make it & fake it: Fall Fever: Norwegian Cinnamon Buns

Fall is here, I keep saying that.. fall is here! But in Norway, fall is really here! When im not busy cursing the cold (and I do spend a lot to time doing just that (if there are more of "me" out there I can recommend tank tops from SmartWool it washes like cotton but warms like wool, AMAZING and that statement is not even sponsored note to Smartwool, PLEASE sponsor me!!)) I am busy baking pastries and enjoying the harvest! Butternut squash, sweet potatoes and lam, YUM! (Food is basically one of my fav parts of any season, haha!)

The best pastry by far is what we call "kanel boller" (cinnamon buns), but this isn't like the once you get in a can in the grocery store or at a fancy bakery, these are DEVINE! They are sweet without being too sweet and the cinnamon just gives it that warm fuzzy "I just spent an hour making a snowman and now I am snuggling in front of the fireplace with an Abercrombie model in offwhite RL cable knit " kind of feeling! I would call it perfection in pastry form!

(I am sorry but I am using european terms to measure weight, volume and thickness, there are several online calculators that will convert it for you)

You will need:

7dl Milk

1 1/2 pk of Yeast

3dl Sugar

250g Butter

3ts Vanilla sugar

1 1/2 ts cardamom (its a spice, I am sure you can get it at bulkbarn)

2 eggs

Flour

For the cinnamon buns you also need: extra sugar, butter and cinnamon.

For the chocolate buns you also need: semi sweet chocolate-chips.

Doug:

Melt the butter and add the milk to the pot to warm it (no boil) before you pour it in a mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar and the eggs. Before you add the yeast make sure the temperature of the mixture is not warmer than your body temperature (you do that by dripping a drop of the milk on to your wrist. Its supposed to feel like its the same temperature, so not warm and not cold) stir in the yeast till it disolvs. Then you add the four, vanilla and cardamom. You want a doug that doesnt stick to the sides of the bowl, but the key is to add just enough flour so that it kneads easily but not more, you really want to add as little as possible while still being able to work with the doug. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let it raise somewhere thats warm. I normally put mine in a corner in the bathroom floor since my floors there are heated! (Isnt heated bathroom floors the best??)

Next step:

Divide your dough in 4 equal parts. Add some flour to the work surface and roll your doug out to form a rectangle about 1cm thick. Spread on a layer of melted butter, sprinkle the sugar (dont hold back) and cinnamon over. Fold 1/3rd of your rectangle over the center, then repeat on the other side.

Cut the dough in 4 cm pieces. Pick up a pice, twist it a few times around and form a circle with it on your baking paper. (It was literally impossible for me to take a picture of myself doing this to show you, sorry but its super easy) Keep doing this to all your pieces.

Let them raise for another 20 min before you cook them in the center of the oven on 225C for 10-12 min.

Trust me, this will be the best thing you bake this fall, no doubt!

I had extra dough, and these "boller" (buns) with chocolat chips are so delish so I just had to make a few.You use the same doug but you add some chocolate chips before you roll them out.