Vegan Semlor
Vegan Semlor - these Swedish cream buns are a delicious treat for Shrove Tuesday!
Servings 9 buns
Ingredients
Dough:
- 350 g (2 ¾ cups) white bread flour
- 7 g (2 ¼ teaspoons) instant/fast action yeast
- 40 g (3 ½ Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- ½ to 2 teaspoons freshly ground cardamom depending on how strong you want it
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- 225 g (¾ cup + 3 Tablespoons) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy) lukewarm
- 60 g (¼ cup) vegan butter softened
Glaze:
- 1 Tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 Tablespoon vegan milk
Filling:
- 125 g (1 ¼ cups) ground almonds (almond flour)
- 100 g (½ cup) caster or granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- 4 Tablespoons unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy)
Cream:
- 200 g (¾ cup + 2 Tablespoons) vegan whipping cream
- 1 Tablespoon icing (powdered) sugar plus extra for dusting
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- To make the dough, place the bread flour in a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add the yeast, sugar, salt, cardamom and baking powder, stir to combine.350 g (2 ¾ cups) white bread flour, 7 g (2 ¼ teaspoons) instant/fast action yeast, 40 g (3 ½ Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar, ½ teaspoon table salt, ½ to 2 teaspoons freshly ground cardamom, ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- Add the lukewarm milk and mix to form a shaggy dough. Knead with the mixer or turn out onto an un-floured surface and knead for 5-10 minutes until smooth and elastic. The dough will be sticky at first but resist the temptation to add extra flour, it will become smooth after a minute or two of kneading.225 g (¾ cup + 3 Tablespoons) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy)
- Add the softened vegan butter. Continue to knead until the butter is fully incorporated and the dough is smooth and elastic. It may seem greasy and messy at first but keep kneading and I promise you the butter will all mix in and the dough will become smooth.60 g (¼ cup) vegan butter
- Once the butter is fully incorporated the dough should look smooth and silky and it should pull away from the work surface or sides of the bowl cleanly. It should still be soft and slightly sticky however.
- Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and set aside to rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours. Line a baking sheet with greaseproof paper.
- Punch down the risen dough and give it a brief knead to knock out any air bubbles. Divide the dough into 9 even pieces (use a scale for accuracy).
- Shape each piece into a ball by gathering the edges up and pinching them together. Keep going until you have a neat, well-sealed ball. Flip the ball over, cup it with your hand over the top and roll it until it is smooth.
- Place the balls well spaced apart on the baking tray. Loosely cover and set aside to rise until puffy, about 30-60 minutes. If you gently press the dough with your finger it should spring back slowly, and maybe leave a slight indentation. If it springs back quickly then it needs a little longer, and if the dough deflates then it is over-prooved so keep an eye on it!
- When the buns are nearly ready, preheat the oven to 200℃/180℃ fan/400℉/gas mark 6. Mix together the maple syrup and milk in a small bowl.1 Tablespoon maple syrup, 1 Tablespoon vegan milk
- Gently brush the risen buns with the maple syrup mixture then bake for 15-18 minutes until nicely browned and a probe thermometer inserted into the centre should reach at least 90°C/194°F. Transfer them to a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
- Use a sharp serrated knife to slice the top off of each bun and hollow out about a third of the centre. Crumble the insides of the buns into a bowl.
- To make the filling, mix the ground almonds, sugar, 50g of the breadcrumbs, vanilla and almond extracts and milk together to make a spoonable paste. Add more milk if needed.125 g (1 ¼ cups) ground almonds (almond flour), 100 g (½ cup) caster or granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon almond extract, 4 Tablespoons unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy)
- Spoon some of the filling into each of the hollowed out buns, filling them right to the top.
- Whisk the vegan cream, icing sugar and vanilla extract together with an electric mixer until it forms stiff peaks.200 g (¾ cup + 2 Tablespoons) vegan whipping cream, 1 Tablespoon icing (powdered) sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Transfer the cream to a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle and pipe a generous swirl of cream on top of each bun. Replace the lids, dust with icing sugar and serve right away. Store any uneaten buns in the fridge for up to a day.
Notes
- See post above for tips, details and step-by-step photos. If you have a question about the recipe I may have already answered it above!
- As with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup conversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!