ESTONIA SEMLA

A semla or fastlagsbulle (Swedish), laskiaispulla (Finnish) or vastlakukkel (Estonian) is a traditional sweet roll made in various forms in Estonia associated with Lent and especially Shrove Monday and Shover Tuesday.
In Finland and Estonia the traditional dessert predates Christian influences. Laskiaissunnuntai and Laskiaistiistai were festivals when children and youth would go sledding or downhill sliding on a hill or a slope to determine how the crop would yield in the coming year. Those who slid the farthest were going to get best crop. Hence the festival is named after the act of sliding or sledding downhill, laskea. Nowadays laskiainen has been integrated into Christian customs as the beginning of lent before Easter.
Semla consists of a cardamom-spiced wheat bun which has whipped cream. The cut-off top serves as a lid and is dusted with powdered sugar. Today it is often eaten on its own, with coffee or tea.
Semla traditional pastry in Estonia. Shover Tuesday in the same day as this pancake day.

Buns:
1 cup warm milk – preferably whole milk (approx)
2½ tsp active dry yeast
4-6 tbsp sugar
3 cups bread flour (substitute all-purpose flour if needed)
3 tbsp butter, melted

1 tsp ground cardamom
2-3 tsp salt

Dissolve the sugar and the active dry yeast in the warm milk and wait for it to froth up. Combine with the flour, butter and salt in a large bowl, and mix well with a sturdy wooden spoon. Cover the shaggy mass and allow it to rest for 15 minutes, and then knead for about 10 minutes, folding the dough over and pushing away until it is smooth and supple. Add in a little more milk or flour as needed. Tho dough will be very soft and slightly sticky. Roll the dough into a ball, place in a lightly greased bowl, cover with a kitchen towel and let it rise in a warm environment until puffy and doubled, about an hour.
Gently deflate the dough, and divide it into 4 parts. Keeping the rest of the dough covered, divide each part into 5 pieces, roll each into a ball, stretching the dough and tucking at the bottom to achieve a smooth and taut top. Transfer to a baking sheet. Cover with greased plastic wrap, and leave to rise for about 45 minutes in a warm place, until they are quite puffy and touching each other.

Meanwhile preheat the oven to 200C. Brush the buns with milk or an egg-wash. Bake the buns for 12 to 15 minutes, or until lightly browned. Do not over-bake. Transfer immediately to a cooling rack or else the bottoms will start ‘sweating’ and become soggy. Eat while still warm. If you would like to slit them and toast, do wait till they have completely cooled down before slicing in.

Filling:

500 ml whipping cream (35-38%)
2-3 tbsp sugar

Make the filling. Whisk the cream with some sugar. I like to include some lingonberry jam in my cream filling, as this adds a nice tart touch to the otherwise very sweet bun. Cut a small slice off the bun and fill with some cream. Put the "lid" back on.

Bon Appetite!