DIY 13

Lussebullar – Saint Lucia Buns
On the 13 of December we celebrate the Saint Lucia in Sweden. We bake “Lussebullar” and eat them with our morning coffee. We also dress up in white cloaks, wear candles in our hair and sing Christmas hymns. I know it’s a well-known fact that we Swedes take every opportunity to sing obscure songs and drench our sorrows in aquavit. But no obscure songs this time- just beautiful, poetic and solemn songs.

Photo by Hanne Hermansson

Here comes the recipe.

Ingredients:
• 300 ml milk
• 1 g saffron
• 50 g baker's yeast
• 150 g sugar
• 125 g butter or 125 g margarine
• 700 g all-purpose flour
• 1 egg
• raisins

Directions
1. Melt butter or margarine in a pan and add the milk and the saffron.
2. Warm the mixture to 37 oC (100 oF).
3. Pour the mixture over the finely divided yeast; then add the remaining ingredients (except for the egg and the raisins),
4. Mix into a smooth dough.
5. Cover the dough with a piece of cloth and let it rise for 30 minutes.
6. Knead the dough, divide it into 24 pieces
7. Form each bun into a string, 15-20 cm long, then arrange the string into an S

8. Press a few raisins into the dough.
9. Cover the"Lucia buns" with a piece of cloth and let them rise for 40 minutes.
10. Whip the egg together and paint the buns with the mixture.
11. Bake them for 5-10 minutes in the oven at 250 degrees C until golden brownish yellow.



Eat them while they are still a bit warm.

Yum!
Jeanette!