These can also be called Lent buns or Fat Tuesday buns. This laskiaispulla recipe is absolutely delicious, with soft buttery buns filled with whipped cream and jam or almond paste.
Filled cardamom buns are eaten both in Finland and Sweden the whole of January-March. Cardamom is a signature spice for Finnish buns. You can read all my tips for baking successful pulla here.
What is Shrovetide/Lent?
Lent is the time for preparation for Easter in the Christian church. This includes a period of 40 days of fasting with one meal a day in the evening. Shrove Tuesday gets its name from the ritual of shriving that Christians used to undergo in the past. In shriving, a person confesses their sins and receives absolution for them.
What is Shrove Tuesday?
Shrove Tuesday is the day when people went to confession to prepare themselves for Lent. This is also called Fat Tuesday since it was the last day to indulge in food before fasting.
In many countries, this is known as pancake Tuesday since pancakes are usually eaten on this day. But in Finland and Sweden, we indulge even more...with these buns.
What does laskiainen mean?
Laskiaistiistai is the same as Fat Tuesday or Shrove Tuesday. In Finland laskiainen is nowadays celebrated as a mid-winter festival with outdoor activities such as skiing, sliding with the sled, or ice skating. Traditional foods are pea soup (hernekeitto) and for dessert oven pancake or Shrovetide buns.
In Finland, especially the younger generation is not that religious and people don´t do fast or shriving in the Lutheran church. In the past laskiainen was a worker's feast.
In history was a time filled with different beliefs. One tradition was to go to Sauna during daylight and be quiet there; this way the mosquitoes would not bite as much in the summer. If it snowed on Shrove Sunday and was sunny after that it was believed to become a good berry year. One funny belief was that if you threw peas in from your neighbors' door, they would get lots of flies in the summer. (source)
Ingredients for laskiaispulla
- Milk. Whole milk gives the best flavor.
- Fresh yeast, or active dry yeast.
- Sugar. Brown sugar can be used.
- Butter. Can be replaced with margarine, but butter has the best taste.
- Ground cardamom. Remember to use cardamom from green pods.
- Salt
- Bread flour or all-purpose flour. Bread flour makes the best viscosity in buns since it has a high protein content.
- Egg. An egg is used to brush the buns.
- Confectioners sugar. Often this is sprinkled just slightly on top of the buns.
Some almond slices are optional on top of the bun.
What is laskiaispulla filled with?
Laskiaispulla always has whipped cream in the middle. Choose one of these as an addition:
- Marzipan
- Strawberry jam
- Raspberry jam
Instructions
- Mix your yeast with lukewarm milk. If you use dry yeast, you need the milk to be 108F, 42C. Add the sugar, cardamom, salt, and 1-2 cups of flour. Beat it to make a batter.
- Add in the rest of your flour and start kneading. Once you have some elasticity in the dough, you can add your butter.
- Keep on kneading for additional 7-15 minutes. Knead until the dough is firm enough, so it does not break when you stretch a small piece between your fingers.
- Let your dough rest and rise. Cover your bowl with a cloth and let the dough rest in a warm place for 20 minutes. To get warm conditions, you can have the bowl in a water bath in the sink.
- Form the dough into 15-16 round buns by kneading them against the surface of your palm. To get even-sized buns, you can use a kitchen scale. You get 15-16 100 grams buns. If you want even bigger buns, then measure 120 grams of dough for one bun.
- Let your buns rise to double the size. At least 30 minutes, up to an hour. It is good to keep your pulla covered with plastic wrap or cloth so the surface does not dry up. The dough rises best in a warm place. Brush the buns with beaten egg.
- Bake at 400 (200C) F for about 14 minutes. The buns should be golden brown on top. Let the buns cool down. Slice the buns in half or a hat of the top.
- Fill 1-2 tablespoons of jam or marzipan in the middle and add whipped cream on the rim.
Difference between Swedish and Finnish Lenten buns?
Finnish buns are filled with jam or marzipan and whipped cream. In Sweden, they make a paste from the marzipan, carve a hole in the middle of the bun and put more filling in it. Shrovetide buns with jam are not usually found in Sweden. See recipe for semla.
You can store filled buns in the fridge for 3-4 days. Keep covered. Unfilled buns do store airtight at room temperature for some days.
Yes, you can freeze the buns. Keep them covered so they don't take aromas from the freezer. Recommended freezing max 3 months. Thaw in the fridge so the cream does not melt. Shrovetide buns are best frozen as buns and filled with cream before serving.
Bake the buns in plant milk like soy- or oat milk. Use margarine and vegan whipping cream. Also, leave the egg from the recipe. You can brush the buns before the oven with some sugarwater, plant-based milk, or soy yogurt.
The dough can be baked with plant milk and margarine. Fill the buns with a plant-based whipping cream option.
Other Finnish baked goods
Laskiaispulla
Ingredients
- 2 cups milk 4.8 dl
- 50 grams fresh yeast, or 3 tablespoon dry active yeast
- ¾ cup sugar 1.8 dl
- 150 grams butter (10 tbsp) (1,3 sticks)
- 1 tablespoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 5½ cup bread flour or all-purpose flour 13 dl
On top
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoon powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon almond slices (optional)
Filling
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream 2,4 dl
- ½ cup strawberry or raspberry jam or marzipan. 1,2 dl
Instructions
- Microwave your butter for some seconds so it softens up to room temperature.
- Mix your yeast with lukewarm milk. If you use dry yeast you need the milk to be 108F, 42C. Add the sugar, cardamom, salt, and 1-2 cups of flour. Beat it to make a batter.
- Add in the rest of your flour and start kneading. Once you have some elasticity in the dough, you can add your butter.
- Keep on kneading for additional 7-15 minutes. Knead until the dough is firm enough so it does not break when you stretch a small piece between your fingers.
- After kneading, you need to let your dough rest and rise. Cover your bowl with a cloth and let the dough rest in a warm place for 20 minutes. To get warm conditions, you can have the bowl in a water bath in the sink.
- Form the dough into 15-16 round buns.
- Let your buns rise to double the size. At least 30 minutes, up to an hour. It is good to keep your pulla covered with plastic wrap or cloth so the surface does not dry up. The dough rises best in a warm place.
- Brush the buns with beaten egg.
- Bake at 400 (200C) F for about 14 minutes. The buns should be golden brown on top.
- Let the buns cool down. Slice the buns in half and fill 1-2 tablespoons of jam or marzipan in the middle and add whipped cream on the rim. Decorate with powdered sugar.
Alison Nelson
Followed the recipe exactly and they turned out perfectly! We are ready to celebrate Laskiainen tonight!
Cecilia Hoikka
Nice to know!