Swedish Cinnamon Buns

For the dough:
In the bowl of your KitchenAid mixer, dissolve instant dry yeast in the warm milk. Let rest for 5 minutes until mixture gets bubbly. Add granulated sugar, salt, cardamom, softened butter, and egg and mix on medium speed with the dough hook attachment.

Add bread flour, 1 cup at a time. After all flour has been incorporated, touch the dough with your fingers. If it is too sticky, add in more bread flour in 1/4-cup increments until dough no longer sticks to the sides of the mixing bowl.

Lightly flour countertop, place dough on it, and knead into a ball. Place ball of dough in a separate lightly-greased mixing bowl. Cover bowl with a cloth napkin and let the dough rise for 1 hour.

Once the dough has risen, remove it from the mixing bowl and place it again on a lightly-floured surface. Roll dough into a 1-foot square.

For the filling:
Use a silicone pastry brush to apply softened butter to the dough evenly.

In a medium-sized bowl, combine ground cinnamon, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and cardamom. Use a spoon to sprinkle the mixture onto the buttered dough.

Fold dough in thirds, like a business letter. Roll it out into a rectangle that’s about 15 to 16 inches long and 7 to 8 inches high.

Cut dough into 12 strips (crosswise, not lengthwise). One by one, hold each strip of dough out with your hands and twist it. Wwrap the twisted strip around your hand one to two times and then tuck the loose end into the middle of the twisted knot.

Once all buns have been twisted, place them on a clean countertop and cover them with a cloth napkin. Let rise again for another hour. When the buns are almost done rising, preheat oven to 325ºF.

For the topping:
After buns are done rising, crack egg into a small bowl and scramble with a fork. Brush egg wash on top of each bun. Finally, sprinkle each bun with Swedish pearl sugar.

Bake buns for 15–25 minutes on a parchment-lined cookie sheet until bottom of each bun is slightly golden brown. Set aside and let cool.

Strain powdered sugar and ground cinnamon through a sieve into a medium-sized bowl. Then whisk to combine.

Once the buns are done cooling, use a flour sifter to sprinkle the powdered cinnamon sugar on top of the buns. Serve and enjoy!