Kanelbullar (Swedish Cinnamon Buns)

Have you heard of hygge?  When the weather turns chilly hygge is all the rage.  But what exactly is it?  In a nutshell, hygge is the art of being "cozy"...think candles, cashmere and warm fireplaces.  On a cold, dreary and grey day I have to say there's nothing better.  The Bay Area was bracing for a major storm this weekend (it's ok, we need the water!) and nothing sounded better to me than staying at home and baking.

I love a good cinnamon bun and the Swedish version, Kanelbullar, has been on my to do list for a while.  They evoke not only hygge, but also fika, the Swedish slang for coffee breaks.  To be perfectly frank I was really drawn to them after seeing this gorgeous photo on Edd Kimber's (aka The Boy Who Bakes) Instagram feed.  There was something about the twisted treats topped with pearl sugar that looked so appealing...I had to make them!

I found the recipe for the kanelbullar on SwedishFood.com.  The dough is similar to any other cinnamon bun recipe except it has the addition of cardamom, a very popular spice used in Scandinavian baking.  The other distinction is how the buns are shaped.  Rather than being rolled up in a log and cut the dough is stretched, twisted and shaped in to a striped round.  I found a great video here on YouTube that shows you how to do this. 

 

These kanelbullar are so good!  Straight from the oven I devoured two of them as they were the perfect accompaniment to a hot cappuccino.  Storm, schworm...I say bring it on!  I'll be inside gettin' hygge with it.

Millionaire's Shortbread

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

If you've never made Millionaire's Shortbread before, no better time than the present to give it a try!  Trust me, you won't regret it.  While Scottish in origin, millionaire's shortbread is basically a delicious homemade Twix bar with it's crispy shortbread cookie base, soft and chewy caramel filling all topped with rich chocolate.    

I'd seen recipes for this treat before on various UK-based sites and actually attempted making them in early 2016 with less than stellar results.  That all changed when I saw the version from Cook's Illustrated in the November issue of the magazine.   They've never failed me before and this time was no different. 

The instructions couldn't be easier to follow and I was delighted with the final cookie.   I veered a bit from the original recipe and sprinkled Malden flakes on top of the caramel layer to add a nice salty/sweet contrast.  I have to admit that my one trepidation with this recipe was in slicing the bars but in the end my concerns were unfounded.  When you're dealing with chocolate it can be a bit finicky but the method CI used to temper the chocolate worked out fantastic and I had no issues whatsoever in portioning the bars.   

I gifted the millionaire's shortbread to some friends for the holidays and they were immediately devoured.  While I do prefer bittersweet chocolate I think the next time I make these cookies I'll switch it up and use some semisweet or milk chocolate.

Springerle Cookies

One of the best things about my job is that I get the opportunity to travel to Europe every now and then.  Last month my department had a global meeting at company headquarters in Basel.  I was especially looking forward to the trip because it was just at the start of the holiday season in Europe.   Even though I travel to Europe quite frequently I've never been right before Christmas, always after. 

My friends Steve and Becky took me to the Basel Herbstmesse (Autumn Fair) that was in the heart of of old town.  Out of the myriad of stalls my favorite was the one that sold springerle cookie molds.  Springerle cookies are German in origin and made by pressing a carved mold onto rolled dough to make a pattern impression.  Normally they appear around Christmas time.  There were so many beautiful designs to choose from but in the end I went with a traditional tree. 

I searched the internet for a springerle recipe and found a great one here on House on the Hill's website.  This company makes springerle molds so I figured they'd be the authority on everything about the cookies.  

The dough is pretty straightforward, however it does call for a very particular ingredient as a leavening agent that isn't well known in America - hartshorn,  aka baker's ammonia or ammonium carbonate.   You can use baking powder as a substitute, but hartshorn helps the cookies retain their intricate design and their texture crispy.  Luckily I had some in my pantry...acquired on a trip to Norway where they sell it in the supermarket.

 

The key to success is making sure you flour the mold really well before you press it in to the rolled out dough.   My only complaint was that I didn't have a rectangle cookie cutter large enough to fit the design so I had to hand cut each cookie.  Note to self: buy a mold that fits within a cutter I already have!

After all the cookies were stamped and cut they had to air dry for at least 12 hours in a cool, dry place.  Don't skip the air drying because it sets the pattern and forms a nice skin on the top of each cookie.   The springerle are baked in a low oven (around 300-325 degrees) until the bottoms are lightly browned.  Make sure not to get the tops of the cookies brown!  The amount of time in the oven really depends on the size and thickness of the cookie.  The springerle I made were 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 in size and about 1/3 inch thick and baked in the oven for about 20 minutes.  

For my first attempt I think my springerle came out pretty nice.  I want to try a speculaas recipe next time.  And you can be certain that I'll be acquiring more molds on my future trips to Europe!

Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies from Naturally Sweet Cookbook & a Giveaway

I've mentioned before on this blog that diabetes runs in my family which isn't necessarily ideal when you love to bake as much as I do.  Inevitably this question always seems to come up when I make something for the relatives, "can you make it less sweet"?      

How excited was I when America's Test Kitchen recently came out with a cookbook specifically dedicated to baking with less sugar, entitled Naturally Sweet.  If this book didn't have my family's name written all over it I don't know what would! 

The recipes in the book use alternatives to the traditional granulated white sugar, which helps to bring down the level of sweetness.  Sucanat, an unrefined cane sugar, is the one predominantly used in Naturally Sweet.   

I was keen to test out a recipe to see if the cookbook really lived up to its claims and decided to have a go at one of my all-time favorite cookies, Oatmeal Raisin.   The cookie dough came together really easily, although you do have to take the extra step of grinding the Sucanat in a spice grinder. 

The cookies browned beautifully in the oven with crispy edges and a soft center, just how I like them!  They tasted great and had a very nice molasses flavor to them.  I didn't even miss the extra sugar to be honest but the true test was to get other people's review.

I brought the cookies in to the office but didn't disclose that they were low sugar.   My co-workers devoured them and when I revealed that they were made with less sugar they were completely surprised.  One person even said I could have cut the sweetener a little more and they still would have been fantastic.  Now that's a testimonial if I ever heard one!  I plan on making more recipes from the cookbook for my family to enjoy this holiday season.

My friends at America's Test Kitchen have kindly donated two copies of Naturally Sweet to give away to my blog readers.  Here's how to enter:

GIVEAWAY RULES:

1) Only open to those with a U.S. mailing address

2) Leave your email address in the comments section of this post.  Sorry, comments without an email address will be disqualified.  

3) Deadline for entry: Saturday December 31 at 11:59pm PST.  

Good Luck!