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Chocolate buns

Many people have heard of twisted cardamom buns from Sweden.
For those of you who like them (or like the idea of them), here is a simple recipe for twisted chocolate buns using the same technique.
Chocolate is frequently easier to find than cardamom, and almost everyone likes it. This is a fun recipe for children to do. Helps develop dexterity and guarantees a big mess.
Prep Time6 hours
Cook Time20 minutes
Servings:12
Author:Jane Mason

Equipment

  • baking tray
  • pizza cutter or sharp knife
  • Dough scraper or spatula

Ingredients

Ingredients for the dough

  • 600 g Good quality strong (bread) white flour
  • 400 g Full fat milk Heated to boiling point and let cool right down to room temperature.
  • 6 g Dry yeast Or 3 g instant yeast, 12 g fresh yeast
  • 100 g Sugar
  • 12 g Salt
  • 100 g Butter at room temperature

Ingredients for the filling

  • 100 g Dark chocolate
  • 100 g Unsalted butter
  • 4 tbsp Cocoa powder
  • 50 g icing sugar
  • 2 tsp Cinnamon (optional)
  • 1 pinch salt

Ingredients for the egg wash

  • 1 Egg
  • 1 tsp Cold water
  • 1 pinch Each of salt and sugar

Instructions

Make a pre dough

  • Measure the flour into a big bowl and make a well. Sprinkle the yeast and the sugar into the well and add 100 grams of the milk. Flick a little flour over the water to close the well and cover with a tea towel. Let it rest for one hour.

Make the dough

  • Add 250 g of the milk and the salt.
  • Knead for ten minutes either by hand or by machine on the lowest setting, and then add and the butter. Knead again for 10 minutes until the butter is completely incorporated and the dough gets shiny and is elastic.
  • Pop the dough back in the bowl, cover, and let rise for 2-4 hours, until it has doubled in bulk.
  • While the dough is resting, melt the butter and chocolate (filling) together and then stir in the cocoa, icing sugar, salt and cinnamon if using. Cover and leave it at room temperature. It should be easily spreadable.

Shape the buns

  • Generously flour your work surface and pull the dough out of the bowl and on to the work surface. Flour the top of the dough lightly and roll it into a rectangle. The short side should be around 30 cm and it should be about 0.5 cm thick.
  • Take the filling out of the bowl and spread it all over the dough rectangle. Be patient and spread it all the way to the very edges.
  • Fold the dough up along the long side of the rectangle into thirds, as if you were folding a piece of paper for an envelope. Leave the dough for 20 minutes or so to relax. This will make it easier to stretch out when you form the buns.
  • Using a scraper or a pizza cutter (knife is a worst case scenario) cut the dough into sections about 2 cm wide.
  • Pick up a strip of dough and gently stretch it out and twist it. Then, pinch one end between the first and second fingers of your NON WORKING hand and then make a group of fingers that includes your first three fingers. Only the small finger and the thumb are left out. Hold your thumb away from the group. Pick up the other end of the strip of dough with your working hand and wrap it three times - loosely - around the group of fingers
  • When the dough has come around for the third time, take it past your thumb and then loop it around it. Bring end of the dough up over the dough that is wrapped around your fingers, and thread it between your ring and third fingers, all the way over to the back. Tuck it under the dough at the back and remove the whole thing from your fingers. Bunch it up nicely if it has become wonky and place it on a baking tray you have covered with non stick baking parchment. It takes some practice.....
  • The alternative to this is to pretend you are making a ball of yarn out of your dough. Truly just begin to wind it up, making sure the dough goes around the ball in different directions to keep it together.
  • Cover the buns with a tea towel and let them rise for 45 minutes.
  • Pre heat the oven to 225 degrees C.
  • Glaze the buns with the egg wash and then pop them into the oven. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Check them after 10 minutes and cover them with a piece of parchment paper if they are getting too brown.
  • Cool completely on a wire rack (that's wishful thinking because they are terrific when they are warm).