Classic Swedish Cinnamon Buns
Servings: 10 buns
Ingredients
Dough (see note 1)
- 300ml (1¼ cups) milk
- 75g (⅓ cup) butter
- 400-450g (3⅓ - 3¾ cups) spelt flour (see note 2)
- 7g (2¼ tsp) dried yeast (see note 3)
- 50g (¼ cup) sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ½ teaspoon salt
Filling
- 75g (⅓ cup) butter (room temperature)
- 60g (¼ cup) sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
Additional ingredients
- 1 beaten egg (for wash)
- pearl sugar (see note 4)
Instructions
DOUGH
Bread Machine:
- Add the milk and butter to your bread machine pan. Then add 400g (3⅓ cups) of flour, and the remaining ingredients. Take care to keep the yeast and salt separate as much as possible. Set your machine to make dough.
- On a very well-floured surface (the dough will be very sticky) work in just as much flour as you need to make a soft, pliable, but still a little tacky, dough.
Stand Mixer:
- Add the milk and butter to your stand mixer bowl, and give it a quick mix. If the butter is straight out of the fridge, it won't combine with the other wet ingredients too much, but that's okay.
- Then add 450g (3¾ cups) of flour, and the remaining ingredients. The dough should be sticky, but if you need more flour, just add a little at a time. Be careful: too much flour will result in dry bread.
- Switch to a dough hook (if you have one) and allow the mixer to knead the dough for around 10 minutes, just until soft. The dough will still feel a little tacky to the touch, but will be able to slowly drop off the hook.
- Cover the dough and leave to proof (until it has doubled in size - usually about an hour).
- When the dough is ready, knock it back, and on a floured surface, form into a rough ball.
For both methods:
- When ready, roll the dough into a rectangle with a thickness of around 1cm (just under ½") with one of the shorter sides facing you.
- Spread the butter all over the dough. Combine the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle all over the butter.
- Gently roll up the dough. When done, place with the seam underneath.
- Cut the dough into pieces. I wanted large, soft buns so made 10. More traditional kanelbullar are a little thinner, so go with whatever thickness you fancy.
- Pre-heat the oven to 250°C / 482℉.
- Place each piece in a large muffin case and place them on a large oven tray.
- Cover with a tea-towel, and leave the buns to rest for around 30 minutes.
- Give the buns a good egg wash and sprinkle with pearl sugar.
- Bake the buns for around 6-9 minutes, depending on size and thickness. Watch them carefully: They are ready when they turn a deep brown colour. Enjoy warm with a cuppa!
Notes
- I have made the dough using both a stand mixer and bread machine with identical results. I have not made the dough by hand, but I see no reason why you couldn't do so!
- You can use spelt or regular flour for this recipe (just use the same amount).
- In Sweden we have something called dried yeast. It is used both in warm liquid to proof and also added directly to flour. I am aware that the US has two options for dried yeast, and I believe instant yeast is the most similar to our dried yeast.
- If you don't have access to pearl sugar, sprinkle a little icing sugar just before eating the buns.
