Cardamom Buns with Natural Yeast

I love my natural yeast.    I've been baking bread with it, trying to get light and fluffy bread instead of heavy and brick-like bread.   

Brick-like bread is good for a lot of things, but not eating.   For example, you can use brick-like bread for a door stop.   Or a weapon.   Or a big paperweight.   Or a mold culture.  Or a window prop.   Or to break into your car if you forget your keys.   Or instead of a clay pigeon. 

I'd just rather have light and fluffy bread.

You know?

I've been playing a lot with the natural yeast and noticed that a lot of recipes call for only 1/2 cup of starter.  That's not enough here.  I kept getting brick bread.  When I feed my start, I take out about 1 1/2 cups of the old starter to make room for the new feed.  One day,  I decided to use all 1 1/2 cups of leftover start in the dough.  What a difference!  I made a batch of light and fluffy cardamom buns that was so good that K2 begged me to make more.   Every. Day. 

So I did. 

Cardamom Buns with Natural Yeast
from www.rurification.com

• 1 1/2 cups natural yeast start  [or whatever you take out when you feed your start]
• 2 cups white flour
• 1 cup milk
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 tsp cardamom
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 Tablespoons oil
• 1 more cup white flour

Mix the natural yeast start, 2 cups of white flour, milk, sugar, cardamom, eggs,  and oil well.  It will be a wet dough.   Put it in a large greased bowl and let it rise to double.   Don't rush it. 

After it has risen the first time, mix in the last cup of flour.   Flour your hands and pull off pieces about 1/2 cup in size and roll them into balls.  Set them in a greased ovenproof pan and let them rise to double.

Bake at 400 for 25 minutes.

These are amazing with honey.   Amazing.   Worth the trip to the store to get some if you don't have it in the pantry.