A Fastlagsbulle/Semla is a traditional pastry in Sweden associated with Lent and especially Shrove Tuesday. The name derives from the Latin, semilia, which was the name used for the finest quality wheat flour or semolina.
The oldest version of the Semla was a plain bread bun, eaten in a bowl of warm milk.
The Semla was originally eaten only on Shrove Tuesday as the last festive food before Lent. However, with the arrival of the Protestant Reformation the Swedes stopped observing a strict fasting for Lent. The Semla in its bowl of warm milk became a traditional dessert every Tuesday between Shrove Tuesday and Easter.
Today, Semlas are available in shops and bakeries every day from shortly after Christmas until Easter. Each Swede consumes on average five bakery-produced Semlas each year, in addition to all those that are homemade.
King Adolf Frederick of Sweden (1710-1771) died of digestion problems on February 12, 1771 after consuming a meal consisting of lobster, caviar, sauerkraut,, smoked herring and champagne, which was topped off by 14 servings of Semla, with bowls of hot milk. Semla was the king's favorite dessert.
King Adolf Frederick of Sweden is remembered by Swedish school children as “the king who ate himself to death”.