Easter Hot Cross Buns

These hot cross buns are the first thing I baked after I felt a bit more comfortable with my sourdough starter!
(The recipe in this articles includes directions and quantities both in case you are using yeast or sourdough)

I chose them for a simple reason: we are in Lent, the 40-day period of observance before Easter! And for once, I am able to post a recipe on my blog before a holiday actually occurs.

For those who don’t know them, the hot cross buns are the traditional Lenten bread with a distinctive white cross of dough on top and they are very common in the UK.

Historical note: the bun’s origin is unknown but the legend says that Anglo-Saxons ate the buns in honor of their goddess Eastre. The cross on top probably represented the moon and its quarters. When the Romans arrived, the clergy could not stop the use of these sacramental buns, so they just blessed them and gave the cross a Christian meaning.

The goddess Eostre

This was a first attempt at adapting a recipe with yeast, and the result was quite tasty (although under-fermented). What I learn in the process is:

The total fermentation/proofing time with sourdough is much (much) longer than with yeast, like 4 times longer (calculation based on other experiments after these buns)
There is no clear relationship between the quantity of sourdough you have to use and that of yeast-flour-water that you have to remove. In my case, I used 125g of sourdough, and removed 40g of water and 100g of flour. For this task, I guess practice makes perfect.

Modern recipes call for simple sugar icing on top, while the traditional recipe uses a proper thick dough made with flour, butter and milk. The one I used is taken from the book “On baking”. To avoid having massive crosses like mine, try to pipe the dough in very thin stripes, as it should be! 🙂

And in your country what is the traditional Easter dessert? Give me inspiration for next year! 🙂

Hot cross buns

Print recipe

Ingredients

Dough

150g	Golden raisins
150g	Dark raisins
40g	Candied orange peel
500g	Medium-strength flour - W 260 (400g if using a sourdough)
60g	Unsalted butter, room temperature
50g	Granulated sugar
5g	Malt (optional)
25g	Milk powder
20g	Yeast (or 125g of sourdough starter)
9g	Salt
50g	Eggs
0.5 teaspoon	Vanilla extract
0.5 teaspoon	Cardamom (ground)
0.5 teaspoon	Allspice (ground)
1 teaspoon	Ginger (ground)
0.5 teaspoon	Cinnamon (ground)
260g	Water (220g if using a sourdough)

Cross dough

110g	Pastry flour
20g	Unsalted butter, room temperature
95g	Milk

Bun glaze

25g	Water
50g	Granulated sugar
1 pinch	Ginger (ground)
0.5 teaspoon	Lemon juice
0.5 teaspoon	Grated lemon zest

Directions

Bun glaze

Bring all ingredients to a boil on medium heat and continue boiling for 5 minutes until the mixture thickens lightly

Strain the glaze, allow it to cool then refrigerate for at least a couple of hours

Sourdough steps

If you are using yeast instead of sourdough, skip this section and go to step 7.
Remove the sourdough from the fridge and leave 1 hour at room temperature.

Refresh the sourdough as usual and let it rest for 4 hours, until it triples in size. If it takes longer, repeat this step once more.

When the sourdough has tripled in size, remove its top part and get 125g from the "core". You will be able to reuse the remaining part (the one near the sides of your container) for other simpler preparations and to refresh again the sourdough.

Mix the dough with half the water on medium speed until the sourdough dissolves and you get a foamy mixture

Dough

Place the raisins and orange peel in hot water. Let soften for 5 minutes, then drain the water and let the fruit condition 2 to 4 hours before using. Set aside.

Put the flour, butter, sugar, malt, milk powder, yeast (if using), salt, eggs, vanilla and spices in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a dough hook (same bowl of the sourdough, if using)

Add the water and mix the dough on low speed for 3 minutes

Scrape down the bowl (add more flour if necessary to create a soft dough).

Mix the dough on medium speed 6 to 7 minutes until it is soft and pliable

Add the conditioned fruit and mix the dough on low speed to incorporate well

Cover the bowl and let the dough ferment 1 hour (yeast) or 3-4 hours (sourdough) until doubled in size

Move the dough to a lightly floured work surface and quickly flatten it to let the air escape

Fold the dough in thirds then let it rest for another 20 minutes (yeast) or 1 hour (sourdough)

Weigh the dough and divide it in 15 pieces (yes, you need to weigh each of them)

Round the dough into tight rolls with a smooth top surface. To do this, move your hand quickly in circles using a light pressure on the top of the rolls.

Place the formed rolls seam side down in rows on a paper-lined baking tray, so that the rolls touch when fully proofed

Let the rolls proof until doubled in size, approximately one hour (yeast) or 4 hours (sourdough)

Cross dough

Combine the flour, butter and milk in a bowl and mix with a spatula until the dough is smooth

When the rolls are fully proofed, place the cross dough into a piping bag fitted with a small plain tip and pipe a cross over the surface of each roll