Make the dough: 12 hours before you plan to shape the rolls (either in the evening before bed, or in the morning if you plan to bake in the evening), make the dough. Whisk together the flour and salt, set aside. Melt the butter, and set aside to cool slightly. In a smaller bowl, whisk the milk, egg, sourdough starter, and honey. Add this into the dry ingredients along with the cooled butter, and fold it together to make a wet sticky dough. Cover this and let it sit for 30 minutes. The fancy word for this is autolyse. Basically it allows the gluten chains to start forming before you even start kneading it, making it easier.

Knead the dough: Turn the dough out onto a well floured surface and knead by hand for 6-8 minutes. Sprinkle a good amount of flour onto the dough when it becomes too sticky to continue. After this amount of time, you should be able to form it into a cohesive ball. Place the ball back into the bowl and cover it with plastic wrap or a very damp kitchen towel. You don’t want the top of the dough to dry out.

Bulk rise: Leave the dough at room temperature to rise for 8-12 hours.

Make the filling: Soften your stick of butter and whisk the sugar, brown sugar and cardamom into it. Set aside.

Prep the pan: Prep a 9×13 baking dish by coating it with butter.

Roll and shape the dough: Flour your surface and the top of the dough ball after turning it out. Use a rolling pin to roll it out into a large rectangle, about ¼ inch thick. Spread on the filling, leaving a small margin around the edge to be able to seal it together. Fold the dough over itself by half, and seal the edges together. Use the rolling pin to flatten it once more, then use a pizza cutter or pastry cutter to slice it into six equal pieces. Slice each one almost all the way through into three sections for braiding. Braid the bottom of the dough piece and then roll it over itself. Place each one into the 9×13 pan.

Second rise: Cover the cardamom buns again and let them rest for 1-2 more hours until they puff up again.

Preheat oven and bake: Bake the cardamom buns at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes until they are golden brown on top.

Make the glaze: While they are baking, make the vanilla glaze. Combine the granulated sugar, water, and vanilla extra. Bring it to a simmer until the sugar is dissolved, then remove it from the heat.

Glaze and serve the cardamom buns: Once the buns come out of the oven and are still warm, brush the glaze over each one. Serve with a cup of coffee, as breakfast, dessert, or mid afternoon snack!