Finnish Butter Eye Buns "voisilmäpulla"

Recipe by www.food.com

A common sweet bread here in Finland with a devilishly sugary eye in the middle. My husband really wanted me to make it so he found it in a finnish recipe book and translated it for me to make it. I changed the combining of the ingredients just to fit my bread making style. I also put the conversions into cups that I did for myself because I am not comfortable with DL yet. We enjoyed these and they taste just like the ones we get in the coffee shop over here. The more sugar and butter you put in the middle the better they become...

Ingredients

• 2 cups milk (5 dl)
• 50 g dry yeast
• ¾ cup sugar (1 1/2 dl to 2 dl )
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cardamom
• 1 egg
• 150 -200 g butter (3/4 - 7/8 a cup)
• 6 cups flour (14-15 dl)
• butter, centers
• butter
• sugar
• 1 egg

Method

1. Combine 2 cups Flour, the cardamom, yeast and salt. Set aside.
2. Combine milk, butter and sugar into a small pot.
3. Heat on the burner until just hot and butter is almost melted, stirring to dissolve sugar.
4. Add milk mixture and egg to flour mixture, beat on low for 1 minute and on high for 3 minutes (I have no electric mixer at the moment so I beat it with a spoon "really fast" for 3 minutes and it does the job just fine :).
5. Add in additional flour until dough is workable and turn out to a floured surface.
6. Kneed dough until it springs back when you touch it.
7. Let rise for an hour or until doubled in size.
8. Punch down and let rest for 5 minutes.
9. Make into rolls about the size of a small fist -- or however big or small you want them. The official recipe says 20 pieces. I think I come out with about the same.
10. Brush with beaten egg.
11. Make a thumb print into each roll and add 1/2 tsp butter and 1/2 tsp sugar.
12. Bake in the oven at 350 F for 10-15 minutes until golden brown.
13. Serve with coffee or tea :).
14. The preparation time does include the hour to rise.

View the recipe instructions at www.food.com