Mor's boller

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups warm whole milk, about 100F
  
• 1 stick butter, melted
  
• 1 cup granulated sugar
  
• 2 tablespoons active dry yeast
  
• 1 teaspoon salt
  
• 2 teaspoons ground cardamom (preferably freshly ground, if you can)
  
• 5 1/2 cups all purpose flour, plus more as needed
  
• 1/2 cup raisins (this is optional, but recommended)
  
• 1 egg white, for an egg wash
  

Directions

1. In a standing mixer with a bread hook, or a large mixing bowl, mix together the warm milk, melted butter, sugar, and yeast. Allow to stand for about 10 minutes, until the yeast is good and foamy. Stir in the salt and cardamom. Then stir in the flour until all incorporated, and stir in the raisins at this point too, if using (which you should. I think boller are decidedly best with raisins. My brothers would disagree, though.). The dough should still be a bit sticky or tacky, but not stick too terribly to your fingers if you tap it with a knuckle. Adding flour as needed to keep the dough from being irretrievably sticky, knead with the bread hook or by hand until supple (but probably still slightly sticky!), about 8 minutes. Because the dough should stay fairly sticky (using as little extra flour as possible helps keep the buns fluffy), this is definitely easiest to do in a mixer, but it can certainly be done by hand if you don’t have one.
2. Cover the bowl with a cloth or plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in size (an hour or two depending on the ambient temperature). In the meanwhile, line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
3. When the dough has risen, scrape it out onto a lightly floured surface and break it into equal size pieces, a bit bigger than the size of a golf ball. Shape each piece into a ball and place them on the baking sheets.
4. Cover with clean dishtowels or plastic wrap and let rise somewhere warm until puffy and soft, another 30-45 minutes . Preheat the oven to 350F. Before baking, whisk the egg and brush the tops of the buns with it. Bake one sheet at a time until deep golden brown on top, about 20 minutes.
5. Cool the buns on a cooling rack. They’re best when fresh and still slightly warm, smeared with butter, but boller also toast up deliciously for a couple of days. I love to eat one for snack or breakfast split in half, toasted and topped with butter and a slice of gjetost.