buns cracking on top while baking? Do you have any tip for this? Let them proof longer maybe? 🙂

    Reply

    • Hi Klára!
      I’m so glad you love the recipe!!
      I don’t think the problem is in the proofing, usually when they crack or are uneven it’s because you need to put more time into what we in Swedish call ‘rundriva’. I have no idea how to translate this but it is basically where you make the surface of the bun stretch and tense (I don’t have a better word here either, sorry!) so it comes out even and smooth. If you look at my video, this is what I’m doing at around 1.27 minutes. The buns I made in this post: https://www.callmecupcake.se/2013/01/semlor-3.html I skipped this step and that is why they are uneven. It doesn’t affect the taste, just the look 🙂 Hope that helps!

      Reply

  15. Hello,

    Came across your recipe (and blog) this afternoon and I am so enthralled that I’ve already placed an order for your books. It’s my mom’s birthday tomorrow and I think she will just love Semlor. Fingers crossed they turn out ok.

    Have a great day!

    Reply

    • That makes me so happy to hear, Shani, thank you! And Happy Belated birthday to your mom. Have a great day!

      Reply

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