Sweet Buns for Fat Tuesday

Fat Tuesday is the last hurrah before the season of Lent with fasting and serious reflections begin.  When I was a young woman living in Sweden, Fat Tuesday (Fet Tisdag) and the following Tuesdays leading up to Easter, were celebrated by eating Sweet Buns with an almond paste and whipped cream, each served in bowl with warmed milk.

This is a basic recipe for sweet buns (semlor) :

To start, melt seven (7) tbs of butter or margarine--almost a whole stick.  Set aside in a small bowl and use the same pot to warm half a cup of milk, a tbs of sugar, remove from stove, and add two (2) packets of dry yeast.  Stir and set aside.  The yeast is alive and well when it starts to bubble.

Take out two eggs and let stand at room temperature while you measure out four (4) cups of flour, reserving some for the board to knead the dough later.

Measure out 1/2 cup of sugar to combine with the flour and add 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp ground nutmeg, and 1 tsp salt.

Now, beat one (1) egg and add to the dry ingredients.  Also add 1 and 1/2 cups of warm milk and the melted butter or margarine.

I used a wooden spoon to mix the ingredients well in a bowl large enough for the dough to double in size.  I covered the bowl with a dish towel and set it aside to let the dough rise for 30 minutes.

When the dough had doubled in size, I turned it onto a floured working space on my drain board and started kneading with the heels of my hands, adding flour as needed.  When the dough was somewhat firm, I cut it in half and kept halving until I had 16 pieces.  Using my hands, I quickly rolled the pieces into round balls, put them on two baking sheets, covered them with dish towels, and let them stand for about 20  minutes.

 I baked the buns in a 425 degree F oven for 12 minutes and kept a watchful eye on them.

In the meantime, I separated the other egg and beat the egg white to be used for brushing the buns when they were taken out of the oven and put on plates to cool.

While still warm, I placed one bun in a deep dish, cut off the top, and instead of an almond paste, I added chopped Florida strawberries and whipped cream.  I returned the top and dusted it with confectioner's sugar.

I had also heated milk that I now poured into the plate, presented my husband with the dish and a spoon.  Eat, my love.  He did.  He enjoyed it.

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