This Swedish Coffee Bread is a slightly sweet yeast bread that is delicious for a dessert or for tea time. It looks like one of those more involved bread recipes, but it really is quite simple and looks amazing!
Swedish Coffee Bread
Here is a delicious coffee bread you can make at the holidays or anytime you are having company or a special occasion. It’s actually very similar to cinnamon buns but a bit more fancy. This is also a more dignified to eat in public if you are over the age of 10. Cinnamon buns are delicious and all but not the most dignified thing in the world to eat!
Read more about 38 Festive Holiday Bread Recipes!
I promise, this bread really is fool-proof. It looks hard, but when you see my photos and then see the final result you won’t believe how well it came out. Imagine putting a cute little red bow on it to make it look like a wreath!
How to Make this Swedish Cardamom Bread Recipe
Almond paste is kind of hard to come by and some people don’t like it so it’s totally optional.
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup (100g) white sugar
- 1/2 cup (4 oz) butter
- 2-pkg active yeast dissolved in 1/4 cup warm water
- About 4 cups all-purpose flour 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
Filling
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 cup golden raisins (optional)
- 1/2 cup slivered almonds (optional)
- 1/4 cup almond paste (optional)
Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon water
Directions
- Put milk into a small saucepan and heat on medium heat until steamy (but not boiling). Remove from heat. Stir in the butter and sugar until the butter has melted and the sugar dissolved. Pour into a mixing bowl. Mix in yeast mixture and egg.
- Mix in salt and cardamom. Slowly add in 2 cups of the flour. After the first two cups of flour gradually add more flour until a soft dough starts to form a ball and pull away from the sides of the bowl.
- Turn out onto a floured surface and knead dough for 7 to 10 minutes until smooth, OR use a dough hook in a stand-up mix- er and knead the dough that way for 7 to 10 minutes, adding more flour as needed to keep the dough from being too sticky.
- Place the dough in an oiled bowl, covered with a clean towel or with plastic wrap. Let rise for an hour or until the dough has doubled in size.
- Press the dough down to deflate it a bit. Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Take one part and roll it into a 8-inch by 16-inch rectangle on a lightly floured, clean, flat surface.
- Brush the dough with melted butter, leaving at least a half inch border on the edges so the dough will stick together when rolled. Mix together the brown and white sugar and the cinna- mon and sprinkle the dough with half of the mixture.
- Carefully roll the dough up lengthwise, with the seam on the bottom. Carefully transfer to a greased baking sheet. Form a circle with the dough on the baking sheet, connecting the ends.
- Using scissors, cut most of the way through the dough, cutting on a slant. Work your way around the dough circle. After each cut, pull out the dough.
- Cover lightly with plastic wrap and set in a warm area for a second rise. Let rise for about 40 minutes to an hour; the dough should again puff up in size.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Whisk together the egg yolks and cream. Use a pastry brush to brush over the dough. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes. After the first 15 minutes of baking, if the top is getting well browned, tent with some aluminum foil.
- Remove from oven and let cool completely. Whisk together glaze and drizzle over the pastry.
Swedish Coffee Bread
Here is a delicious coffee bread you can make at the holidays or anytime you are having company or a special occasion.
Ingredients
Filling
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 cup golden raisins (optional)
- 1/2 cup slivered almonds (optional)
- 1/4 cup almond paste (optional)
Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon water
Dough
- 1/4 cup warm water
- 2 packages (4 1/2 teaspoons) active yeast
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup (4 oz) butter
- About 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
Instructions
- Dissolve yeast into warm water and let sit for five minutes. Put milk into a small saucepan and heat on medium heat until steamy (but not boiling). Remove from heat. Stir in the butter and sugar until the butter has melted and the sugar dissolved. Pour into a mixing bowl. Mix in yeast mixture and egg.
- Mix in salt and cardamom. Slowly add in 2 cups of the flour. After the first two cups of flour gradually add more flour until a soft dough starts to form a ball and pull away from the sides of the bowl.
- Turn out onto a floured surface and knead dough for 7 to 10 minutes until smooth, OR use a dough hook in a stand-up mix- er and knead the dough that way for 7 to 10 minutes, adding more flour as needed to keep the dough from being too sticky.
- Place the dough in an oiled bowl, covered with a clean towel or with plastic wrap. Let rise for an hour or until the dough has doubled in size.
- Press the dough down to deflate it a bit. Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Take one part and roll it into a 8-inch by 16-inch rectangle on a lightly floured, clean, flat surface.
- Brush the dough with melted butter, leaving at least a half inch border on the edges so the dough will stick together when rolled. Mix together the brown and white sugar and the cinnamon and sprinkle the dough with half of the mixture.
- Carefully roll the dough up lengthwise, with the seam on the bottom. Carefully transfer to a greased baking sheet. Form a circle with the dough on the baking sheet, connecting the ends.
- Using scissors, cut most of the way through the dough, cutting on a slant. Work your way around the dough circle. After each cut, pull out the dough. (It doesn't have to be perfect as you can see in the photos!)
- Cover lightly with plastic wrap and set in a warm area for a second rise. Let rise for about 40 minutes to an hour; the dough should again puff up in size.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Whisk together the egg yolks and cream. Use a pastry brush to brush over the dough. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes. After the first 15 minutes of baking, if the top is getting well browned, tent with some aluminum foil.
- Remove from oven and let cool completely. Whisk together glaze and drizzle over the pastry.