Semla — Print Recipe — The Culinary Codex

A cardamom-scented wheat bun split open, filled with almond paste and towering whipped cream, dusted with powdered sugar.

Ingredients

500g bread flour
7g instant yeast
100g sugar
1 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp salt
200ml milk, warmed
100g butter, softened
1 egg
For filling: 200g almond paste, 100ml milk, 400ml heavy cream, powdered sugar for dusting

1 Mix flour, yeast, sugar, cardamom, and salt. Add warm milk, egg, and softened butter. Knead 10 min until smooth.
2 Let rise 1 hour until doubled. Divide into 8 pieces, shape into smooth round buns.
3 Place on a lined baking sheet, cover, and rise 30 min.
4 Bake at 220°C (425°F) for 12-14 min until golden. Cool completely.
5 Slice the top off each bun. Scoop out some crumb. Blend crumb with almond paste and milk into a paste. Fill each bun.
6 Whip cream until stiff. Pipe a generous swirl on each bun. Replace the top and dust with powdered sugar.

Did You Know?

Swedes eat approximately 40 million semlor each year — King Adolf Frederick of Sweden reportedly died in 1771 after eating 14 semlor in one sitting.