I'm curious about this recipe. I am a private chef to a Swedish family and spend a good portion of the year in Stockholm. I've learned to make many of the Swedish pastries including Semlor. As I understand it, it's tradition to fill them with almond paste and whipped cream. My boss crinkled her nose when I showed her the saveur recipe. She said she'd never heard of this type of filling before in Sweden... Is this recipe from a particular region?
Cardamom Cream Puffs (Semlor)
As Monica Bhide wrote in her homage to cardamom ("Queen of Spices," April 2010), a love for this spice stretches from South Asia to Scandinavia. These cream-filled, cardamom-scented pastries are traditionally served in Sweden on the day before the beginning of Lent.
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Credit: Todd Coleman
3⁄4 cup sugar
3 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tbsp. ground cardamom
3⁄4 tsp. kosher salt
1 1⁄2 cups milk
3 eggs
6 tbsp. unsalted butter,
cut into 1⁄2" cubes
1 cup heavy cream
1 1⁄2 tsp. vanilla extract
FOR THE DOUGH:
1 cup milk, heated to 115°
1⁄2 cup sugar
2 tsp. ground cardamom
2 1⁄4-oz. packages active dry yeast
1 egg
4 cups flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
6 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into
1⁄2" cubes, softened
1 tbsp. heavy cream
1 egg yolk
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting
1. Make the filling: Whisk together sugar, cornstarch, cardamom, and salt in a 2-qt. saucepan; whisk in milk and eggs. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook, whisking constantly, until thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from heat; whisk in butter. Transfer mixture to a bowl; press a piece of plastic wrap onto surface of filling. Refrigerate.
2. In a bowl, whisk cream and vanilla to stiff peaks. Fold whipped cream into chilled filling; transfer to a piping bag fitted with a fluted tip. Chill for 2 hours.
3. Make the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, combine milk, sugar, cardamom, and yeast; stir together and let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes. Add egg; mix to combine. Add flour, baking powder, and salt; mix until a dough forms. Replace paddle with hook attachment; knead on medium speed for 2 minutes. While kneading, slowly add butter in batches, mixing until completely incorporated before adding the next batch, 3–4 minutes. Continue kneading for 4 minutes more after last of butter is added. Transfer dough to a lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap; let sit until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
4. Heat oven to 400°. Transfer dough to a work surface and divide into 16 equal portions. Roll each portion into a ball and place 8 balls each on 2 parchment paper-–lined baking sheets; cover both baking sheets loosely with plastic wrap and let sit until dough has risen slightly, 30 minutes. In a small bowl, stir together cream and egg yolk. Uncover dough balls. Using a pastry brush, brush each dough ball with egg wash. Bake, moving baking sheets from front to back of oven and from top rack to bottom rack halfway through cooking, until golden brown, 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature.
5. Using a knife, cut 1⁄2" from the top of each bun and set aside. Pull out most of dough from inside of each bun; discard. Pipe filling into each cavity; top with reserved lids. Dust with confectioners' sugar.
MAKES 16 BUNS
Ratings & Reviews (4)
I'm from a Scandinavian family, Swedish father and Norwegian mother, and grew up eating Semlor every Lent. I agree with WAYWARD, this might be a "take" on Semlor, but Semlor isn't Semlor w/o the almond filling, whipped cream topping. We serve it in a large bowl filled with some warm milk.
I agree as well with both the previous commentators. I'm Swedish and we've never had that kind of filling in our Semlor... It's almond filling and whipped cream topping, nothing else!
I would give this a half star if I could. "whisk in milk and eggs. Bring to a boil over medium heat" = scrambled eggs - hardly an appetizing filling for a creme puff. And don't even get me started on the puffs. Two packages of yeast is outrageous and 115 degrees killed it right off (my yeast was purchased same day - no other explanation for the lack of bubbles). Glad I had a back up dessert planned! This is a flop and should be removed from the site or seriously amended.
Cardamom Cream Puffs (Semlor)
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