Hot cross buns are a type of sweet bun that is traditionally eaten on Good Friday.
The name “hot cross buns” comes from the tradition of marking their tops with a cross, typically formed from dough. The buns are made with raisins and currants mixed into the dough, along with other spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg. They are baked to be dark brown on top and contain no egg or dairy products.
Read on to learn more about hot cross buns in case you are looking to add to your menu!
What exactly are hot cross buns?
The dinner roll and cinnamon roll are influences on hot cross buns. They have a delightfully spiced flavour from the cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. Hot cross buns are soft but dense.
You can experiment with the spices by including some cardamom. The buns are mostly sweetened with brown sugar, and then orange icing is drizzled on top. You can add a little orange zest or candied orange peel to the dough for taste.
How are hot cross buns different from dinner rolls?
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The process for making these hot cross buns is very similar to dinner rolls. Basic baking supplies including flour, yeast, butter, eggs, sugar, and milk are needed to make hot cross buns.
A slightly denser kind of bread than dinner rolls is produced by using less milk, more butter, and more eggs. These are more like a breakfast or dessert roll.
Here are the basic ingredients for hot cross buns:
- 180ml of whole milk
- 2 and ¼ teaspoons of active dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar
- 100g of light brown sugar
- 70g of unsalted butter cut into small pieces
- ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs, both at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 and ¼ teaspoons of ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon of ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon of ground allspice
- 140g of raisins
- 438g of all-purpose flour.
For the orange icing:
- 120g of confectioners’ sugar
- 45ml of orange juice.
The steps are as follows:
- whisk the milk, yeast, and sugar together in a mixer. Cover and allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes until it becomes foamy to prepare the dough
- add the brown sugar, butte, vanilla extract, eggs, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and125g of flour. Use the dough hook to mix for 30 seconds (low speed only). Scrape down the sides of the bowl using a spatula then add the raisins and remaining flour. Beat on low speed only for about 2 minutes. Mix additional flour, 1 tablespoon at a time
- keep the dough in the mixer and knead by hand for 3 minutes on a floured surface
- lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick spray. Put the dough in the bowl and turn it all over to coat on all sides. Allow the dough to rise for 1-2 hours
- grease a 9×13 inch baking pan
- when the dough is ready, punch it to allow the air to rise. Divide the dough into 14-16 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball then pinch it to the bottom. Arrange them on the pan
- cover the shaped rolls with aluminium foil and allow it to rise for an hour
- preheat the oven to 350 fahrenheit or 177 celsius
- to add the cross, whisk the ingredients together starting with 6 tablespoons of water. Add more water if necessary. Spoon paste into a piping bag. Pipe a line down the centre of each bun then do this in the other direction to make a cross
- bake for 20-25 minutes
- to make the icing, whisk the icing ingredients together then brush on the warm rolls.
Pro tip…
For cafe or bakery owners who are short on time and space, why not use premade dough bases, and keep them frozen until you need it. This way, you can simply bake fresh, saving you lots of time and money. Frozen bread dough is a worthy investment for bakers who are also looking to add a variety of pastries to their menu.
Frozen bread dough is available through cafe distributors such as Suprima Bakeries.
After these steps…
Punch the dough down to let the air out once it has risen in the bowl. Roll each batch into 15 balls after dividing. Stretch the dough’s top while pinching and sealing the bottom of a piece. Make sure the rolls are sealed on the bottom and have a smooth top.
How to make the cross on the buns?
There are two ways to go about this…
For the flour cross:
Pipe a “paste” of flour and water on each bun prior to baking. It can get hard after baking, but it’s still chewy.
For the icing cross:
Pipe a cross made from icing on each hot cross bun after you bake.
For the icing…
The nicest finishing touch is the luscious orange icing, which tastes even better when brushed over the buns as soon as they come out of the oven. It’s warm, sticky, and sweet.
Orange and cinnamon flavours were absolutely made to go together!
Lastly…
Hot cross buns are a traditional British dish that is eaten on Good Friday.
The hot cross bun is a spiced yeast bun that is marked with a cross on the top. They are traditionally served warm with butter and the top of the bun is dipped in sugar.
For bakery owners like yourself, there is no need to wait for Easter to make these yummy pastries. With the recipe above, feel free to make it any time of the year and encourage your customers to visit your shop!