Julbröd is a traditional Swedish Christmas bread, lightly sweet and warmly spiced with cardamom. This version is soft, fragrant, and wonderful toasted with butter.

Ingredients

Bread

1 cup whole milk, warm
2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast (1 packet)
⅓ cup granulated sugar
½ cup unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1½ teaspoons ground cardamom
4½–5 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup raisins
½ cup chopped almonds or sliced almonds

For the topping

1 egg, beaten
1–2 tablespoons pearl sugar or sliced almonds
Instructions
Activate the yeast: Combine the warm milk, yeast, and 1 tablespoon of the sugar. Let stand for 5–10 minutes, until foamy.
Make the dough: Stir in the remaining sugar, melted butter, eggs, salt, and cardamom. Gradually add 4½ cups of flour, mixing until a soft dough forms.
Knead: Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 8–10 minutes, adding a little more flour if necessary. The dough should be smooth and slightly tacky.
Add fruit and nuts: Knead in the raisins and almonds until evenly distributed.
First rise: Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for 1–1½ hours, or until doubled in size.
Shape: Punch down the dough and divide it into 3 equal pieces. Roll them into ropes and braid them together. Place the braid on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Second rise: Cover loosely and let rise for 30–45 minutes, until noticeably puffy.
Brush and decorate: Brush the loaf with beaten egg and sprinkle with pearl sugar or sliced almonds.
Bake: Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 30–35 minutes, until deeply golden and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped. If it browns too quickly, loosely cover it with foil.
Cool: Let cool on a rack for at least 30 minutes before slicing.
🎄 Serving

Julbröd is especially good served warm with butter, alongside coffee or Swedish Christmas breakfast. For extra Christmas flavor, you can add ½ teaspoon cinnamon and a little grated orange zest to the dough.

Tip: For a particularly soft loaf, don’t add too much flour—the finished dough should remain slightly soft and elastic.