Saffron Buns with Almond Paste

I love Christmas and everything that goes with it. But what I probably love most is baking all the good Christmas sweets. There's nothing better than finally getting back to baking all the things for Christmas! This recipe is something I'll bake every Christmas. Saffron buns with almond paste!

I love buns with stuffing. And in my opinion, a saffron bun MUST have a filling. In this recipe, the buns are filled with my favorite filling; almond paste.

This recipe will give you 25-30 medium-sized saffron buns.

Saffron dough:

500 ml milk, at room temperature

50 g yeast, at room temperature

1 g saffron

225 g butter, at room temperature

90 g granulated sugar

900 g all-purpose flour

1 pinch salt

Filling:

150 g butter, at room temperature

200 g almond paste

75 g light brown sugar

45 g granulated sugar

1 tablespoon cardamom

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Glaze:

1 egg

Water

1 pinch salt

Topping:

Syrup (100 ml water + 90 g granulated sugar)

Pearl sugar

Almond shavings

Instructions:

1. Crumble the yeast into a bowl and pour in the milk. Mix until the yeast dissolves completely. Add the saffron and stir.

2. Add the butter in small pieces, granulated sugar and about half of the flour.

3. Work the dough into a sticky dough, then add the rest of the flour and the salt.

4. Knead the dough in a dough mixer for about 10 minutes. If you're kneading by hand, make it around 15 minutes.

5. Let the dough rise while covered at room temperature for about 1,5 hour.

6. Meanwhile, mix the filling into a spreadable batter. Put aside.

7. When the dough is ready, roll it out into a rectangle about 40x60 cm in size. If you want to, you can divide the dough into two parts and make two smaller rectangles.

8. Spread the filling over the rectangle. Then fold one side into the middle, not all the way. Then fold the other side over the other folded side, it should be three layers totally. Roll the dough lightly to remove any air bubbles.

9. Make any shape you want on the buns. If you want to make the same shape as I have done in the pictures above, cut about 0.5 cm wide strips along the entire dough.

10. Take a strip and spin it around your index finger and middle finger. Carefully fold the end of the strip into the center when you have finished spinning. Then remove the spun strip from your fingers and do the same with a new strip, around the already spun strip. Make sure the dough stays tense.

11. Place the buns on prepared baking sheets with parchment paper and let them rise while covered for about 1-1,5 hour.

12. Preheat the oven to 400 °F. Meanwhile, prepare for the glaze and syrup.

13. Glaze: Whisk together the egg, water and a pinch of salt. Put aside.

14. Syrup: Mix sugar and water until the sugar has dissolved completely. Put aside (brush the syrup on the buns AFTER fully baked in oven).

15. After rising a second time, brush them with the glaze and top with pearl sugar and almond shavings. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes or until they have a golden brown surface.

16. Brush with syrup as soon as the buns are removed from the oven and sprinkle them with some more pearl sugar. Adding the syrup immediately after removing them from the oven will give you juicy buns that won't get dry!

17. Enjoy your delicious saffron buns!