Swedish saffron buns

It's leading up to Christmas and as is tradition in Sweden, I baked some saffron sweet bread. They are called 'lussekatter' in Swedish and are popular during the whole of December as well as for the special Lucia celebrations on December 13th.

I've been using the BBC food recipe for these the last couple of years since I'm unfamiliar with how to convert my Swedish fresh yeast recipes when using dry yeast and the flour amount given in grams! I also swapped the quark (do they even sell it in Australia?) for ricotta. I've also been known to use Greek yoghurt if that's what I've got in the fridge! You need the quark to add moisture as the saffron dries out the bread.

To get more of the saffron flavour and yellow colouring, it's best to grind the saffron threads in a mortar and pestle with some sugar. 

The recipe says it's for 12 but I find dividing the dough in 16 pieces is easier and gives a better sized roll. They also fit perfectly onto 2 large bake trays!

 
The most traditional shape is to roll into long strands, twisting the ends inside to form an S-shaped roll, then you stick 2 raisins in the creases that forms. There are loads of intricate designs to try! When they are fresh out of the oven, enjoy with some coffee or mulled wine.