These spiced, boozy Christmas buns are the perfect mid-morning or mid-afternoon festive treat.
Equipment and preparation: For this recipe, you will need a free-standing food mixer fitted with a dough hook and a round 23cm/9in spring form tin.
For the spice mixture, grind the ingredients to a fine powder in a pestle and mortar or spice grinder. Set aside.
For the roll, put the yeast and a little water in a small saucepan and warm gently. Place the flour, sugar, salt and yeast mixture into a free-standing food mixer fitted with a dough hook. Set the motor running at a slow speed, then gradually pour in 450ml/¾ pint of cold water until the mixture comes together as an elastic dough and starts sticking to the edges of the mixing bowl (You may not need to use all of the water.).
Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and set aside in a warm room for about 20 minutes, or until the dough has doubled in size.
When the dough has risen, turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface and knock it back. Roll the dough out to a rectangle measuring 60cmx30cm/24inx12in.
Lay the slices of chilled butter in two lines down one side of the dough rectangle. Fold the other half of the dough over the buttered half, pressing down gently at the edges to seal. Bash the filled dough with a rolling pin, then roll out again into another rectangle measurung 60cmx30cm/24inx12in.
Fold each of the short edges of the dough rectangle into the centre so that they meet in the middle, then fold the rectangle again like a book. Repeat the bashing, rolling and folding process twice more, then wrap the dough in cling film and chill in the fridge for one hour.
Roll the chilled dough out into a rectangle measuring 30cmx45cm/12inx18in and approximately 1cm/½in thick. Set aside.
For the filling, mix all the ingredients together in a bowl until well combined.
Spread filling evenly over the dough, then roll up the dough tightly, starting at the longest side closest to you. Cut the roll into 9 slices, each 5cm/2in thick.
Grease a 23cm/9in circular springform cake tin with butter. Place one of the roll slices in the centre, standing upright, then arrange the remaining 8 slices around it. Make sure they are not too tightly packed. Set aside to prove again for 35-40 minutes, or until doubled in size.
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
When the rolls have proved, brush them all over with the beaten egg. Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes, or until the rolls are golden-brown and have expanded and joined together. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool on a wire rack. Separate once cool enough to handle.
Meanwhile for the icing, mix together the icing sugar, maple syrup and brandy in a bowl until smooth.
To serve, arrange the rolls onto a serving platter. Drizzle the brandy icing over the mulled wine-spiced rolls in a criss-cross pattern.
