Braided Cardamon Bread - Fikabröd

3 cups flour
3/4 cups milk

1/2 cup water
4 tbls sugar, plus one spoonful for glaze
1/8 cup butter
1/4 cup applesauce
3 tbls cardamon

2 1/4 teaspoons yeast

Warm water and milk to 80 degrees and then add the sugar and yeast. Set aside to grow until frothy.

Add butter and applesauce and then mix by hand into flour, adding a bit of flour until an elastic ball forms. Slide into an oiled bowl to rise for 30 minutes.

Knead dough and separate into three equal parts. Roll out three ropes. Coat with cardamon. Braid.

Let rise on a greased cookie sheet under a dish towel while oven preheats to 380 degrees. Bake for 25 minutes or until a deep golden brown.

Then cool on a baking rack and moisten the crust with butter and sprinkle with sugar. 

Swedes traditionally leave one slice left. Not wanting to be seen as better than anyone else for any reason, they would rather let it sit till it hardens than thieve the last piece of fikabröd.