Comfort spice. Not the forgotten sixth member of a world-famous girl group. But cinnamon – my go-to nostalgic comfort spice. My all-time favourite spice. Cinnamon played a starring role in my childhood memories. Featuring heavily in my grandmother’s baking, the smell of cinnamon wafting through the house with apple pies cooling on the bench, and precious memories of Saturday morning cafe dates at Elly’s Coffee Lounge with my mama… and cinnamon toast. Every week. I’m talking white toast with zero nutritional value, lashings of butter and cinnamon sugar, presented in classic 1980s fashion, atop a paper doily. Back in the days when people called cappuccinos cuppuccinos and there was not a nut milk to be found.

Then I discovered cinnamon scrolls. They were from the shopping centre doughnut guy and to be honest, now I think of it, they were nasty. But I loved them.

And, as it turns out, this love of cinnamon is lifelong. Looking back on my travels, I unintentionally tried a cinnamon bun whenever I could find one. When I was in New York, despite having the flu and epic jet lag, I found myself lining up at Cinnabon, to get me a fix. I have to say, the sticky white cream cheesy icing arrangement isn’t for my people, but I still found it incredibly familiar and comforting on a cold New York day, far from home.

Which brings me to Paris. Not known for their cinnamon bun, but it was there I discovered Swedish cinnamon buns. The Kanelbullar. I tasted these little wonders in a local cafe with a talented Swedish pastry chef – making the most incredible Kanelbullar. I. Was. Hooked. No freaky sticky icing in sight. Just delicious twists of cinnamonny goodness with a hint of cinnamon’s best mate, cardamom. Absolutely amazing.

Naturally, I chased them down in Stockholm. Amazing. In Denmark, I found similar – the Kanelsnegle. Amazing. The Scandinavians have it nailed.

The smell of this little hero spice will always take me back to those beautiful Saturday mornings with my mama. Comfort and love.

The dough

– 250ml whole milk
– 57 grams unsalted butter, melted
– 50 grams caster sugar
– 405g plain flour
– 7g sachet instant dried yeast*
– ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
– 2 teaspoons ground cardamom

The hero filling

– 120g unsalted butter, softened
– 100g brown sugar
– 2-3 tablespoons cinnamon (all depends on your dedication to cinnamon)
– 1 teaspoon cardamom

The egg wash

– 1 egg and a splash of water, whisked together

The method

Gently heat the milk in a saucepan, until warm to touch but not hot (ideally you have a thermometer and heat until it reaches 43 degrees celsius). Sprinkle the yeast over the milk, briefly whisk and let it rest for five minutes. Whisk in the melted butter.

Meanwhile, whisk the flour, sugar, salt and spices together in a mixing bowl.

Pour in the butter and milk mixture and stir until dough begins to form. Using a stand mixer with dough hook attachment, mix on low speed for eight minutes. If kneading by hand, turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead for seven to 10 minutes, or until the dough is soft and smooth. Form the dough into a ball and place in a butter-greased bowl covered in plastic wrap or a towel to rest and rise to double in size. Around 60 minutes in a warm space, longer if you’re in a cooler environment.

Meanwhile, mix together all the goodness of the HERO filling.

Stretch, pull and roll the dough out onto a floured surface until it’s a quarter inch thick and in a rectangle shape, around 55cm x 38cm. Spread the filling all over and right to the edges. Fold into thirds like you would a business letter. Roll to get rid of air bubbles and to get the dough to around 38cm x 20cm. Then, using a pizza cutter, cut into 2cm strips parallel to the short edge. Holding the end of a strip, twist the entire strip to lengthen as you go. Wrap loosely around two fingers and then across the top and tuck the end underneath. (Sounds waaaay more complicated than it is – if you are confused, YouTube will be your bestie.)

Pop onto a tray lined with baking paper. Cover with plastic wrap or a towel and leave in a warm place for the dough to rise for around an hour. Might take longer if it’s a colder day.

Preheat your oven to 190C. Brush the top of each bun with the egg wash. If you are feeling particularly Scandi, you can sprinkle some Pearl sugar on at this point.

Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the rolls reach a happy, golden brown. I prefer mine lightly golden, so the dough stays super soft. Transfer to a cooling rack for five minutes. Best to eat straight out of the oven.

*Let’s talk yeast. I used dried yeast as it’s the most readily available in the region. But feel free to use instant yeast if you can get your hands on it. Just whisk the instant yeast in with the flour mixture and pour the butter and milk in and mix. No need to let it hang out in the warm milk first.

Tack Sweden!