Pärlsocker

Pärlsocker is Swedish pearl sugar. It is made of small, hard, opaque white nibs of pressed sugar, roughly the size of a peppercorn. It does not melt at normal baking temperatures, so it stays white and crunchy on top of baked goods. It tastes simply sweet and adds a crunch and sparkle.

How to use it

1. Brush buns or cookies with egg wash just before they go in the oven.
2. Sprinkle the pearl sugar on top while the egg is wet so it sticks.
3. Bake as the recipe says.

It is the finishing touch on Swedish cinnamon buns (kanelbullar), cardamom buns and braided loaves. It also tops cookies such as finska pinnar, small almond and butter sticks, and chokladbollar, oat and cocoa balls, which are sometimes rolled in it instead of coconut. All of these are classics of Swedish fika.

Substitutes

Outside Scandinavia, look for Swedish pearl sugar in Scandinavian or baking shops. If you cannot find it:

• Crushed sugar cubes. Put sugar cubes in a bag and tap them with a rolling pin until they break into small, uneven pieces. Shake out the fine powder in a sieve. This is the closest swap.
• Coarse sanding sugar or demerara (turbinado) sugar. These give sparkle and crunch but partly melt or brown in the oven.
• Flaked almonds, alone or with a little coarse sugar, for crunch.

Belgian pearl sugar is a different product. Its pieces are much larger and are mixed into Liège waffle dough, where they melt into pockets of caramel. It is too big for topping buns.

How to store it

Keep it in a closed container in a dry cupboard. It keeps indefinitely as long as it stays dry. Moisture makes it clump.

Common mistakes

• Sprinkling it on dry dough. It rolls off. Brush with egg wash or a sugar glaze first.
• Adding it after baking. It will not stick. Sprinkle it before the buns go in.
• Using fine sugar instead. Superfine sugar or granulated sugar melts into the surface and the crunch is lost.