Saffron Bread, a Traditional Christmas Treat

My mom always has a bit of saffron in the house and we used to bake a saffron wreath, braided bread, or buns around Christmas every year. It’s very common in Northern Europe, but you might be most familiar with lussekatter, the pretty saffron buns made in Sweden for St. Lucia’s Day, a solstice celebration. They’re made throughout the holiday period but more traditionally on December 13th.

Our saffron breads during my childhood were heavy on butter and dairy milk, and I don’t remember them ever including chocolate or dates, but it’s the same idea. It’s just a vegan saffron loaf instead. The dark chocolate in combination with the rich saffron dough is spectacular, as is the sweetness and caramel notes of the dates and dark sugar.

I know saffron is outrageously expensive, and it’s certainly not something you use every day. It’s something very special for the holidays, though, and a very worthwhile splurge to get a gram or two to make a festive saffron bread shaped as a wreath.

I first published this recipe in 2018. It’s been updated with new step-by-step photographs, more helpful information, and some slight improvements to the recipe.

Ingredients You’ll Need and Why

Like all of my bread recipes, this one is made with an ancient grain rather than modern wheat flour – in this case light spelt for a soft bread. You can use regular wheat flour (see below). These are my notes from testing and the full recipe card can be found below.

• Saffron: try to look for saffron threads that are sold in opaque containers or bags, not the little clear plastic display packs. Exposure to light ruins the delicate flavour of saffron and it’s too expensive to buy bad quality.
• Spelt flour: use light (also called sifted or white) spelt flour for the best texture. Plain white flour can be used in place of spelt, but note that the kneading time will have to increase if using white flour.
• Sugar: use a dark sugar for the best flavour, like muscovado, brown, or coconut sugar. Plain sugar can be used if you prefer. I don’t recommend trying to use a liquid sweetener in place of the sugar.
• Yeast: this recipe is developed with active dry yeast and that’s why it’s bloomed with the milk first. You can use instant yeast with no change to amounts, and it can be added with the dry ingredients. If you live in North America you can use traditional, quick, and instant yeast interchangeably here (I can only get the equivalent to traditional). Fresh yeast can also be used.
• Milk: I always use non-dairy milk, either oat or soya. Dairy can be used in the same amount. Dairy and soya will make the dough slightly more elastic.
• Coconut oil: butter can be substituted for coconut oil for both the dough and the filling if preferred. A non-dairy butter alternative works too.
• Add-ins: the chocolate and dates can be omitted if you prefer, or substitute something like raisins. Try cinnamon or cardamom in the filling if you’re not adding chocolate.

How to Make Saffron Bread

It might seem complicated, but this type of enriched sweet bread is actually easy to work with because of the added oil. The dough should be soft, but not at all sticky, so it won’t stick to your hands at all when shaping.

Step 1: heat the milk and saffron, then whisk in the oil and honey. Make sure it’s cooled enough before adding the yeast. It should feel just warm to the touch, not hot! This is called ‘blooming’ the yeast and will activate it.

Step 2: add the flour and salt, mixing to form a shaggy dough. It will seem too soft at this point because it’s still warm and hasn’t been kneaded yet.

Step 3: knead the dough by hand or with a machine until soft and smooth. When it’s ready, the dough won’t be sticky and should be easy to handle. Place the dough back into the bowl to rise.

Step 4: cover the bowl – I use a tea towel and a large plate – and set in a warm, draft-free place like the oven with the light on. Don’t prove dough too near a heat source like a radiator. If it rises too quickly, it impacts the yeast.

Step 5: roll the dough out into a large rectangle and add the filling ingredients. Pictured here are couverture chocolate drops but they are a little bit too big, really, so I recommend chopped chocolate instead.

Step 6: roll the dough into a tight log, then halve lengthwise. It will get a little bit messy at this point from the add-ins, but they can be pushed back into the dough later if needed.

Step 7: twist the pieces around each other, then join to form a wreath. The dough can be used to make different shapes as preferred.

Step 8: bake the bread for about 30 minutes. The bread will be a darker golden colour when it’s ready, but it can be hard to tell because of the saffron. It should feel firm to the touch when it’s baked.

Expert Tips for the Best Saffron Bread

• Use a mixer: I’ve provided instructions to knead by hand, but you can also use a stand mixer. Just follow the same directions but mix with your kneading attachment, adding the flour a bit at a time, until a soft dough forms.
• Shape differently: if you want to make this bread but a wreath scares you, then just cut the roll into rounds and bake it like cinnamon buns. It’ll taste the same, but won’t be quite as festive.
• Check your yeast: I highly recommend either buying fresh yeast for this recipe or testing your yeast beforehand! You don’t want to waste that precious saffron on dead yeast.
• Add the filling back in: the dough will want to fall open a bit when you cut it, especially if your dates are cut a little big. Don’t worry if some of the filling falls out, you can just add it back into the dough before it rises the second time.

Braiding the Dough

To create the saffron wreath, you roll the dough lengthwise like cinnamon rolls, then cut down the middle lengthwise to create two pieces of dough with layers. Leave an “anchor” at the top, about 5cm (2 inches) where you don’t cut it. Then you twist the two strands around one another from top to bottom, keeping the cut side facing up, and then form it into the wreath.

A trick to make sure the wreath has a nice looking join is to take the two strands of dough, separate them from the coil, and wrap them around the other end of the wreath where you want to make the join. I usually cut the anchor after my two-strand braid is completed and use that to create the join. So instead of trying to squash the ends together, you’re wrapping it instead and sealing underneath. I hope that makes sense.