Cardamom Braided Bread

This was the second loaf I baked during my year of the 40 Loaves Project. I had recently bought a jar of ground cardamom and found myself huffing it on the regular. It smells sweet and citrusy and gingery and spicy, almost like someone figured out how to turn a lemon-lime soda into a powder. It’s exotic and sublime. As it baked on that chilly January evening, the house filled with the most beautiful smell. I braided it in a four-strand braid (which is extremely easy, you’ll see) for presentation and sprinkled the top with a coarse raw sugar that looks like gold glitter and tastes like heaven. It didn’t disappoint in looks or taste.

We had friends over for dinner, and I served a chunky beef stew and stuck the pot and the bread board right on the table with us like a rustic cottage supper. We cut our own jagged slices of the bread and ate it with butter and cheese, and the hearty meat and vegetable stew warmed us from the inside out. Perfectly comforting! 

Ingredients:

4 cups flour

1 ½ tablespoons instant yeast

1 teaspoon ground cardamom

1 teaspoon salt

1 ¼ cups milk or water (milk adds richness)

¾ cup granulated sugar

¾ cup melted butter

Egg wash:

1 egg, lightly beaten with 1 tbsp water

Large granule sugar

Directions:

Mix flour, yeast, cardamom, and salt in your mixing bowl fitted with the dough hook. 

Heat milk or water in the microwave in a glass measuring cup or in a saucepan on the stove, and stir in sugar until dissolved. 

Add the milk and sugar mixture to the flour mixture. Mixing on low, drizzle in the melted butter until a sticky dough forms. 

Knead the dough for 5 minutes using the stand mixer or your hands. Allow the dough to rest covered for 20 minutes in the bowl. 

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into three or four equal parts. Roll the sections into three or four ropes of equal length and thickness. Allow the dough to relax for five minutes before braiding.

For a three-strand braid, bring the outer rope into the center, alternating sides. For a four-strand braid, take the far left strand and do an alternating over-under-over. Always start with the farthest-left strand, and keep the same pattern for the whole loaf. Once you reach the end, pinch it together and tuck it under the loaf. Position the braid on a greased baking sheet.

Allow the braided dough to rise for about an hour, covered with a kitchen towel, until beautifully puffy.

Preheat oven to 350 F. 

Brush the risen dough with egg wash and sprinkle with large granule sugar. Bake until golden brown, about 30-35 minutes.