Toasted Cardamom Nordic Crown
Holidays always bring us back to our roots, and this Nordic-inspired recipe was created by Patrice Hurd to do just that. It was was a finalist in the 2017 National Festival of Breads. You don't need to wait for the holidays. It's a delicious way to celebrate any special occasions!
“My Finnish grandmother always crushed seeds from fresh green cardamom pods, knowing
the dramatic flavor difference it made over ground cardamom. I worked sprouted wheat
flour into my grandmother’s basic recipe and used the convenience of preparing the dough
in a bread machine.” — Patrice Hurd, Bemidji, Minnesota
Ingredients
Dough, made in bread machine
- 2 large eggs (reserve 1 tablespoon for topping)
- 1 (5-ounce) can (2/3 cup) evaporated milk, 80°F
- ¼ cup water, 80°F
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 6 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup King Arthur® 100% Whole Grain Sprouted Wheat Flour
- 2 cups King Arthur® Unbleached All-Purpose Flour, plus extra for kneading
- 1 (¼ ounce) package RED STAR® Platinum Superior Baking Yeast
Cardamom Filling
- 1 ½ tablespoons whole green cardamom pods, approximately*
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
Topping
- Reserved tablespoon beaten egg
- 1 tablespoon Pearl sugar
Directions
- In small bowl, lightly whisk eggs. Reserve 1 tablespoon for topping, cover and refrigerate.
- Place the remaining eggs and dough ingredients into the bucket of a bread machine. Select the DOUGH cycle, and press start. Add additional water or flour as needed to form a very soft dough.
- For the filling: Crush cardamom pods and remove enough seeds to equal 1 ½ teaspoons. Toast seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat for 2 minutes, shaking pan occasionally; immediately remove seeds from skillet to cool. Place seeds and granulated sugar in spice grinder or mortar and pestle; process until seeds resemble ground black pepper. In a small bowl, beat the cardamom-sugar mixture, brown sugar, and butter until smooth.
- Lightly grease a 9" springform pan with removable bottom. Line bottom with an 11" parchment round, extending edges up over pan seam.
- On lightly floured surface, roll dough into a 16" x 12" rectangle; spread filling to within ½" of edges. Starting at the long edge, roll the dough up like a jelly roll; pinch seam to seal. Place seam-side down. Cut roll in half lengthwise, leaving 1" at the top uncut; twist the length of each cut side six times. On work surface, turn one end inward and coil the entire length of dough into a spiral shape, forming an 8" round. Lift coil into pan, tucking the end under loaf.
- Cover; let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350°F; remove reserved egg from refrigerator. Brush the top with egg; do not let egg pool in seams. Decorate with Pearl sugar.
- Bake 30 – 35 minutes, until bread is golden and center registers 190°F – 195°F on an instant-read thermometer. Tent with foil to keep from over-browning. Cool in pan 5 minutes. Loosen edge with knife and remove the springform ring. Transfer to rack and let cool on parchment. Remove parchment and transfer the crown to a serving plate.
This recipe was shared through a partnership with the National Festival of Breads and was provided courtesy of Kansas Wheat.
