Swedish Cardamom + Cinnamon Buns {vegan}

Vegan Swedish cardamom and cinnamon buns with a little spelt flour for extra flavour. The gooey cinnamon filling and sweet spiced buns are the perfect thing to serve alongside coffee for a little Swedish fika with your favourite people.

My Swedish friend has instilled in me a love of the Swedish fika concept, not that I needed much encouraging (coffee and cake? ALWAYS), and I jump at the chance to make traditional Swedish cinnamon buns, kanelbullar, or cardamom buns, kardemummabullar, because they are just SO pretty with all the twists and twirls. My favourite buns though, are a cross between the two: cardamom and cinnamon bullar with a little earthy spelt flour added in for extra flavour — a recipe found on the always wonderful Apt 2B Baking Co. that was adapted from the Fika cookbook by Anna Brones & Johanna Kindvall. Over time, my recipe has changed quite a bit from these two recipes, though their essence remains the same.

With the help of my readytotastetestALLthebullar Swedish friend, we’ve moulded this recipe to be something that we both love: the dairy has been swapped out (with none the wiser); the buttery-sugary-spiced filling increased to fit with the Swede’s childhood memories of sweet, gooey bullar; a vanilla bean glaze was added to give them a little more oomph and sticky bun goodness. In keeping with the previous version, there’s a little earthy spelt flour (though less than Yossy’s version) and it combines both cinnamon and cardamom as per the original recipe, because, who can choose between the two?

These may take a little while to prepare, but it’s a slow and easy preparation. Time to rest and relax along with the dough in true fika fashion: time to read a book, binge watch a new tv series, to have a nap or catch up on life with friends. The smell of these baking in the oven is enough to call anyone in the neighbourhood in for food, coffee and a chat!

Swedish Cardamom + Cinnamon Buns {vegan}

vegan, egg‐free, dairy‐free, nut‐free option

Vegan Swedish cardamom and cinnamon buns with a little spelt flour for extra flavour. The gooey cinnamon filling and sweet spiced buns are the perfect thing to serve alongside coffee for a little Swedish fika with your favourite people. Adapted from Yossy Arefi at Apt 2B Baking Co who adapted it from the Fika Cookbook by Anna Brones & Johanna Kindvall. Head to this post on Pantry Confidential to see how Johanna Kindvall shapes the buns (scroll down towards the end of her post).

Servings 18

Ingredients

dough

• 1/2 cup / 120g vegan butter
• 1 1/2 cup / 375ml creamy almond milk i make my own or other creamy plant‐based milk
• 2 tsp active dried / instant yeast
• 1 1/2 cup / 150g light spelt flour
• 3 cup / 375g white wheat flour / all‐purpose flour
• 1/2 cup / 100g raw granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt

filling

• 3/4 cup + 2 Tbsp / 200g vegan butter soft
• 1/3 cup / 70g light muscovado sugar or light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup / 80g raw granulated sugar
• 4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp freshly ground cardamom / 3 tsp. pre‐ground cardamom
• pinch fine sea salt

glaze

• 1/4 cup / 60 ml water
• 1/4 cup / 50g light muscovado sugar or light brown sugar
• 1 vanilla bean pod seeds scraped & pod reserved

topping

• little bowl plant‐based milk for brushing
• raw granulated sugar or pearl sugar for sprinkling

Instructions

dough

• Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the milk & heat until just warmed through (do not boil or cook for long, only just heat until it is lukewarm). In a small bowl combine the yeast with a 1/2 cup of the warm milk mixture + 1 tsp sugar. Let sit until dissolved & foamy.
• In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the flours, sugar, cinnamon & salt. Add the yeast mixture and remaining milk mixture. Mix on low speed until a dough forms. If it looks too dry & is not fully combining, drizzle in a little more milk until it comes together. Mix on medium speed until the dough is smooth and elastic, 3–5 minutes. If kneading by hand, follow the same process but knead for a little longer. The dough should be soft & very lightly sticky to the touch but not overly so; add a little more flour if needed. The dough is fully kneaded when you slice into it with a sharp knife & see small air bubbles throughout.
• Transfer the dough to a clean, lightly oiled bowl, cover with a clean tea towel & let rise in a warm, draught free area for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

filling

• Line 2–3 baking trays with parchment baking paper. Stir the filling ingredients in a small bowl until well combined & smooth.
• Divide the dough in half. Take one half (cover the other with a tea towel) & roll it into a rectangle roughly 28 x 43 cm with the long edge facing you. Spread half of the filling over the dough, making sure to spread it all of the way to the edges.
• Pick up the long end of the dough that is facing you and gently fold it over towards the long end that is facing away from you, so that it is folded in half lengthwise. Try not to stretch it too much, I use a dough scraper to help me here. Slice into 9 — 12 even strips. Shape the buns as per the post on Pantry Confidential (link at the top of this recipe in the details section) & place on the parchment lined baking trays, allowing about 5cm between each bun to give them room to rise — I had 6 buns per baking tray. Repeat with the remaining dough.
• Cover the buns with a clean tea towel and let them rise for 45 minutes — 1 hour or until puffy. Preheat your oven to 225C during this rising period.

glaze

• While the buns are rising, heat the water, light brown sugar, and vanilla bean seeds + pod in a small saucepan on high until the sugar has dissolved completely. Set syrup aside.

bake

• After the buns have risen, brush them with a little plant‐based milk. Bake the buns for about 10 — 12 minutes or until light golden brown & smelling delicious, making sure you rotate the pan halfway through to allow for even browning. As soon as they come out of the oven, brush them with a coating of the glaze, then sprinkle with a little raw sugar or pearl sugar. Serve warm or cool the rolls completely, then eat the same day or store them in an airtight container in the freezer. Eat with reckless abandon with a steaming mug of coffee in hand. Happy Fika!