Lussekatter – a favourite among Christmas pastries
Lussekatter can, of course, be enjoyed throughout December and not just on Lucia. One challenge when it comes to baking lussekatter is making sure they are not too dry. There are many different tricks and secrets for getting the moistest buns. We’ve put together a few tricks and tips to help you get started with baking lussekatter.
7 tips for preventing dry lussekatter
- Do not use too much flour. Make the dough easy to work with without it being too sticky.
- Do not use too much saffron as it dries out the dough. Instead, you can use less saffron but get more flavour by leaving the saffron in cognac/brandy for a few days.
For example, use 2 tablespoons of cognac for 1 g of saffron. Another trick is to use whole saffron and grind it yourself. - Remove them from the oven before they brown
- Place them tightly together so that they rise together in the oven (about 1 cm in between)
- If you like to have raisins in the dough – a good idea is to soak the raisins in rum or other liquid.
- Cover the buns with a dishtowel as soon as they come out of the oven.
Recipe for lussekatter
Here’s a classic recipe for lussekatter. Good luck!
Ingredients (40 buns)
- 900 g (about 150 ml) of wheat flour
- 200 g butter or margarine
- 500 ml milk
- 50 g (1 packet) sweet dough yeast
- 1 g saffron, 2 packets
- 1 tsp salt
- 200 ml sugar
- Eggs for brushing
- Raisins for garnish
Instructions:
- Melt the butter/margarine in a saucepan.
- Add the milk and heat until lukewarm (37 °C). Crumble the yeast into a dough bowl and pour the batter over. Stir until the yeast dissolves.
- If necessary, grind the saffron with 1-2 tsp sugar in a mortar and stir into the batter.
- Add the other ingredients but save some flour for shaping the buns.
- Work the dough by machine or by hand until smooth.
Add more flour if the dough is sticky, but it should be quite loose. A loose dough makes for tastier buns. - Cover the dough with a baking cloth and leave to rise to double size, about 40 minutes.
- Knead the dough smoothly on the floured baking table and shape your lussekatter.
Our beloved saffron buns can be made into endless shapes. You can twist, fold, and decorate to get the classic shape, or you can make buns with a more personal touch. Why not turn it into an activity that the whole family can take part in? Let the flour dust howl!
The history of lussekatter
According to one interpretation, the custom of baking lussekatter emerged in Germany in the 1600s. According to legend, the devil, disguised as a cat, gave children a beating, while Jesus in the form of a child handed out buns to kind children. To keep the devious devil away, the lussekatter were dyed with the yellow saffron spice.
Another interpretation suggests that it was when the buns began to be baked for Lucia Day that the ‘devil cats’ began to be called lussekatter. The saffron was added in the late 1800s. It is sometimes claimed that the ‘lusse’ part of the word comes from Lucifer, which is a name usually associated with the devil.
