~35 - 50 buns
For the dough you'll need
1 g saffron, ground
50 g yeast
2 dl sugar
1 egg
5 dl cold milk
12 - 14 dl flour
A pinch of salt
175 g butter
Raisins (optional)
Glazing requires
1 egg
or syrup made of one part water and three parts sugar
Raisins (optional)
Pro tip! Measure everything in advance. That makes things easier.
Another pro tip! If you make them here in Scandinavia between January and November, someone will punch you in the face.
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1. Turn the radio on. Tune in some soothing jazz, or perhaps christmas music.
2. Melt the butter on the stove together with the saffron. Let it sizzle for a bit before turning the heat off.
3. Pour the milk onto it and make sure it's between 35 - 37 C (95 - 98.6 F). Temperature is important because the warmth activates the yeast, but if it's too hot you'll kill it instead!
4. Break apart the yeast in a big bowl. Add the sugar and a pinch of salt along with the milk and butter mixture. Stir until the yeast has diluted properly.
5. Add the egg and flour, little by little, and stir like crazy with tool of your own choice. I use a ladle.
6. When it starts to thicken, start kneading with your hands instead. Add the raisins if you want them. I like raisins.
7. do be very careful not to add too much flour at the end, or you'll end up with dry buns. It takes years of practice to know when the dough is perfect, but I'd say that it's the very moment when the dough no longer sticks to the bowl or your hands, and becomes smooth and pliable. Kneading develops gluten and helps that cause- be careful with the flour! I've done it enough times to be able to wing it.
7.5 Knead the yellow goodness until your arms hurt, about 10 minutes. Standing up while kneading is ergonomically better for your body.
8. When it's soft and smooth and looks like a proper dough, put it back into the bowl, which you cover with a kitchen towel. Do something meaningful while you let it rise for roughly an hour, or more if indoor teperature is low. Text your mom and tell her you love her, or snap some photos of your messy work bench and upload to social media so they know you're an awesome baker! Also, turn the oven on to 225 C or 437 F.
If you decided to not knead the thing inside the bowl I suggest cleaning off your workspace from flour and dry dough residue.
9. Knead the air out of the dough, then decide how you want them to look;
9.5 Cut small pieces from it and roll into little yellow worms, about 2 cm thick. Roll each end into itslf in opposite directions, so you end up with a swirly S-shape. Keep in mind the dough will keep rising at this point! Don't make them too big or the end result will look horrible (even if they taste good). Later on when you've glazed them, you may stick two raisins in the swirl for decoration.
Or;
9.6 Roll into smooth buns if you're lazy or made a really big batch.
10 Place on baking sheet with baking paper, plenty of space inbetween. Cover with kitchen towel and let it rise for another 20-30 minutes.
11 Whisk an egg or use syrup made of one part water and three parts sugar. Glaze the buns and bake for about 8 - 12 minutes. Keep an eye on them, they're probably done when they're golden brown.
Once you take them out, weigh them in your hand, they shouldn't be heavy at all. That way you'll know they're fluffy and not doughey on the inside.