An absolute must for me during December is Lussekatter – Lucia saffron buns. I actually don’t think it is physically possible to eat too many. Strangely though, it has been very difficult to convince Nicolas that Lussekatter is (after cinnamon buns) actually the world’s best pastry. He believes that saffron only belongs in main courses with fish. In fact, so much, so that when he first ate a Lussekatt he chose to put tuna salad on top of it! Believe me – it was NOT a succes. In general it’s quite difficult to convince him that pastry made with a wheat dough tastes better than Danish pastry. But then of course – he is from Denmark. This Christmas star version of a Lucia bun has a delicious filling of marzipan and vanilla and even Nicolas can now agree that it actually tastes amazing.

♥ Alexandra

Recipe

You will need:

Saffron Blend:
• 0.5 g saffron (one bag)
• 10 g hot water
• 10 g sugar

Pre dough:
• 250 g of milk
• 275 g flour
• 25 g yeast

Dough:
• 250 g all purpose flour
• 100 g sugar
• 5 g salt
• 100 g soft butter

Filling:
• 200 g marcipan
• 150 g soft butter
• 1 tsp vanilla sugar

Egg brush and decoration:
• 1 egg
• Powder sugar

How to:

Saffron blend:

  1. Mix saffron, sugar and water and leave for about 20 minutes.

Pre dough:

  1. Heat the milk to 30 degrees and mix into a loose dough with the flour, yeast and saffron blend. Let rest for 30 minutes.

Dough:

  1. Add the rest of the flour, sugar and salt and work the dough, using the dough hook in standmixer for a couple of minutes.
  2. Add the butter and keep working the dough until it is smooth and glossy, it takes about 10-15 minutes.
  3. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes.

Filling:

  1. Make the filling by mixing marcipan, butter and vanilla suger until smooth. Set aside.

Make the star: 

  1. Divide the dough into four.
  2. Start to roll one ball out into a large circle about 30 cm.
  3. Place a plate on top and cut away any excess dough around the plate with a sharp knife. Remove the plate and place the dough disc onto a lined baking sheet.

Bottom layer

  1. Spread the bottom layer with 1/3 of the filling. Roll out the second ball of dough and place on top of the base. Spread with 1/3 of the filling and repeat! Keep in mind the top dough will not have any filling.
  2. Place a small cup or glass in the middle of the layered dough and very lightly mark a ring in the centre to use as a guide but not enough to create an indent.
  3. With a bench knife or sharp knife, cut the circle into 16 equal strips, from the cutter to the edge, through all the layers.
  4. Take 2 strands that are side-by-side and twist them away from each other with two twists. Do this all around.
  5. Pinch the pairs of strips together to create a star-like shape with eight points.
  6. Cover with a cloth and leave to rest until twice the size, it takes 2-3 hours.
  7. Preheat the oven to 200C. Bake for 15-20 min, until golden brown.
  8. As soon as you remove the star from the oven, brush it with egg whisk. Brush all over the star so that it becomes glossy and fine.
  9. Sprinkle with powder suger before serving.

Tip!

Use the same dough but without the filling for classic Lucia saffron buns. Divide the dough into two and roll out each portion into a large rectangle. Cut into 2 cm thick slices and roll from each side into the middel. Place two raisins in each end of the bun (like eyes). Preheat the oven at 225º C and bake for 5-10 min. Use the same egg brush as for the Lucia star.