🎄✨ Christmas Saffron & Cardamom Buns

A soft, fragrant holiday tradition — something I bake every Christmas, and it always fills the house with the warmest festive glow.

Ingredients — Dough

300 ml milk

1 g saffron

45 g fresh yeast

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp cardamom

200 g powdered sugar

250 g crème fraîche

100 g butter

730 g flour

Ingredients — Filling

150 g butter

2 tsp vanilla sugar

150 g light caster sugar

🎁 Method

1. Infuse the Christmas magic

Warm the milk with the saffron and bring it gently to a boil.

Let it cool until it’s just lukewarm — it turns the milk a beautiful holiday gold.

2. Prepare the dry mix

Crumble the fresh yeast into the flour.

It feels a bit like making the “snow” base for the dough.

3. Mix the dough

Pour in the saffron milk.

Add the salt, cardamom, powdered sugar, crème fraîche, and butter.

Knead until the dough is soft, smooth, and cozy — like a winter blanket.

4. First rise

Cover the dough and let it rise until it’s doubled in size.

This part always feels like waiting for Christmas morning.

5. Make the filling

Cream together the butter, vanilla sugar, and caster sugar.

It should be soft, sweet, and spreadable.

6. Shape the buns

Roll out the dough, spread the filling across it, and shape the buns however you like.

Twists, spirals, knots — anything that feels festive.

7. Second rise

Set the shaped buns on a baking sheet and let them rise again until they’re full and fluffy.

8. Bake

Bake until golden and beautifully fragrant — the smell alone feels like Christmas.

Let them cool for a bit (or enjoy warm with a mug of something cozy).

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