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–+ servings
Chocolate chip and Candied Orange Peel St. Lucy Buns in a pile

St. Lucy Buns

Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: Swedish
Keyword: breakfast, bun, from scratch, homemade, orange, St. Lucy Day, yeast bread
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Rising Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
Total Time: 4 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 18 buns
Soft, sweet buns flavored with Candied Orange Peels, perfect for celebrating on St. Lucy's Day or any day!
Print Recipe

Ingredients

  • 2 ¼ teaspoons active-dry yeast (0.25-oz package)
  • 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
  • 1 cup warm water (95-105°F)
  • 1 cup warm milk (95-105°F)
  • 4 Tablespoons butter, softened
  • ¾ cup granulated sugar
  • ⅔ - 1 cup Candied Orange Peels, diced
  • ⅓ cup dried/candied fruits or mini chocolate chips (optional, see NOTES below)
  • 6 cups all-purpose flour (750 grams by weight)
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Egg Wash

  • 1 egg
  • 1 Tablespoon water

Instructions

  • In bowl of electric mixer, combine yeast, 1 Tablespoon sugar and warm water. When bubbly (about 5 minutes), add warm milk.
  • Beat in butter, sugar and 3 cups of flour. Your sponge will look more like a batter than a dough at this point. Cover and let rise 1 1/2 - 2 hours.
  • Add in salt and enough flour to make a soft dough.
  • Change to dough hook and knead 5 minutes, or knead by hand until smooth and elastic. Knead in dried/candied fruits. Let rise again until doubled, 1-2 hours.
  • Separate dough into pieces, 12 for large buns, 18 for smaller buns. Shape buns by rolling into ropes and coiling into S-shapes to resemble glasses for St. Lucy, who is the patron saint of people with eye problems.
  • Place buns on greased baking sheets or parchment paper. Allow to rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  • Beat egg with 1 Tablespoon water. Brush buns with egg wash immediately before baking.
  • Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes for smaller rolls and 25 minutes for larger rolls, or until golden brown and cooked through.

Notes

  • Make your own Candied Orange Peel with the recipe here.
  • For the additional 1/3 cup dried/candied fruits, you can choose:
    • 1/3 cup mini chocolate chips, a hit with kids and adults with a sweet tooth!
    • 1/3 cup golden raisins soaked in hot water for 1o minutes and then drained (or regular raisins if you don't have golden)
    • Fruit-cake mix
  • You can change around how much Candied Orange Peel you use and swap out for other dried fruits or peels, but I recommend keeping a minimum of 2/3 cup as Candied Orange Peel to keep the citrus flavor of the buns.
  • To quickly soften the butter, cut it into small pats and leave at room temperature for 5-10 minutes.
  • A large bun is big enough to cut into slices and share. A small bun is a personal-sized bread.