Cheryl Marie Cordeiro

An evening with homebaked Lussekatter or saffron buns that are usually made in Sweden in celebration of St. Lucia’s Day that falls on 13 December.
Text & Photo © JE Nilsson, CM Cordeiro, Sweden 2015

I love when Christmas comes a little early. In this case, I thought to settle and bake a batch of saffron infused buns called Lussekatt that in the tradition of Sweden, are baked in celebration of St. Lucia’s day that falls on 13 December. This, and a cup of glogg sounds pretty much a good start to the jultide season.

Lussekatter | Saffransbröd

It’s just about -1degC outdoors, and this thing was sitting snug and warm, rising in its bowl.

Lussekatter | Saffransbröd

The recipe for Santa Lucia saffron bread has little variation to it. I’ve seen in bakeries, a variation where they’re sprinkled over with pearl sugar, and some infused likewise with cardamom. These here were washed over with an egg as a last thing before being put into the oven, to help them caramelise at the top.

Lussekatter | Saffransbröd

Out of the oven, cooling under some tea towels.

Cheryl Marie Cordeiro