Norwegian Cinnamon Knots (Kanel snurrer)

These fancy looking cinnamon knots are apparently all the rage in Norway at the moment. They show up all over the foodie blogusphere. 

And easily tempted as I am I have made these a few times already. These pretty buns are a play on the traditional cinnamon roll, from a renowned bakery in Lom Norway. The bakery is run by chef and baker Morten Schakenda. I believe he is behind the method of adding the butter in pieces into the mixed dough at the end of the initial kneading process. A method that works wonders and has taken my baking to new heights. This is the same basic yeast recipe used for the Norwegian Jule bread and the School buns. In this case, instead of rolling into rolls, the dough is cut into strips that are twisted and made into a knot (see pictures below). It creates a beautiful effect. It looks a lot more intricate and complicated than it really is. So don't be afraid to try it. And if they don't come out perfect they will still taste crazy good!

Ingredients:
2 lbs all-purpose flour
2 cups whole milk, warmed to 85-90 degrees F.
5.2 ounces sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cardamon
1 large egg
2 ounces fresh yeast, crumbled (or 1 envelope dry yeast)
1 stick plus 3 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces

Filling:
1 1/2 sticks softened butter
4.4 ounces brown sugar
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 egg , beaten, for egg wash
Sugar for sprinkling

Fresh yeast is not commonly used here and can be hard to find. Whole Foods usually has it as do some health food stores. Our local Lunds/Byerly's also has it. This is what it looks like:

Preparation:

Put all the ingredients for the dough, except butter, into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Knead on low speed  for about 10 minutes (add a small amount of additional flour if dough seems very sticky). Add butter to dough and continue kneading until it is all incorporated and the dough no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl. Do not panic! The dough will seem messy at the outset but will come together nicely in the end, in just about 10 minutes.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a tight lid and let the dough proof for about 1 1/2 hours. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and roll out to a rectangle approximately 16 x 19 inches in size (it is pretty big!). Spread butter over the entire dough and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Starting with the long side farthest away from you, fold 1/3 of the dough towards the middle. Fold the long side closest to you over the dough that is doubled. You now have 3 layers. Roll this stack out to an approximately 12 x 19 inch rectangle. Cut into 1 inch vertical strips. Twist each strip and make a knot. Transfer to a parchment covered baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Brush buns with egg and sprinkle with sugar. I had some Scandinavian pearl sugar, but regular sugar is great too. Bake 15-18 minutes.

Cool on baking sheet 5 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack.

Yield: Depends on size. I got 22 large


(Recipe adapted from Morten Schakenda)

These are great for freezing and reheating. Cool completely before storing in  freezer bags. Thaw in room temperature 45 minutes and reheat in 350 degree oven for 5 minutes.