In a few days the first day of fall is official, and I’m super excited because it’s my all-time favorite season!
This is the time for apple and pumpkin picking, cooler mornings, sweater weather, beautiful foliage, cozy evenings in front of the fire with a glass of red wine, all things cinnamon and of course… lots of baking!
Since I live in the apple state of New York, I had to come up with a recipe that uses apples.
Apples are also super popular in Norway – we even have a dedicated apple day, always on the last Tuesday in September!
Due to the long summer days and cooler weather, the apples get really fresh and crispy in Norway and there’s nothing quite like true Norwegian apples.
That said, there are some fantastic apple varieties in New York as well! These days I see apple trees filled wherever I drive around in the gorgeous Hudson Valley where I live, so one can’t help but be inspired to cook and bake with this tasty fruit.
I’ve featured a lot of recipes with apples on my blog, among others a gorgeous eplekake,
the classic Norwegian dessert, tilslørte bondepiker as well as a decadent cardamom bun with vanilla custard and caramelized cinnamon apples.
This week I decided to make a simpler and rustic version of apple-filled cardamom buns (epleboller in Norwegian).
I chopped up apples and tossed them in demerara sugar and cinnamon and folded them into the batter with some raisins. The demerara sugar adds a nice crunchy texture to the soft buns, so I also sprinkled the top of the buns with it.
If I were to do something slightly different, I’d probably sauté the apples in a little butter, brown sugar and cinnamon versus adding them into the batter raw, and then wait until the second rise until I fold it into the dough.
That said this version was delicious too and really tastes of fall…they are not that sweet, and can easily be enjoyed for breakfast, an afternoon or late evening snack in good conscience.
Slather them with some homemade apple butter (or store bought) for that extra appley flavor and enjoy with a hot cup of coffee, tea or cider!
Norvegan Apple Cardamom Buns (Epleboller)
Makes 18-20 buns
6 cups (750 grams) all-purpose flour
2/3 cup (125 grams) sugar
1 packet (2 ¼ teaspoons) active dry yeast
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
2 1/4 cups (5.25 dl) unsweetened organic soy milk or other plant-based milk
113 grams (1 stick) unsalted vegan butter, cold and diced
1/4 cup (50 grams) raisins
1 Granny Smith apple or other crisp apple, cored, peeled and diced small
5 tablespoons demerara sugar divided
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Vegan butter and plant-based milk for brushing top of buns
Add the flour, sugar, dry yeast, salt ground cinnamon and cardamom in a bowl of a stand-mixer fitted with the dough hook. Turn it on low, and mix the dry ingredients, then add in the milk and continue kneading on low for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, add in the diced cold butter and knead for another 8 minutes.
While the dough is kneading, rehydrate the raisins by adding them into a small bowl and pouring hot water over the raisins. Let stand for about 5 minutes, then drain.
Add the apples into another small bowl and toss with 2-3 tablespoons of the demerara sugar and the cinnamon.
Add the drained raisins and apples to the dough and knead for another 2 minutes until everything is integrated into the dough.
Cover bowl with a clean kitchen towel or cling wrap and place in a warm, draft-free spot and rise until double in size, about 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 450℉ (225℃). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Place the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and divide into 18-20 pieces. Roll each piece into buns and place on the prepared sheet pans. Cover the buns with a towel and let rise for another 30 minutes.
When ready to bake, brush with a little melted vegan butter and/or plant-based milk, sprinkle with the remaining demerara sugar and bake the buns in the middle of the oven, one tray at a time, for about 12-15 minutes until golden on top.
Cool the buns on a rack before diving in!
APPLE CARDAMOM BUNS
Ingredients
- 6 cups (750 grams) all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cups (125 grams) sugar
- 1 packet (2 ¼ teaspoons) active dry yeast
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 2 ¼ cups (5.25 dl) unsweetened organic soy milk or other plant-based milk
- 113 grams (1 stick) unsalted vegan butter, cold and diced
- ¼ cup (50 grams) raisins
- 1 Granny Smith apple or other crisp apple cored, peeled and diced small
- 5 tablespoons demerara sugar divided
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Add the flour, sugar, dry yeast, salt ground cinnamon and cardamom in a bowl of a stand-mixer fitted with the dough hook. Turn it on low, and mix the dry ingredients, then add in the milk and continue kneading on low for 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, add in the diced cold butter and knead for another 8 minutes.
- While the dough is kneading, rehydrate the raisins by adding them into a small bowl and pouring hot water over the raisins. Let stand for about 5 minutes, then drain.
- Add the apples into another small bowl and toss with 2-3 tablespoons of the demerara sugar and the cinnamon.
- Add the drained raisins and apples to the dough and knead for another 2 minutes until everything is integrated into the dough.
- Cover bowl with a clean kitchen towel or cling wrap and place in a warm, draft-free spot and rise until double in size, about 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 450℉ (225℃). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Place the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and divide into 18-20 pieces. Roll each piece into buns and place on the prepared sheet pans. Cover the buns with a towel and let rise for another 30 minutes.
- When ready to bake, brush with a little melted vegan butter or plant-based milk, sprinkle with the remaining demerara sugar and bake the buns in the middle of the oven, one tray at a time, for about 12-15 minutes until golden on top. Cool the buns on a rack before diving in!
0 Comments