I know that I said in my previous post that I will focus more on Christmas recipes for now. But this is one recipe that I have been planning to add to the blog for a very long time! Besides, I know that a cinnamon roll is something to eat all year round, but it also perfectly fits Christmas spirit because of cinnamon! (This is my understanding of Christmas, which is still quite new for me, so forgive me if I’m wrong!)

 

 

Ok, korvapuusti. For some reason, the Finnish name of these delicious rolls also means “a slap on the ear”. I have no idea why, or if there is any story behind it. If you know the story, let us know in the comments!! But for me it looks more like this cute baby sea turtle from Finding Nemo: http://img.lum.dolimg.com/v1/images/eu_finding_nemo_chi_squirt_n_1c9ff515.jpeg. In any case, the next time somebody asks me if I want a korvapuusti or not, I’ll think twice!

 

 

 

Korvapuusti is one of those pastries that Finns absolutely love. Who wouldn’t though? In some places I’ve seen huge versions, like in Cafe Esplanad – they are as big as my head (well, ok, almost). Most Finns enjoy korvapuusti with coffee of course, as Finland is the biggest coffee consumer country in the world, but I personally enjoy it with tea, fresh and well brewed tea.

 

 

 

I adapted this recipe from “My Blue and White Kitchen” blog. I changed the recipe slightly; instead of fresh yeast I used dry yeast, instead of bread flour I used regular white wheat flour, and I made the filling a bit more. I like the filling with a richer taste.

 

So go ahead! Make the rolls, give their peculiar shape, and bake for your friends – you will make them veeeeery happy! Smells good!

 

—

 

Ingredients:

 

Difficulty: ★★★ (advanced)
(Makes 18-20 rolls)

 

Ingredients:
For the dough:
2 cups + 1 tbsp + 1 tsp / 5 dl. milk (heated slightly, to lukewarm)
1 tbsp + 2 tsp / 25 ml. active dry yeast
1 cup – 2 tbsp – 2 tsp / 2 dl. sugar
1 tsp / 5 ml. salt (original recipe calls for 1/2 tsp more salt, but I am using salted butter so I decreased the amount of salt in my recipe)
1 tbsp + 1 tsp / 20 ml. ground cardamom
1 egg
1 kg white wheat flour (vehnäjauho) minimum – I added 1 dl. more to my flour, so have a bit more flour around just in case
170 gr. butter, softened at room temperature

 

For the filling:
250 gr. butter, very soft (soft enough to easily spread on the dough)
10 tbsp / 150 ml. sugar
2 tbsp + 2 tsp / 40 ml. ground cinnamon

 

For the surface:
1 egg
pearl sugar

 

 

—

 

1. (you can also make the dough by hand) In the bowl of a mixer, pour milk and yeast and let it sit for about 5 minutes.

 

 

 

2. Add sugar, salt, cardamom and egg, and beat until they are well mixed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Gradually add flour and continue beating.

 

 

4. Once you put about half of the flour, change to dough hook and continue kneading, while adding more flour.

 

 

5. Once you add 1 kg. flour, add butter and continue kneading. After that stage, I realised that I needed 1 dl. more flour. In the end you should have dough that doesn’t stick to the sides of the bowl or to your hands. Once you have this, stop kneading.

 

 

 

6. Put a little flour in the bottom of a bowl and put the dough inside. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise until it almost doubles in size, in a warm spot in your kitchen.

 

 

7. Once the dough doubles in size, punch it a few times to let the excess air out (but not too much, you are not boxing with the dough..)

 

 

8. In the meantime, prepare the filling by mixing / beating butter, sugar and ground cinnamon.

 

 

 

 

9. Flour your work surface lightly, put the dough and divide it in 2 equal parts.

 

 

 

10. Roll out each piece to a rectangle, about 60x40cm in size roughly. Spread the filling on top.

 

 

 

 

11. Roll the rectangle into a tube and cut it into 9-10 pieces as seen in the photo.

 

 

 

12. Press each piece from their short side into the centre using your index finger. Put the pieces on a baking tray and cover with a kitchen towel for a second rise for 30 minutes.

 

 

 

13. While waiting for the second rise, preheat the oven to 225C.

 

14. Once the pieces are ready, brush each with egg and sprinkle pearl sugar generously, concentrating more on the centre line. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the rolls brown nicely. Try to eat when it is freshly baked, but try not to eat all in one go!!