Varme hveder recipe | Easy, soft, luxurious buns

Hveder, a traditional Danish bread roll with a soft and fluffy texture, a slightly sweet taste, and a rich cultural significance, has been a beloved staple in Danish cuisine for centuries and continues to hold a special place in the hearts and homes of many Danes today. This is my varme hveder recipe.

While hveder are delicious, they are now shrouded in the Danish people’s sadness. The current government of Denmark has decided to cancel the holiday that is tied to this delicious treat. In this article, I will give you an insight into the history and the controversy of the Danish holiday store bededag, and, of course, the recipe for this delectable treat.

If you rather make an amazing soft bread instead, I can recommend my recipe for Shokupan.

If you are just here for the recipe, you can press the button underneath to be automagically transported to the recipe:

From Reformation to Abolition: The Fascinating History of Denmark’s Great Prayer Day

The history of Denmark’s Great Prayer Day, also known as Store Bededag, is both long and fascinating. It originated in the 16th century with the Reformation, which saw Denmark convert from Catholicism to Lutheranism. As part of this shift, many Catholic holidays were removed, but over time, they were reintroduced into the Danish church.

To address this issue, King Christian the Fifth took action in 1686 by creating Great Prayer Day. He combined all former Catholic holidays into one significant day of prayer. This annual holiday falls on the fourth Friday after Easter, between mid-April to late May.

Traditions associated with Great Prayer Day

Three traditions are associated with Great Prayer Day. The first tradition began in 1747 when the Church of Our Lady received new bells. It became customary for the bourgeoisie to walk along the ramparts. However, as the ramparts were dismantled in the 1800s, people of all classes now walk along the harbor at Langelinje, Christianshavn, and the Citadel, Kastellet.

The second tradition is to eat hveder. Before the holiday, bakers couldn’t work from sundown the day before until the next day. People would buy bread the day before, and it became a tradition for bakers to bake hveder. People would eat them warm the day before the holiday and then toast the remaining hveder the next day.

The third tradition is that Great Prayer Day is one of the biggest days for confirmation. Confirmation is where young adults confirm their relationship with God, which was established when they were baptized.

What happened in 2023?

However, in recent times, Great Prayer Day faced an uncertain future. In 2022, a new government was formed in Denmark, and one of its goals was to abolish the holiday to increase work productivity and generate more taxes. Despite pushback from unions, the church, and citizens who signed a petition against abolishing the holiday, the government abolished Great Prayer Day on February 28, 2023.

The dough composition in this hveder recipe

Vitals

The dough

The dough for these hveder are highly enriched with sugar, whole milk, eggs, and lots of butter. It will make the making of the dough a bit harder if done by hand, so I’ve opted for making it in the stand mixer.

The flour of choice is all-purpose flour for soft, fluffy buns, but enough gluten to keep everything together. Be sure to use some good fresh and quality cardamom. You could opt for grinding it yourself. It will make vastly better buns.

If you want to play around with the recipe, change the quantity, or other things, you can do that with my bread calculator.

The conclusion of this hveder recipe

What, in my opinion, makes a good hvede? Well, of course, I have a whole list of things that are important.

• They should be extremely soft and, in no way, dry.
• Have a distinct flavor and taste of cardamom.
• Deliciously browned and have a glistening top
• The hveder needs to be baked so that they pull apart. That is just so satisfying.

I think that these buns deliver on all of those parameters. They are just so incredibly soft and taste amazing with a good slathering of butter and a piece of Danbo cheese.

If you’re up for a treat, go for it!

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Varme Hveder

Course: Celebration, Snack

Cuisine: Danish

Keyword: great prayer day, hveder, store bededag

Course: Celebration, Snack

Cuisine: Danish

Keyword: great prayer day, hveder, store bededag

Servings: 8 hveder

Calories: 338kcal

Author: Sune Trudslev

Nutrition Facts

Varme Hveder

Amount Per Serving (1 hvede)

Calories 338 Calories from Fat 117

% Daily Value*

Fat 13g20%

Saturated Fat 7g44%

Polyunsaturated Fat 1g

Monounsaturated Fat 3g

Sodium 543mg24%

Carbohydrates 47g16%

Fiber 2g8%

Sugar 3g3%

Protein 9g18%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Hveder, a traditional Danish bun with a hint of cardamom, is a delectable treat often enjoyed on Great Prayer Day, known as "Store Bededag" in Danish, and its soft, fluffy texture and warm, comforting aroma make it a perfect addition to any celebration.

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Equipment

• stand mixer
• large rectangular pan

Metric – US Customary

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Ingredients

Dough

• 460 g all-purpose flour
• 9 g table salt
• 5 g instant yeast
• 12 g sugar
• 4 g cardamom
• 200 ml whole milk
• 90 g eggs
• 100 g butter unsalted, cubed, and softened

Glaze

• 1 egg

Makes: 31.5cm31.5 x 19cm rectangle

Instructions

Make the dough

• To the bowl of your stand mixer, add: all-purpose flour, salt, instant yeast, cardamom, and sugar. Mix it for a bit to distribute everything evenly.
• Then add: whole milk, eggs, and butter. Mix until you have a nice and supple dough.
• Knead it in the machine using the dough hook until you have a nice, supple dough. It took about 5 minutes on my machine. My KitchenAid was set to speed 3.
• Shape the dough into a ball. Put the ball back in the bowl, and let it proof, covered until doubled in size—about 2 hours.

Divide and shape

• Divide the dough into 8 equally sized pieces. About 110 grams/4 ounces. Shape each piece into a taut ball.
• Put them in a greased pan about 1 cm/½ inch apart.
• Cover the pan and let them grow until they’ve doubled in size. They should fill the pan and stick together. About 2 hours.

Bake the hveder

• Heat your oven to 200°C/400°F. The fan assist should be off. If you can’t turn it off, go for 180°C/350°F.
• Then whip up an egg as a glaze, and glaze the buns carefully.
• Then put the buns in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Check the internal temperature. It should be about 90°C/194°F. Bake longer, as needed.
• Then take them out, let them cool on a wire rack, or serve them scorching hot.

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