Lussekatter och Pepparkakor

by Beverly Tjerngren

Swedes have as much of a sweet tooth as anybody and, like most of us, they treat themselves extra indulgently this time of year. Two mainstays of the holiday season in Sweden are lussekatter, or saffron buns, and pepparkakor, or gingersnaps. Recipes for these two treats abound on the internet and in cookbooks, but these two are my favorites.

Lussekatter

These buns will keep for a few days, but are best served the same day you bake them.

Ingredients

• 2 packets dry yeast (or 50g fresh)
• 1 gram (½ tsp.) pulverized saffron*
• 2 cups milk
• 1 egg
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 cup margarine or butter
• 6 cups flour, plus additional for kneading
• raisins for decorating

Glaze

• 1 egg
• 3 Tbsp. milk

Preheat oven to 450°F (225°C).

Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat and stir in the milk. Heat to 110-120°F (45-50°C) for dry yeast or 100°F (37°C) for fresh yeast. Put the yeast in a bowl and pour the milk-butter mixture over it, stirring to dissolve the yeast.

Stir in the salt and sugar, then add the remaining ingredients (excluding the egg and milk for the glaze). Mix to a soft dough and leave to rise in a warm place for at least 30 minutes.

Punch down the dough and form into S-shapes. Tuck the ends underneath and place a raisin into the ends where the "S" curves. Put the buns on a greased cookie sheet and let rise under a dishtowel until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

Beat the egg for the glaze with the 3 Tbsp. milk. Brush the tops of the buns with the glaze immediately before baking. Bake until golden brown, approximately 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

*If you have saffron strands instead of pulverized, you still use 1 gram. If you can't do a weight measurement, pulverize about 1 tsp. of the strands and crush them until you've gotten ½ tsp. of powder.

Pepparkakor

• 3/4 cup margarine or butter, softened
• 2 cups sugar
• 3/4-1 cup molasses or dark corn syrup
• 3/4-1 cup water
• 1 Tbsp. cinnamon
• 1 Tbsp. ground ginger
• 1 Tbsp. ground cloves
• 1 Tbsp. baking soda
• 6 1/3 cups flour

Cream butter, sugar, and molasses until smooth. Stir in water, spices, and baking soda and work in the flour, adding a little at a time.

Knead the dough on a floured surface until smooth. Refrigerate overnight.

Roll the dough out on a floured surface (about 1/4-inch thick). Cut out shapes with cookies cutters and place on a cookie sheet. Bake at 475°F (225-250°C) until cookies start to brown around the edges, about 4 minutes.