Voisilmäpulla (Finnish Butter Eye Buns)

Voisilmäpulla (Finnish Butter Eye Buns) recipe for #BakingBloggers! These golden, cardamom-scented buns have a rich center bursting with butter and sugar.

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Baking Bloggers

Created by Sue of Palatable Pastime, #BakingBloggers get together monthly to vote on a different baking project. For January, we are featuring Sweet Rolls and I am joining in with a recipe for Voisilmäpulla (Finnish Butter Eye Buns)!

Check out more of my #BakingBloggers recipes here: Alevropita (Greek Thin-Batter Feta Pie), Strawberry Nutella Galette, Napolitaines (Mauritian Sandwich Cookies), and Baked Cookies and Cream Doughnuts.

Voisilmäpulla (Finnish Butter Eye Buns)

Rachel of Vagabond Baker wrote that these Voisilmäpullat “look like little butter volcanoes.” That is definitely a fitting description. After proofing, a cube of butter is pushed into the center of each cardamom-scented bun and topped with sugar. The result during baking is a burst of butter with a crispy, light crust around the top. 

The dough should be on the softer side. Add just enough flour to create a smooth and workable dough. Too much flour will cause the rolls to become dense. If the dough is too crumbly and just won’t come together, add some more milk a splash at a time.

Make sure the butter cubes are well-chilled. You can even place them in the freezer for a few minutes. This will make them easier to work with. 

For a little more texture, I also surrounded the butter-filled cavity with raesokeri (pearl sugar) before baking. This is completely optional. Different from the larger Belgian version, Scandinavian pearl sugar is a coarse white sugar often used as a topping in baked goods. It can be found in markets with Northern European ingredients or on Amazon: Swedish Pearl Sugar.

The Voisilmäpulla freeze well after baking. Simply reheat in a warm oven for about 5 minutes.

Want even more flavor? Follow My Dear Kitchen in Helsinki’s lead and flavor the butter with cardamom and sugar. Freeze the mixture until solid, then cut into cubes to place in the center of each roll. 

Check out what everyone else made!

• Apple Bread Rolls from Sneha’s Recipes
• Cherry Sweet Rolls from Palatable Pastime
• Cottage Country Style Chelsea Buns from Making Miracles
• Fastelavnsboller + Some Danish Culinary History from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Hawaiian Sweet Rolls from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Orange Sweet Rolls from Cookaholic Wife
• Overnight Apple Cinnamon Breakfast Rolls from Cook with Renu
• Pan de Mallorca from Caroline’s Cooking
• Portuguese-Style Sweet Potato Rolls from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Sticky Buns from Sid’s Sea Palm Cooking
• Sweet Balsamic Blackberry Crescent Rolls from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Voisilmäpulla (Finnish Butter Eye Buns) from Tara’s Multicultural Table

Voisilmäpulla (Finnish Butter Eye Buns) Recipe

Adapted from Vagabond Baker

Print Pin

5 from 6 votes

Voisilmäpulla (Finnish Butter Eye Buns)

A recipe for Voisilmäpulla (Finnish Butter Eye Buns)! These golden, cardamom-scented buns have a center bursting with butter and sugar.

Course Bread

Cuisine Finnish

Keyword bread, butter, Finland, Finnish, pearl sugar, pulla, voisilmäpulla

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 12 minutes

Resting Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Total Time 2 hours 12 minutes

Servings 20 Voisilmäpullat

Ingredients

• 1 cup lukewarm milk 105-115˚F
• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 5 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter softened at room temperature
• 1 large egg

Topping:

• 5 tablespoons salted or unsalted butter chilled
• 1 egg
• Pearl Sugar
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Instructions

• In a small bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm milk. Stir and allow to sit until the yeast is frothy, about 10 minutes.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough attachment or a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cardamom, and salt.
• Mix in the softened butter, egg, and yeast with milk to form a dough. Add a little more flour if too sticky (just enough to remove the stickiness- don't add too much or it will create tougher rolls) and a little more milk if too crumbly.
• On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough until soft and smooth. Place the dough back in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a towel, and allow to rise until doubled, about 1 hour (this may take closer to 2 hours in cooler kitchens).
• Preheat oven to 400˚F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or lightly grease.
• On a lightly floured surface, divide the dough into 20 equal pieces, each about the size of a golf ball (45 grams/1.5 ounces). Roll each piece into a smooth ball and place on prepared baking sheets around 2 inches apart. Cover with dish towels and allow to rise until puffed, about 30 minutes.
• Use a finger to make a depression in the center of each roll. Cut the chilled butter into 20 equal cubes. Place a cube in each depression.
• In a small bowl, beat the egg and brush it over each roll. Pour 1/4 teaspoon of granulated sugar directly over each cube of butter in the bun. If desired, sprinkle pearl sugar around the edges.
• Bake the voisilmäpullat in the preheated oven until golden, about 12 minutes.
• Allow to cool on a wire rack and they are best served warm.