In Chicago, you’ll find that Fat Tuesday (Tuesday, February 13th this year, the day before Lent begins) is commonly referred to as Pacchi Day. At around 400 calories each, the Polish pastries inevitably generate excitement among fans, with long lines forming, sometimes well into the early hours of the morning, for paczki in a variety of classic and contemporary flavors.
But even in the midst of the Pachiski maelstrom, there are Fat Tuesday specialties from the various ethnic groups that now call Chicago home. In Andersonville, a historic Swedish-American enclave, acclaimed local pastry chefs are putting the spotlight on the city. Semla, a Scandinavian traditiona rich yet delicate sweet roll, also known as fettis dagsburle, literally “fat Tuesday bread”.
As is the case with many Fat Tuesday treats, modern semrolles (plural of semra) have evolved significantly from their original form. Historically, semroll simply referred to bread rolls floating in warm milk, and this combination was also known as hetvag. In a macabre anecdote, the 18th century King of Sweden, Adolf Frederick, is said to have died after eating 14 hearty, boozy meals. Nowadays, a typical semroll is a small baked yeast bread filled with butter and eggs, flavored with cardamom, stuffed with almond paste and whipped cream, and finally dusted with powdered sugar. Sweden’s neighboring countries have regional variations, such as Finland’s Laskia Spura and Denmark and Norway’s Västeravnsbola.
Bobby Schaffer (Grace at Stone Barns, Blue Hill) puts a modern spin on Swedish pastry traditions at Lost Larson, with a modern minimalist Swedish vibe in Andersonville and Wicker Park. It has made a name for itself in the city for its stylish bakery and cafe. The seasonal product has a strong following, he says, and they start asking Schaefer questions about availability “as soon as January rolls around.” This year’s lineup is a fusion of old and new, juxtaposing traditional versions with playful semrolls, including raspberry jam-filled and raspberry whipped cream-topped spin-ons and spin-ons. banana foster. Both Andersonville and Wicker Park locations are open to walk-in customers through Monday, February 12th. online pre-order Available for pickup on Fat Tuesday in Andersonville.
It’s full of fun and funky semroll concepts. What happened in Swedensaid Karin Moen Abercrombie, executive director of Andersonvilles. Swedish American Museum. Vete-Katten, a famous 90-year-old coffee house in Stockholm, typically sells around 14,000 semrolls each year before Lent. “Nowadays, it’s almost a competition to see which bakery makes the best sem rolls,” she says.
Schäfer first tasted Semroll in January 2018 while traveling to Stockholm with his sister ahead of Lost Larson’s Andersonville debut. I have vivid memories of an encounter that took place in a “very old-fashioned” bakery in the Swedish capital. “Cream texture. [was] It’s very soft and the pounding of the almond paste layer creates a chewy, smooth texture,” he says. “It’s very satisfying to dig into one of them.”
When he returned to Chicago, he had an important task: debut a stylish bakery and cafe with a modern minimalist Swedish vibe. The Swedish Bakery, which had been a symbol of the area for more than 80 years, had closed in 2017, and residents said they had high hopes for Schaefer’s initiative. Given the deliciousness of his recent semrolls, Shafer was eager to introduce his own versions and included them on his opening menu, which just so happened to arrive in June.
“I was a little too excited to start making it,” he says with a laugh. “I was immediately scolded.” [Abercrombie] It wasn’t Semla season…I didn’t want to start by offending the Swedes. ”
Abercrombie, a Swedish immigrant who has lived in Chicago for nearly 40 years, doesn’t remember eating semla for the first time, but she remembers eating it with warm milk (albeit in small amounts, like King Frederick) as a girl. I remember that. For her, the closing of her Swedish bakery hit close to home. She said: “For many of us, they connected us to our homeland and childhood memories.”
Despite a more modern approach, Rost Larson’s dedication to Swedish baking and pastry, as well as Schaefer’s openness to feedback from the community, play an important role in maintaining Swedish-American culture in the city. I have fulfilled the following. The museum will also feature Semroll at its Fat Tuesday pop-up cafe, but for Abercrombie and Schaefer, it’s not about competition. “We all have to work together, because if we don’t support each other, none of us will survive,” she says.
Semraday lost larson anderson buildingTuesday, February 13th, 5318 N. Clark Street, pre-order available online.