Swedish Semlor Buns are soft cardamom scented buns stuffed with marzipan under a thick layer of whipped cream. Semla is a delicious Swedish pastry commonly eaten during Lundi Gras, Fat Tuesdays (Shrove Tuesday), and the days leading up to and during Lent. You’ll be pleasantly surprised how easy this classic Swedish Semla recipe is to make for any special occasion!
What are Swedish Semlor Buns
First, let’s clarify that Semlor is plural and Semla is singular… So you eat a Semla from a batch of semlor.
A Swedish Semla is a cardamom-spiced baked sweet bun that’s been cut in half and filled with layers of almond marzipan and a rich cream frosting. This delicious treat is finished with a generous dusting of powdered sugar for a beautiful presentation and extra sweetness.
In Sweden, this special pastry is only made for two months out of the year in celebration of Lent. During these months an estimated 40 million Semlor are sold. For a small population of just 10 million people. That’s a crazy amount of Semlor. It’s estimated that over 6 million are sold in one single day during Fat Tuesday!
A huge thank you to my son, who is living in Stockholm, who introduced me to these Lundi Gras (Fat Monday) Swedish Semlor Buns. We had a little video chat while he was eating one of the delicious buns. He actually had to ask me twice to research them and find out how to make them… And he says “you’re welcome” for me sharing this wonderful Swedish Semla buns recipe to you today!
Recipe Ingredients
For the Buns
- Yeast
- Warm water
- Egg
- Sugar
- Salt
- Fresh ground cardamom
- Milk
- Butter
- All-purpose flour
- Extra egg to glaze
To Make the Marzipan Filling
- Bread crumbs from inside the baked buns
- Marzipan
- Cream or milk
- Almond extract
For the Cream Topping
- Whipping cream
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla
- Extra powdered sugar for dusting
How to Make Semla from Scratch
Don’t be overwhelmed with all the steps below. I’m taking you through the Semla recipe steps slowly so your first Semlor are perfect the first time. You’ll find it as easy as making bread dough.
First – Make the Semlor Dough
- Gather and measure all ingredients to make the dough. Sprinkle yeast on top of warm water. Stir to dissolve and set aside. In a large mixing bowl beat egg then slowly add sugar, salt, and cardamom. Set aside.
- In a small saucepan melt butter. When butter begins to simmer a bit pour in milk. Remove from heat immediately. This should warm the milk to the perfect temperature of around 110-112℉. With the mixer turned on, slowly pour the milk into the egg/sugar mixture. Add dissolved yeast.
- Mix in flour 1 cup at a time. Mixing after each addition.
- If kneading by hand turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. If using a mixer, continue to knead with a dough hook for about 3-5 minutes. The dough should be soft and smooth.
- Form dough into a round ball and return to the bowl. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise for about 60 minutes or until double in size.
- Remove the dough from the bowl and gently press out the air. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces(75 grams if you want to weigh it) and form into rounds. Place the rounds of dough onto the prepared baking trays lined with parchment paper or greased. Cover lightly with plastic wrap. Set aside for about 45-60 minutes or until the buns have almost doubled in size.
Next, Bake the Sweet Buns and Prepare the Almond Filling
- When ready to bake brush each bun with the remaining egg and bake in a 375℉ preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until golden brown.
- Cool completely before filling.
- To make the filling slice the tops from the buns. Scoop out the filling. Tear the bread into breadcrumbs and place into a bowl.
- Grate the marzipan add to the bowl. Add cream and almond extract. Mix together to form a paste.
Lastly, Fill and Finish the Semlor Buns
- Divide the filling between the buns and set aside
- Place the cream into a large bowl add powdered sugar and vanilla. Whisk or beat until the cream holds soft peaks.
- Add the cream to a large piping bag fitted with a large star piping tip and pipe on top of each bun.
- Place the lids of the Swedish semlor buns on top of the cream, dusting with a little powdered sugar.
Top Recipe Tips
- Combine the yeast with warm water … Too hot and the water will effectively kill the yeast. Too cool and the yeast will not bloom properly. The water temperature should be somewhere between 105-115 degrees F.
- Simmer the butter as it melts, but do not brown or burn. This will create a nutty taste that we don’t want in this Semla recipe.
- Knead the dough smooth. No real “need” to worry about over-kneading here. The dough needs a good 5-10 minutes of being worked to become nice and soft.
- Don’t skip the double proof. Take the time to let the dough rise to double size in a greased bowl. Then also let the rolled dough balls proof a second time for up to the full hour.
- Let the baked buns cool completely before attempting to cut off the tops, hollow out, and fill. If they are too warm the bread won’t slice neatly, and the fillings will become melted messes.
- Don’t over-scoop the inside of the bread. You do not want to accidentally punch through the bottom of the Swedish Semla bun! Be sure to only scoop the very middle so a nice thick bottom remains.
Frequently Asked Questions
Fat Tuesday marks the final day of Carnival or Shrovetide, and is the day before Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday begins the season of Lent, during which time certain groups of Christians abstain from “fatty” foods and other gluttonous treats. Hence the reason so many sweets and not-so-good-for-you goodies are consumed in the days leading up to Shrove Tuesday.
Swedish semlor buns are delicious for an evening treat with a hot cup of coffee or tea. Or, something perhaps a bit stronger if you are in the full Lundi Gras (Fat Monday) / Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) celebration mode.
As far as actual eating technique… That is entirely up to you! Some people like to remove and eat the top first before digging in to the bottom bun. Others simply open wide and take a bit bite of the whole thing. Either way you really can’t go wrong.
I suggest enjoying the treats the same day that you make this Semla recipe. However, you can make the different components ahead of time. Bake the buns, mix together the filling, and whip up the cream topping the day before. Store the buns in an airtight container at room temperature. The filling and topping can be kept in separate containers in the refrigerator until ready to assemble.
More Recipes to Try
- Easy Homemade Marzipan
- Twice Baked Chocolate Almond Brioche
- Almond Brioche Buns
- No-Knead Brioche Morning Buns
- Marzipan Sugar Cookies
Swedish Semlor Buns
Delicious Cardamom spiced buns cut in half and filled with marzipan and cream. These wonderful treats are traditionally sold in Swedish bakeries on and before Fat Tuesday (Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras).
Ingredients
Semla Buns
- 1 tbsp yeast
- 1/4 cup warm water
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cardamom whole or fresh ground, if available
- 1 cup milk
- 6 tbsp butter unsalted
- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour may use bread flour
- 1 egg beaten for glaze
Marzipan Filling
- Bread crumbs from inside of buns
- 7 1/4 ounces marzipan eggless
- 6 tbsp cream or milk
- 1/4 tsp almond extract pure if available
Cream Topping
- 2 cups whipping cream
- 2 tbsp powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- extra powdered sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
Semlor Bun Dough
-
Sprinkle yeast on top of warm water. Stir to dissolve. Set aside.
-
In a large mixing bowl beat egg then slowly add sugar, salt, and cardamom. Set aside.
-
In a small saucepan melt butter. When butter begins to simmer a bit pour in milk. Remove from heat immediately. This should warm the milk to a perfect temperature of around 110-112℉. With the mix turned on, slowly pour the milk into the egg/sugar mixture. Add in dissolved yeast.
-
Mix in flour 1 cup at a time. Mixing after each addition. If kneading by hand turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. If using a mixer, continue to knead with a dough hook for about 3-5 minutes. The dough should be soft and smooth. Form dough into a round ball and return to the bowl. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise for about 60 minutes or until double in size.
-
Remove the dough from the bowl and gently press out the air. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces(75 grams if you want to weigh it) and form into rounds. Place the rounds of dough onto the prepared baking trays lined with parchment paper or greased. Cover lightly with plastic wrap. Set aside for about 45-60 minutes or until the buns have almost doubled in size.
-
When ready to bake brush each bun with the remaining egg and bake in a 375℉ preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely before filling.
Marzipan Filling
-
To make the filling slice the tops from the buns and scoop out the filling. Tear the bread into breadcrumbs and place into a bowl. Grate the marzipan add to the bowl along with cream and almond extract. Mix together to form a paste. Divide the filling between the buns and set aside.
Cream Topping
-
Place the cream into a large bowl add powdered sugar and vanilla. Whisk or beat until the cream holds soft peaks. Add the cream to a large piping bag fitted with a large star piping tip and pipe on top of each bun. Place the lids of the buns on top of the cream, dusting with a little powdered sugar.
Recipe Notes
I suggest enjoying the treats the same day that you make this Semla recipe. However, you can make the different components ahead of time. Bake the buns, mix together the filling, and whip up the cream topping the day before. Store the buns in an airtight container at room temperature. The filling and topping can be kept in separate containers in the refrigerator until ready to assemble.
UPDATE – i used a flour conversion of 438g strong bread flour and my dough was super sticky. i added 60g and although i couldn’t form a ball for the first rise, the dough was much more manageable after an hour. conversions are always hit and miss but as janet says in a previous comment, you should have enough flour when the dough starts to come away from the bowl. the finished product turned out so soft and gorgeous and i am so happy i found this recipe! there are so many to trawl through on the internet these days and it’s hard to find one as perfect as this. thank you!
Thank you so much for this kind review. You must be a great baker and in tune with your dough! Semlor buns are so delicious and definitely worth the effort. I hope you love them!
Is there an alternative to marzipan that can be used? We are 3rd generation swedes living in the states, so we are always trying to connect with our roots, but my son and I have a severe tree nut allergy.
Hi Jessica, I’m so sorry you have nut allergies. You absolutely need to experience a semla in honor of your heritage. I did a simple google search on nut-free marzipan and found several options for you. I have not tried any of these options but I can at least share them with you and you can give them a try. Please let me know if you try the nut-free marzipan and if you make Semlor buns. Happy baking!
No-almond Marzipan: (realfood.tesco.com)
200 g (7 oz) semolina or cornmeal (texture wise I think I’d go with the semolina
200 g icing sugar (powdered sugar)
150 g (5oz) softened butter
2 tsp. vanilla extract
Mix all ingredients together by hand or with a mixer until it comes together. It is quite crumbly, so chill in the fridge for 15-20 mins to firm up before using.
Nut-free Marzipan
5 oz powdered sugar
5 oz semolina
2 tsp custard powder (Birds custard)
1 beaten egg white
2 tsp vanilla extract or orange flower water for some flavoring
Mix everything together until a firm paste develops.
Hiya, just wondering what yeast you used and what the gram equivalent would be? Thanks 🙂
I use 10 grams of dry active yeast. Please let me know if you make them. The are divine!
Can I use a bread machine. Also can I make the day before? HAVE SWEDISH ROOTS SO LOOK FORWARD TO TRYING.
I have never used a bread machine before, but I think it would work very well in mixing the dough. Please let me know if you give it a try.
I am excited to try these. I am wondering about grating the marzipan, though. It seems too soft and sticky. Is there a trick to it? Or an alternative to grating?
Try refrigerating the marzipan until it is firm enough to grate. I think that will help a lot. Please let me know if you have any other quesitons. I hope you love them.
my only comment was that my dough was a lot stickier than the recipe seemed to indicate. I used the stand mixer with a dough hook, and even added a bit more flour, but it was still a very sticky dough.
otherwise they came out fine and quite yummy!
I’m sorry your dough was sticky. I’m realizing, in baking, that flour brands vary along with how one measures. I’m convinced more and more that weighing ingredients in grams is more precise. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I will try to make the switch to adding weights along with measures.
Hi,
Semlor is probably my second favourite Swedish pastry after prinsesstårta.
A couple of things that I would suggest: don’t sweeten the cream, but add a pinch of baking powder to keep the cream FLUFFY and hold its shape without turning it to butter. Use almond paste instead of marsipan. That way you get a nice taste of almond.
Thank you so much for your suggestions. I will definitely use your recommendations next time I make Semlor. My son is living in Sweden and he raves about prinsesstarta.
Perfect. Thank you!
Wow! These look awesome. Can you tell me if this recipe will work for someone at sea level. I know you are in a high altitude, so i never know if your baking recipes have been adjusted for such. Thank you for introducing us to these wonderful recipes! love bringing up your website and seeing a new post.
Yes, they do work at sea level. Just add the flour in slowly. Depending on humidity your buns may require more or less flour. When the dough is pulling away from the sides of the mixer, you have probably added enough flour. The dough should be soft without being really sticky. I hope you make them. They are a joy.
Hi Janet,
Thank you for what looks like another GREAT recipe. I cant wait to make these buns next week. I love your Artisan bread, pumpkin bread, so ill be making some of your cookies too…in time. I love your webSite, please keep the refipes coming, im an avid follower.
I wasn’t quite sure if I had an avid follower. Bless your heart and thank you so much. I hope you love these gems.
you have many avid followers, Janet!
You just made my day! Thank you so much.