Chow and Alex say: “This recipe is one of our absolute favourites. In recent years, we’ve made a few trips to Stockholm and Copenhagen where these buns are found in every bakery. Each time, we wanted to bring back suitcases of these sweet ‘n’ spicy delights. By creating this recipe, we no longer need to. At heart, this is a simple bun. But it’s spectacular.”

Makes 12 large buns

Ingredients

For the dough

6 cardamom pods
300ml whole milk
50g unsalted butter
450g strong white flour, plus extra for dusting
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
7g fast-action dried yeast
50g caster sugar
½ teaspoon salt
2 medium free-range eggs
1 tablespoon olive oil, for oiling

For the filling

100g salted butter, softened
80g soft dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon salt

For the glaze

150g icing sugar
Juice of ½ lemon
1–2 tablespoons water

To decorate

30g sugar nibs or pearl sugar (optional)

Method

Bruise the cardamom pods hard enough to split them and shake their black seeds into a mortar. Crush to a rough powder with a pestle and put into a saucepan along with the milk. Warm over a gentle heat for 5 minutes or so, removing from the heat just as the milk begins to simmer. Stir the butter into the pan to melt in the residual heat. Cool for 10 minutes or so.

Meanwhile, sift the flour into a large mixing bowl with the cinnamon, dried yeast, sugar and salt and mix until combined. Make a well in the centre and add the eggs and warm milk and mix until everything comes together to make a very soft, sticky dough.

Knead for 10 minutes using an electric dough hook or alternatively, turn the sticky dough onto an oiled surface and knead until smooth, about 10–12 minutes. The dough should be smooth and spring back a little when pressed.

Put the dough in an oiled bowl, cover it with an oiled piece of clingfilm and leave to rise at room temperature for 45–60 minutes, until doubled in size.

Meanwhile, make the filling. Beat all the ingredients together with a wooden spoon until you have a thick paste. Set aside.

Once the dough has risen, divide it in half, place each one on a lightly floured or oiled surface and roll each one out to a large, long 30 x 46cm rectangle. Spread the paste over the rectangles, keeping a clear 2cm border around the edges.

Roll each piece of dough into a fat cylinder and then, using a sharp knife, cut into six 6cm slices. Nestle the slices into a large 25 x 35cm ceramic baking dish or roasting tin. Cover once again and leave for a final prove of 45–50 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6. Bake the buns in the oven for 16–18 minutes until slightly puffed and golden brown.

Make the glaze by mixing all the ingredients to a smooth paste.

Remove the buns from the oven and allow them to cool in the dish. Drizzle the glaze over and sprinkle with sugar nibs, if using.

Extracted from Jude’s: Ice Cream & Desserts by Chow and Alex Mezger (£16.99, Kyle Books, out on 30 May)

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