Spiced Eggnog Babka Buns

Indulge in the warmth of the season with these Spiced Eggnog Babka Buns! This light, fluffy, pillowy dough is made with eggnog and filled with brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves and topped with an eggnog icing for an indulgent holiday treat any time of day!

If you’re looking for more holiday breakfast recipes, check out some of my other favorites like Homemade Eggnog Waffles, Peppermint Mocha Coffee Cake, Chocolate Peppermint Olive Oil Granola, or Hot Chocolate Sweet Rolls.

spiced eggnog babka buns with glaze on small stripe dessert plates on a marble counter.

A Quick Look At The Recipe

Recipe Name: Spiced Eggnog Babka Buns
Ready In: 2 hours 40 minutes
Makes: 6 babka buns
Main Ingredients: butter, yeast, all purpose flour, eggnog
Flavor Profile: rich, butter, eggnog with warm spices and sweet glaze
Dietary Info: no seed oils
Difficulty: Medium
Why You’ll Love It: one rise buns made with eggnog for a holiday treat

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Why You'll Love This Recipe

Pillowy Buns: These Spiced Eggnog Babka Buns are incredibly light and pillowy! This is a one rise, enriched dough – the best kind!
One Rise: I use butter, eggnog, and eggs inside this dough and it only requires one rise so it’s quick and easy, unlike other sweet rolls or babkas that often require two rises.
Lightly Spiced: These Spiced Eggnog Babka Buns are lightly spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves for a festive combination that will just make you feel all warm and cozy inside!
Eggnog: Need I say more? It’s the season for eggnog and I use organic eggnog inside the dough and in the glaze for a subtly sweet eggnog bun that everyone will love.
Indulgent Breakfast: The holidays are the time for indulgent breakfast! And this recipe for Spiced Eggnog Babka Buns are the perfect holiday treat for your Christmas brunch.

Jump to:

A Quick Look At The Recipe
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Ingredients
Baker’s Tips
How to Make Spiced Eggnog Babka Buns
Recipe FAQ’s
What to Serve with Spiced Eggnog Babka Buns
More Christmas Recipes
Spiced Eggnog Babka Buns
The Bake Shop

Ingredients

Yeast: I use organic instant yeast, but you can also use active dry yeast too. If you use active dry yeast, be sure to bloom it and the rise time may be a bit longer. Just be sure to look for visual signs that the dough has doubled in size.
Eggnog: I love Organic Valley, but Alexandre Family Farms makes an organic A2 eggnog that is so insanely good too!
Spices: I use organic cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves for warm and cozy spices that compliment the eggnog perfectly.
Brown Sugar: I use my homemade light brown sugar, but store bought also works.

*For a full list of ingredients and measurements, visit the recipe card below.

Baker's Tips

Always use a digital food scale for the best results.
Make sure that your yeast is good. This is why I check for bubbles, even though I’m using instant yeast in this recipe (that doesn’t have to be activated). But, if yeast is bad, then this recipe will fail. So be sure to use fresh yeast. If you have had yeast in your pantry for a long time, check the best by date if it’s a package and make sure it’s bubbly before going on with the recipe.
I use eggnog inside the dough and for the glaze. But these Spiced Babka Buns would be delicious year round if you just swap out the eggnog for milk!
I baked these in a large muffin pan. The muffin pan I have is larger than a standard muffin or cupcake pan. So, if you are using a standard size muffin pan, you will want to make smaller buns as mine were already bursting out of this larger pan! If that’s the case, I would recommend getting 8 buns instead of 6.
You do not have to use a muffin pan for this recipe! You can simply place the babka buns on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and bake them on the baking sheet. If you do this, they will look like mini round babkas (like mini versions of my Eggless Blueberry Babka Coffee Cake)!

How to Make Spiced Eggnog Babka Buns

yeast and water in a glass mixing bowl on a white marble counter.

To make the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, add the yeast, 1/2 teaspoon cane sugar, and warm water. Stir to combine and let sit for 3 to 5 minutes or until bubbly.

melted eggnog and butter in a small pot on the stove.

In a medium pot over medium heat, add the butter and eggnog. Stir until completely melted, remove from heat.

spiced eggnog babka bun ingredients in a glass mixing bowl on a marble counter.

Add the flour, remaining 57 grams cane sugar, and salt to the mixing bowl in that order. Add the egg and milk mixture.

spiced eggnog babka buns dough in a glass mixing bowl on a white marble counter.

Knead on speed 2 to 4 for 5 minutes.

spiced eggnog babka bun dough in a glass mixing bowl on a marble counter.

Place the dough in a greased bowl, add cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 to 3 hours or until doubled in size.

spiced eggnog babka buns dough divided into pieces on a marble counter.

To make the filling: In a bowl, add the brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves and mix to combine completely. Set aside. Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces, you can just eyeball it.

spiced eggnog babka buns dough spread with butter on a white marble counter.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out each dough ball to a rectangle that is about 8 x 4-inches. Using a butter knife or spatula spread the butter all over the rolled out dough pieces.

spiced eggnog babka buns dough spread with butter and topped with brown sugar on a white marble counter.

Sprinkle the brown sugar and spice mixture to completely cover the butter on each piece of dough.

spiced eggnog babka buns rolled into logs on a white marble counter.

Starting at the larger side, fold the dough over and start to roll the dough until it is completely rolled into a log. Repeat with each piece of dough.

spiced eggnog babka buns rolled into logs and cut down the middle on a white marble counter.

Place the dough logs seam side down and using a sharp knife, cut them in half down the middle.

spiced eggnog babka buns rolled into logs and cut down the middle and twisted on a white marble counter.

Twist the two pieces together.

spiced eggnog babka buns rolled into logs and cut down the middle and twisted into a spiral bun on a white marble counter.

And then roll them into a spiral.

raw spiced eggnog babka buns in a white muffin pan on a marble counter.

Place each babka bun in a muffin tin. Or if not using a muffin tin, place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

spiced eggnog babka buns in a white muffin tin on a marble counter.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the buns are lightly golden brown. (If you're baking at high altitude, be sure to check the Notes at the bottom of the recipe for high altitude baking instructions).

spiced eggnog babka buns with glaze in a white muffin tin on a marble counter.

To make the glaze: In a medium bowl, add the powdered sugar and eggnog. Whisk together until you have a smooth glaze. Spread the glaze over the warm buns. Serve immediately.

Recipe FAQ's

What if I don't have eggnog?

You can replace the eggnog in the dough and in the glaze with milk if you don’t have eggnog or if you want to make these Spiced Babka Buns when it’s not Christmas! This recipe is just as delicious with milk as it is with eggnog.

What if I don't have a muffin pan?

If you don’t have a muffin pan, you can bake these babka buns on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. They will turn out like cute little round babkas! Also, if you are using a standard size muffin pan, make sure to get 8 buns instead of 6, as I used a larger muffin pan (noted above in the tips).

Can I make these ahead of time?

Yes, you can make these ahead of time! If you want to make for Christmas morning, you can do all the steps except baking. Wrap the muffin tin or baking sheet in plastic wrap so they buns don’t dry out and place in the fridge overnight. Remove the buns from the fridge and preheat the oven, then bake! You may have to bake a few additional minutes if the buns are not completely room temperature when they go into the oven.

How should I store babka buns?

Babka buns are very similar to cinnamon rolls. They are light, pillowy, and soft. So, they need to be store in an airtight container. A cake dome works really well for this and that’s always how I store my extras for the next day.

What to Serve with Spiced Eggnog Babka Buns

Enjoy with Fluffy Scrambled Eggs With Sour Cream or Bone Broth Sausage Mushroom Frittata for a holiday breakfast.
Add some breakfast sausages for extra protein like Maple Turkey Breakfast Sausages, Homemade Pork Breakfast Sausage Patties, or Everything Bagel Turkey Breakfast Sausages.
Make this part of a holiday brunch spread and include other festive recipes like Healthy Gingerbread Granola With Olive Oil, Frosted Gingerbread Baked Donuts, or check out 15 Easy Christmas Brunch Recipes!

More Christmas Recipes

Healthy Gingerbread Granola With Olive Oil

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Pretzel Bark

Maple Spice Cake With Brown Sugar Frosting

Frosted Gingerbread Baked Donuts

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