Print

Homemade Hot Cross Buns Recipe

Print Recipe

★★★★★

4.3 from 58 reviews

Classic homemade Hot Cross Buns featuring a fragrant blend of spices, plump sultanas, and a soft, fluffy texture, perfect for Easter or any cozy occasion.

Ingredients

Scale

Dough Ingredients

  • 3 teaspoons instant or rapid rise yeast (9 grams)
  • 1/2 cup (110g) caster sugar (superfine sugar)
  • 1 1/2 cups (375ml) warm milk (full fat or low fat)
  • 4 1/4 cups (640g) bread flour (or plain/all purpose flour)
  • 2 tsp cinnamon powder
  • 2 tsp all spice or mixed spice
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 cups (210g) sultanas
  • Zest of 1 to 2 oranges
  • 50g (3.5 tbsp) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • 1 egg, at room temperature

Cross Paste

  • 1/4 cup (35g) extra bread flour
  • 1/2 cup (75g) flour (any white flour)
  • 5 tbsp water

Glaze

  • 1 tbsp apricot jam
  • 2 tsp water

Instructions

  1. Mix dry ingredients: In a large bowl, combine flour, yeast, sugar, all spice, cinnamon, and salt. Briefly mix using a stand mixer with a dough hook.
  2. Add wet ingredients: Add melted butter, warm milk, egg, sultanas, and orange zest to the dry ingredients.
  3. Mix dough: Using a stand mixer, mix on speed 2 until combined, then increase to speed 4 and mix for 5 minutes until a smooth elastic dough forms. Add extra flour as needed so dough pulls away from bowl sides and is not too sticky.
  4. Hand kneading alternative: Dust a work surface with flour and knead dough by hand for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic.
  5. Check dough: Dough is ready when smooth and stretches without breaking.
  6. First rise: Cover the bowl with cling wrap and leave in a warm, draft-free place for 30 minutes to 1 1/2 hours until doubled in size.
  7. Shape buns: Line a 31.5 x 23.5 cm (9 x 13 inch) tray with baking paper. Punch down dough to deflate, shape into a log, and cut into 12 equal pieces. Form each piece into a smooth ball and place on the tray in a 3×4 arrangement with smooth sides up.
  8. Second rise: Lightly spray cling wrap with oil and cover buns loosely. Let rise in a warm place for 30 to 45 minutes until buns have risen about 75% in size.
  9. Preheat oven: Begin preheating the oven to 180°C (350°F) during the second rise.
  10. Prepare crosses: Mix the flours and water to a thick paste consistency suitable for piping. Fill into a piping bag or small ziplock bag.
  11. Pipe crosses: Remove cling wrap and carefully pipe crosses over each bun, allowing the paste to hug the buns’ curves.
  12. Bake buns: Bake in the preheated oven for 22 minutes or until the surface is a deep golden brown.
  13. Prepare glaze: While baking, microwave apricot jam and water together for 30 seconds and stir to combine.
  14. Glaze buns: After baking, lift buns onto a cooling rack using the paper overhang and brush them with the warm jam glaze.
  15. Cool and serve: Allow buns to cool until warm before serving.

Notes

  • Check yeast is active by proofing beforehand if needed to ensure your dough rises properly.
  • Milk can be full fat or low fat depending on preference; warm milk helps activate the yeast.
  • Use bread flour for best structure but plain or all-purpose flour works too.
  • Substitute mixed spice for all spice and add orange zest for authentic flavor.
  • Adjust extra flour as needed when mixing so dough is not too sticky or dry.
  • Rising times depend on ambient temperature; warmer places will speed this up.
  • Use apricot jam for the glaze to give buns a shiny finish and sweet flavor.

Keywords: hot cross buns, Easter buns, spiced buns, sultana buns, homemade bread, holiday baking

Find it online: https://epicrecipebox.com/homemade-hot-cross-buns-recipe/