Hot Cross Buns

 Hot Cross Buns is a bake not undertaken lightly.  Each year you promise yourself you will give them another try - after previous attempt 6 years ago, were more akin to rock cakes than fluffy Easter buns.  But as the day approaches you get far too busy to contemplate attempting to bake any, so you pick up a 6 pack at the local farmer's market as a good substitute.

But this year you convince yourself that you will give it a try, after all you are more knowledgeable with all that sourdough bread making that you have done. You know the feel of a good dough.  Ok let's try this, oh no they yeast went out of date last week, never mind.

I thank "Recipe Tin Eats" for the recipe, much easier than the one in the Delicious Magazine this month.  To break up the prep time I made to shaping of buns after initial rise then I popped in the fridge overnight, next morning brought out to room temperature and did second rise before baking and glazing.

My family all agreed they tasted delicious and were my best ever.  Encouraged for next year.

Not the prettiest of Easter buns

Ingredients

Buns

3 teaspoons of instant dry yeast (best if before date :) )

1/2 cup of caster sugar

1 1/2 cups warm milk (just to body temperature if too hot it will kill the yeast)

4 1/4 cups bread flour - I ended up adding at least another 1/2 cup as the mixture looked to wet

2 teaspoons of cinnamon powder

2 teaspoons of all spice powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sultanas and currants

1 - 2 oranges, zest only

50 g melted butter, cooled

1 egg at room temperature

Crosses

1/2 cup plain flour

5 Tablespoons water

Glaze

1 Tablespoon apricot jam - I only had strawberry

2 teaspoons water

Method

Place flour, yeast, sugar, all spice, cinnamon and salt into bowl of a stand mixer.

Give a short mix with dough hook attachment.

Add melted cooled butter, milk, egg, sultanas and zest.

Mix for approximately 5 minutes until a smooth elastic dough forms (I added my extra flour to achieve this) until dough forms a ball and comes away from the side of the bowl.

Remove from stand mixer and cover with an apiwrap or tea towel until dough has risen and doubled in size. This can take anywhere from 1/2 hour to 2 hours.

Line a 9 x 13" tray with baking parchment.

Remove apiwrap or tea towel cover and punch down.

Dust work surface with flour - roll dough into a log shape and cut 12 pieces.

Take one at a time and roll into a ball by pressing down with your palm and then gather into a ball and roll, place on tray.

Cover and pop in the fridge till morning.  If baking that day leave on the counter for another 45 minutes.

Next morning bring buns from fridge and let rise for 1 - 2 hours

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius

Crosses: mix flour and water until sticky paste (adjust consistency, mine was a little too runny as you can see from the photograph).  Spoon into a small ziplock bag and snip the corner off to make a piping bag.

Pipe crosses onto the buns.

Pop in the oven

Mix jam and water for glaze.

Cook for approximately 22 minutes or until tops of buns are a deep golden brown.

Remove buns from oven, pop on wire rack and glaze.

Delicious

Mamma Marmalade