Possibly my favourite thing to bake ever, kanelfläta is essentially a sweet braided cardamom and cinnamon bread traditional to Swedish culture. I've been making this for years now, and it's so easy and fun - everyone in the house loves it, and it's usually eaten within a few hours of coming out of the oven.
Ingredients
For the dough
- 100 g non-dairy spread (I use Nuttelex)
- 1 1/2 cups plant-based milk of choice
- 14g active dry yeast (approx. 2 packets)
- 4 1/2 cups flour (I liked to use plain or wholemeal)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/4 tsp salt
For the filling & topping
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 100 g softened non-dairy spread
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 tsp allspice
- plant-based milk to brush the bread with
- pearl sugar, for topping (if you can't buy this at the store like me, here's a link on how to make it at home)
Method
The dough
Melt the butter on medium heat in a saucepan. Once melted, remove from heat and add the milk and yeast. Let sit for 10 minutes. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, cardamom and salt together. After the 10 minutes is up, add the wet mixture to the dry and stir to roughly form the dough. Place the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead for 3 minutes or so until the dough is smooth and elastic, springing back when stretched. Return it to a lightly oiled bowl to prevent sticking, and leave to rise for about an hour. Cover the bowl with a cloth and place it in a warm location.
The filling
Mix the granulated sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, allspice and butter together to form a smooth spread.
Now it's time to assemble the bread!
Once the dough has risen, knead it again for about a minute and divide. Roll the first piece of dough into a neat rectangle a little larger than the size of an 4A piece of paper. Down the middle, about the width of a 3rd of the dough, spread half the filling.
Now the next step is a little hard to explain without physically demonstrating it so I've decided to include a picture to illustrate the concept. You cut the dough on both sides into thin sections at a 45° angle, then proceed to fold these sections over each other. It's really quite easy once you get the hang of it. Transfer the first finished bread to a oven tray lined with baking paper, and repeat the same process with the second portion of dough.
Let both rise covered for another 45 minutes. Don't forget to preheat the oven to 180°C!
Once they've risen again, brush them with plant-based milk and sprinkle on the pearl sugar (homemade or store bought). Bake for 25 - 30 minutes, checking regularly.
And you're done! Baking these makes the house smell fantastic, and it's so special since there really are from Scandinavia but can't be found anywhere in Melbourne. Let me know if any of you give baking this a try, I'd loved to hear what you think!
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