who can resist a good cardamom bun? I’ll always choose cardamom over cinnamon – it just feels much brighter and more fragrant, and especially good for this time of year. I’ve boosted the flavour with cosiness by incorporating some earl grey tea; and, while these are delicious just as they are, I sometimes add a generous squiggle of icing on top for extra sweetness.
Earl grey cardamom buns
Prep 30 min
Steep 15 min+
Prove 2 hr+
Cook 40 min
Makes 9
For the dough
150ml milk
4 earl grey teabags
300g strong white bread flour
1 tsp fast-action dried yeast
25g caster sugar
½ tsp fine sea salt
1 egg, beaten
25g unsalted butter, softened
For the filling
1½ tsp ground cardamom (freshly ground, for best results)
90g caster sugar
85g unsalted butter, softened
For the syrup
60g caster sugar
1 earl grey tea bag
To prepare the dough, heat milk and tea bags in a small saucepan until steaming. Cover and leave to steep for 15-20 minutes. In a large bowl, mix flour, yeast, sugar, and salt. Make a well in the centre and add the infused milk and beaten egg. Knead with a stand mixer for 6-8 minutes or by hand for 10-15 minutes. Rest the dough uncovered for 5 minutes, then add butter and knead for 3-4 minutes until you have a smooth, glossy dough. Put the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover and leave to rise in a warm place for at least 1.5 hours until it nearly doubles in size.
For the filling, mix cardamom and sugar in a bowl, then add butter and mix thoroughly. Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6 and line a 20cm square tin with baking paper.
Once the dough has risen, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and roll it into a large rectangle about 3-4mm thick. Spread the filling evenly across the surface, leaving a ½cm gap all around the edge. Starting from one of the long sides, tightly roll up the dough, then slice into nine rolls. Arrange the rolls cut side up in the lined tin, with a bit of space in between. Cover the pan loosely with a dish towel and leave to prove for 25-30 minutes until they look puffy and have increased in size so that they start to touch. Bake for 30-35 minutes until they turn a deep brown colour.
For the syrup, put sugar and tea bag in a small saucepan with 60ml water, bring to a boil, and simmer for a minute. Once the buns are baked, take them out of the oven, wait for a few minutes, then brush generously all over with the syrup, and serve.
If you want to top with icing, mix three tablespoons of icing sugar with half a tablespoon of water to get a thick consistency (add a little more water if it’s too thick), then pipe or drizzle over the cooled buns.
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