Cardamom twists recipe | Sainsbury`s Magazine (2024)

Cardamom is a popular spice in a wide range of Nordic sweet treats. These buns, made from yeasted dough twisted with a cardamom-spiced butter, are a mid-morning staple in Sweden

Sarah Akhurst

Our Food Director Sarah is a food obsessive, and spends most of her time scoping out the latest food trends, experimenting in her own kitchen, or making her family wait to eat while she photographs every dinner she makes for the 'gram! A complete Middle Eastern food junkie, she is never far from a good shawarma marinade, a pinch of Aleppo chilli or a sprig of dill

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Ingredients

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Step by step

1. Split the cardamom pods for the buns and discard the shells. Crush the seeds in a pestle and mortar. Put the milk in a saucepan with the cardamom and heat over a medium heat until it just starts to steam. Remove from the heat and add the salted butter. Leave until the butter has melted and the milk is lukewarm.
2. Put the flour, sugar and yeast in a bowl and add the warm milk mixture. Bring together into a dough and knead for 5 minutes, until you have a soft pliable dough. Transfer to an oiled bowl and cover with a tea towel. Leave to prove in a warm place for around 1-2 hours, or until doubled in size.
3. For the filling, mix the butter and sugar together. Crush the cardamom pods, discarding the shells. Crush the seeds finely and stir through the butter.
4. When the dough has risen, transfer to a floured surface and roll out a rectangle, approximately 30cm x 40cm, and spread the surface all over with the soft cardamom butter. Fold the bottom short edge up to the middle, then fold the top edge down over the folded dough. Cut into 12 strips, each 2-2.5cm wide.
5. Take one strip and start winding it round your finger to form a twist, then tuck the end of the dough underneath the twist. Place the buns on a lined baking tray, leaving room for them to rise, and cover with a tea towel or clingfilm. Prove in a warm place for a further 30 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 220°C, fan 200°C, gas 7. Bake the buns for 12-15 minutes, until risen and golden. Meanwhile, make the glaze. Put the caster sugar in a pan with 50ml water. Heat gently until the sugar dissolves, then bring to the boil. Simmer until it turns syrupy. Crush the cardamom pods, discarding the shells. Crush the seeds finely and mix with the granulated sugar. As soon as the buns are removed from the oven, brush with the syrup and sprinkle with the cardamom sugar.