Cardamom

Sourdough Cardamom Buns (Kardemummabullar)

September 27, 2017
2.5
4 Ratings
Photo by Menzi Mhlanga
  • Makes 12-15 medium buns
Author Notes

My interpretation of a classic Swedish recipe. —Menzi Mhlanga

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Ingredients
  • Dough
  • 100 milliliters Sourdough starter (fed)
  • 300 milliliters Milk
  • 1 tablespoon Freshly ground black cardamom
  • 1 tablespoon Ground green cardamom
  • 1 teaspoon Sea Salt
  • 50 grams Granulated brown sugar
  • 50 grams Muscovado sugar (dark)
  • 150 grams Butter (room temperature)
  • 3.2 cups Whole wheat pastry flour (all purpose flour is also fine).
  • Filling and Egg Wash
  • 150 grams Butter (room temperature)
  • 100 grams Granulated brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon Coursely ground black cardamom
  • 1 tablespoon Blue poppy seeds (optional)
  • 1 Egg
  • 2 tablespoons Milk
  • Almond flakes (optional)
Directions
  1. Pour milk into a small pot and warm over low-medium heat until the milk is mildly warm (about 20 - 25 degrees C). Add cardamom, sourdough starter, and yeast (if using) - stir contents and set aside for 10 min.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk butter for appr. 1 min. Gradually add sugar to the bowl whilst whisking at low speed. Pour milk/starter mixture into bowl and gently combine with your spatula or wooden spoon. Add flour and salt to the mix and combine until flour is fully incorporated.
  3. Knead dough on a clean surface and shape into a round ball. Return shaped dough into large bowl. Cover the bowl with a plastic film or clean kitchen cloth, and refrigerate overnight. NB: I refrigerated mine for 14 hours... but it’s totally up to you.
  4. Prepare your filling by whisking all ingredients (except poppy seeds) in a small bowl until the texture is light and fluffy.
  5. When ready to bake, set your oven to 225 degrees C. Remove dough from the fridge and pour out onto a clean floured surface. Divide dough into two equal halves. Roll out each half into large equally sized rectangular ‘sheets’. On one half only, spread your filling evenly across the rolled out dough. Sprinkle poppy seeds (if using) over the spread-out filling. Carefully, place the other half of the dough on top of the ‘filling pasted’ dough. Sort of like creating a sandwich with the filling in the middle.
  6. Shape your buns as you please. There are several links online, as well as youtube videos demonstrating the various ways you can shape your buns.
  7. Place buns on a lined baking sheet. Whisk your egg wash ingredients together and brush each bun on all sides. Bake in oven for 12-15 minutes - until golden brown.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

11 Reviews

Caitlin P. March 23, 2021
I feel like some thing have been left out of this recipe, either ingredients or directions. It’s very odd to only measure the flour by volume, and it’s obviously a conversion because one doesn’t measure by fifths of a cup. Compared to the New York Times recipe there’s 100 grams less flour. Whole wheat does absorb more, but not that much more, and since the recipe specifies pastry flour, it’s not as strong as all purpose. I was really excited to find a sourdough version, as I’m not great at converting, but this is a really badly written recipe. An experienced baker would be fine, but it needs some major editing for those of us who have to rely on the recipe for guidance.
Nick S. December 9, 2020
Very unimpressed with this recipe. The dough is more like a cake batter and never really came together. Totally agree with the others on the quality of recipe writing here as well. @food52 I recommend to have the author revisit their work or take the recipe down.
haybug July 15, 2020
Honestly, a terrible recipe. Dough was way too wet, very sticky and unsuccessful. A good start would be measuring all ingredients in the same way.
Sotham J. July 15, 2020
If you didn't use WW then that is a mistake, and a recipe mistake to suggest using AP instead. WW absorbs more water by weight than AP so WW will be less sticky. For the recipe to say just use AP instead without adjusting hydration is a sign of a very poorly written recipe, which I think this is also. Also, mixing volume and wieght is another sign of a poorly written recipe. Flour should be by weight ... everything should be by wight
haybug July 15, 2020
Honestly, a terrible recipe. Dough was way too wet, very sticky and unsuccessful. A good start would be measuring all ingredients in the same way.
haybug July 15, 2020
Honestly, a terrible recipe. Dough was way too wet, very sticky and unsuccessful. A good start would be measuring all ingredients in the same way...
Maria M. May 6, 2020
Hi,
These look amazing. Could I sub the flour in this for Wholemeal Spelt flour? And do you think coconut sugar would work rather than the two types of sugar?
JocelynT April 3, 2020
A lovely recipe! I followed as written, with a few simplifications: I used all brown sugar (rather than muscovado), ground cardamom, and AP flour. My measurements came to 1/2 c starter, 1 1/4 c milk. I thought the cardamom and flour amounts were just right!

To make the dough, I used my Kitchenaid with whisk attachment until the flour made it took stiff. Kneaded a few times in the bowl, then transferred to cutting board to knead fully. Dough was soft but held nicely and not too sticky.

** NOTE! ** As written, it seems at first like the egg and milk are to be added to the filing, but they are used for the egg wash.
JocelynT April 3, 2020
A lovely recipe! I followed as written, with a few simplifications: I used all brown sugar (rather than muscovado), ground cardamom, and AP flour. My measurements came to 1/2 c starter, 1 1/4 c milk. I thought the cardamom and flour amounts were just right!

To make the dough, I used my Kitchenaid with whisk attachment until the flour made it took stiff. Kneaded a few times in the bowl, then transferred to cutting board to knead fully. Dough was soft but held nicely and not too sticky.

** NOTE! ** As written, it seems at first like the egg and milk are to be added to the filing, but they are used for the egg wash.
Andy October 5, 2019
I increased the flour by almost 2 cups and did a proof in the morning after refrigeration. I think the amount of cardamom can be reduced as well. Several tablespoons seems like quite a lot.
Sotham J. May 8, 2018
Why do you not give the flour ingredient by weight?