Bread #4: Swedish Coffee Bread

 

Good morning bread bakers.

After looking through quite a few cookbooks, I decided to make Swedish Coffee Bread from my King Arthur Flour cookbook.  I’ve never made this before and am intrigued by the cardamom in the bread. Before I could even begin making the dough, I needed to figure out which kind of cardamom to use.  I actually have 4 kinds of cardamom in my cupboard: whole green pods, whole black pods, cardamom seeds and a jar of ground cardamom.  Wow!  I cannot tell you why I have so much cardamom.  After spending some quality time with google, I have concluded that I need to use the seeds from the whole green pods and crush them in my mortar and pestle.  On to making the dough.

Here is the recipe.  Please bake Swedish Coffee Bread with me.

 

Tools you will need:

Mortar & pestle
Large bowl
Measuring spoons
Set of dry measuring cups
1 cup liquid measuring cup
Knife to cut the stick of butter
Wooden spoon for mixing
Bench scraper to scrape of the dough that sticks to your work surface
Plastic wrap or towel to cover the dough
Parchment paper
Baking sheet

Here are all the ingredients:
 

Ingredients:

1 cup milk, lukewarm
1 rounded Tablespoon active dry yeast
4 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
2 eggs
½ cup sugar
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 ½ teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon crushed cardamom
1 teaspoon olive oil for the bowl
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
Cinnamon mixed with sugar to sprinkle on top

 
Crush the Cardamom:  Remove the black seeds from the green ponds.  (I used my mortar and pestle to break up the pods and release the seeds.)  Crush the seeds using a mortar and pestle until you have 1 teaspoon.  I crushed them fairly fine – although a few larger seed bits remained.

Making the Dough:  Blend milk, yeast and 1 cup of the flour together in a large bowl.  Let this stand for approximately 15 minutes.  When the mixture is bubbling and expanded, beat in the eggs, sugar, butter, salt and cardamom.  There will be lumps, but that’s fine.

Gradually add the rest of the flour, stirring until the dough begins to hold together and pull away from the sides of the bowl.  I used only 4 cups to this point, but you may need a little more or less.

Kneading & Rising:  Turn this soft dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 3 to 4 minutes, adding a little bit of flour as needed to keep it from sticking.  Let the dough rest while you clean out and grease the bowl.  Continue kneading for another 3 to 4 minutes.  When the dough is smooth and elastic, place it in the bowl, turning it so the top is greased.  Cover and let rise until double, 1 ½ to 2 hours.

Shaping & Rising:  When you can poke your finger in the dough without it springing back at you, punch it down, turn it out onto your work surface and divide it in two, then divide each half into 3 equal pieces.  Roll each of the pieces into a long rope – about 18 inches long.  Take 3 of the long ropes, pinch the ends together and then braid.  Pinch the ends.  Repeat with the other 3 ropes. 

Place the braided loaves onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Brush the tops with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.  Cover and let rise until doubled, about an hour.

Baking: About 15 minutes before you want to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.   Bake for 25-30 minutes.  Turn out and cool on a rack.

 

Reflections on this bake:

Okay – very interesting flavor – I think I like it.  Not sure I can describe the flavor of the cardamom – it is just very unique.  Maybe vaguely similar to a spicier nutmeg?  The bread itself is slightly sweet, very rich and tender.  My favorite part is the cinnamon-sugar buttery crust that forms on the top.  I think it will be perfect with a cup of coffee or tea.