Recipe: Cardamom Knots
A taste of Danish 'hygge' at home
Copenhagen was the first place my husband and I had ever traveled to together as a couple, back when we were first dating. We rented a charming attic apartment where looking out of the doghouse windows you could see the spires of a church, the cobbled street below. The music of the bicycle bells and wheel spokes turning down alleyways, quiet greetings and hushed conversations (voices are not raised in this city), the smell of butter and sugar and something I was not able to distinguish at the time but can now lovingly identify as cardamom… floral, citrusy, warm and woodsey. I had never tasted it, let alone smelled it before that first day in Copenhagen.
We have since been to this wonderful city 5 more times since that first inspiring trip. In the early mornings we walk through the pines of Assistens cemetery, cross the street and let our nose lead us down Jaegersborggade to the little red store front where from the front window you can see the puffy knots proofing by the warmth of the sun, waiting for their turn in in the oven where they will be baked until golden, the butter and cardamom sugar filling spilling out onto the tray where it will form a chewy caramelized lace.
Recipe:
Tangzhong: Component used to make the dough super soft
3 TBSP flour
120g (1/2 cup) milk
In a small pot, whisk the flour and milk together until no dry lumps are visible. Place the pot over medium heat and whisk constantly until the mixture thickens and resembles the consistency of mashed potatoes. This should take between 1-3 minutes. Transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer and let cool to the touch, about 10 minutes.
Dough: From Scandinavian From Scratch by Nichole Accettola
113g (1/2 cup) butter at room temperature, cut into small cubes
360g (1 1/2 cups) milk
576g (4 1/2 cups) flour
2 1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1 TBSP yeast (I use instant)
66g (1/3 cup) sugar
Add the milk, flour, salt, egg, and yeast to the mixer bowl with the tangzhong. Mix on low with the dough hook until the dough is combined and shaggy looking. Scrape the sides of the bowl to make sure all the ingredients are incorporated from the bottom and increase the speed to medium - mix for 4 more minutes until the dough looks considerably less shaggy. Decrease the speed to low again and sprinkle in the sugar, tablespoon by tablespoon. Once all the sugar has been added, start to gradually add in the butter, cube by cube, waiting to add the next one until the previous cube added has been incorporated into the dough. After all the butter has been added, mix the dough for about 4 more minutes until the dough looks glossy, smooth, and has started to wrap around the hook and not on the sides of the bowl.
Transfer the dough to another large and buttered bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for up to 12 hours (overnight is best so you can have fresh buns in the morning). If you can’t wait, you can also let the dough proof at room temperature for about 2 hours (depending on the temperature of your home) until doubled in size. This is a very sticky dough so I do advise the refrigerator rest - this will also make rolling and shaping your knots much easier.
Filling:
150g butter at room temperature
100g light brown sugar
100g sugar
1 TBSP ground cardamom, preferably freshly ground decorticated, I get mind from Burlap and Barrel
2 pinches of salt
Beat all the ingredients together until smooth and incorporated. You can do this by hand or in a stand mixer with the paddle.
Knots and Assembly:
Proofed dough
Cardamom filling
1 egg
Orange syrup (optional but amazing paired with cardamom)
Once your dough is proofed and your filling is mixed, its time to assemble and proof once more before baking!
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Lightly dust a work surface with flour. I also find it helpful to have a ruler or tape measure handy to make sure you are rolling and cutting the dough to the specified measurements. I’m usually not this precise with baking, but with yeasted doughs and individual buns, you want to make sure the baking and proofing times are exact and that depends on the size and weight of the buns.
Transfer the proofed dough to the work surface, punching down on the dough to release the built up gasses. Roll the dough into a 12 by 20 inch rectangle. As you do, lift the dough up once or twice and flip, checking the bottom has not stuck to your worksurface. Now, using an offset spatula or back of a spoon, spread the filling over two-thirds of the dough, leaving one-third of the dough bare. Fold the bare third of the dough down into the middle third, then fold the bottom third up over that (pictures below). Check to make sure you have a 12 inch long rectangle, if not you can pat it out or roll to the correct dimension. With a bench scraper or knife, cut the dough into twelve 1 inch strips.
Lightly dust your work surface again so that your strips don’t stick to the surface and to ensure the shaping of your dough is as easy as can be. With one hand, pinch and hold the end of one strip of dough and lay the rest of it on the work surface. With your other hand, twist the strip of dough about 6 times, spiraling toward the hand that is pinching the end of the dough until you have a nice tight twisted look. With the ‘spiraling hand’, wrap the twisted rope of dough around the fingers pinching the end of the dough twice. Poke the end of the strip of dough into the center of the ‘knot’ and place on the baking sheet with ample space between them, about 3 inches (these poof dramatically during baking). Repeat with the other strips of dough - the process sounds more complicated than it is and you will pick up the motions and steps as you shape each knot.
Cover the knots with a kitchen towel and let proof for about 1-2 hours in a warm room until puffier and when you lightly but firmly press the knot with your finger the indentation is slow to fill in.
Once the knots are proofed, preheat your oven to 350F. Whisk the egg in a small bowl and using a pastry brush, lightly brush each knot. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until deeply golden brown all over. Once pulled from the oven, you can brush each knot lightly with the orange syrup (from my Squash cake recipe). I find the orange syrup is a nice bright flavor pairing with the cardamom and ensures the knots stay moist and fresh for longer. Don’t miss out on the chefs treat of the caramelized filling that inevitably spills out of the buns during baking. It is just as much a treat all on its own and half the reason and joy of baking these cardamom knots.
If you make these, please let me know! :)
A note on the filling! You can use between 1-2 TBSP of cardamom depending on how ‘spiced’ you like your buns to be!