Recipe for Lussekatter
Known by many different names, lussekatt, lussebulle, saffronskuse or julkuse, "lucy cats" (as I first learned to call them) have a central position in Swedish winter culture.
Lussekatter make regular appearances in our kitchen throughout the year - they're far too nice to be confined to December. But as it's Lucia tomorrow (December 13th), I thought a recipe might be useful for anyone not yet initiated into this fine Swedish tradition - please see below.
You can also read more about Lucia in Sweden and listen to the Swedish Lucia song here.
Lussekatter, with their deep yellow colour and distinctive aroma of saffron, are strongly connected to the Lucia celebrations. I was surprised to find when I first wanted to make them for myself when living in Lund that in Swedish supermarkets, packets of saffron are not put out on the shelves to be sold like common groceries but squirrelled away under the cashier's desk, lest this precious substance (by weight more valuable than gold) be pilfered by crazed hordes of lussekatt bakers.
Buying saffron in Sweden is therefore something of an ordeal - you have to approach the cashier with your most honest and trustworthy smile, asking humbly and politely if they'd very much mind releasing one of these prized little parcels into your safe keeping. Once procured, it's important to conceal your saffron packet deep inside your winter coat and well out of the way of prying eyes as you scurry furtively back to the kitchen.
The term "lussekatt" had nothing to do originally with Lucia, but was a reference to the devil, Lucifer. The tradition comes from 17th century Germany, where the devil (in the form of a cat) was there to beat children while Jesus (in the form of a child) distributed buns to the nice ones! The strong yellow colouring was meant to ward off the darkness of the devil.
Lussekatter first appeared in Sweden towards the end of the 17th century and by the beginning of the 1800s (when Sweden began to celebrate Lucia) the tradition had spread throughout the country.
Lussekatter come in many shapes and forms, and part of the fun of making them is coming up with new designs. But the most common remains the "S" shape reminiscent of a sleeping cat.
Recipe for Lussekatter (makes around 40 buns):
Ingredients:
200g butter
5dl milk
2g saffron
50g yeast
½ tsp salt
1-2dl sugar
1.4-1.5dl plain while flour
raisins for topping
1 egg for glazing
How to make Lussekatter:
- Melt the butter in the pan. Pour in the milk and heat to finger temperature (37 degrees C).
- Crumble the yeast into a baking bowl. Pour in the lukewarm milk and mix.
- Crush the saffron and a small amount of sugar together using a pestle and mortar. Add this, the rest of the sugar and salt to the bowl and mix.
- Add most of the flour and work the dough well until it no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl.
- Cover the bowl with a towel to let the mixture rise for 30-40 minutes (don't leave it too long, as the mixture will dry out).
- Sprinkle some flour on your baking surface and on your hands. Knead the dough lightly. When it's no longer sticky, it's ready to be separated and formed into Lussekatts. Garnish with raisins, pushing them down into dough.
- Place on a baking tray, cover with a teatowel and allow to rise for 15 mins.
- Beat the egg and glaze the top of each lussekatt with a brush.
- Bake in the oven at 250 degrees C for about 8 minutes. Remove from oven, cover with a teatowel to keep the buns moist and allow to cool.
- Enjoy! I like mine covered in butter (though this is a British thing, not a Swedish one!) and served with hot chocolate.
