Don’t Buy Your Hot X Cross Buns This Easter

• total time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

120ml lukewarm water

7g instant yeast

40g sugar

95g melted butter

210ml lukewarm milk

500g Bread / Strong flour

1/4 tsp salt

160g saltanas or raisins or mix

2 x tsp cinnamon

1 x tsp mixed spice or all spice

1/2 x tsp ginger

Cross er paste

85g flour

95ml water

Glaze

1 tbs marmalade

1 tbs boiling water

Whisk the yeast and warm water well, add sugar, whisk, add butter and milk and whisk. Add flour and salt and mix well till all flour is combined. Add spices and sultans and mix again. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and fold the dough up to combine it. Using your hand (lightly flour it if it feels sticky but not too much) grab the dough turn it 90° 4 or 5 times. Do the same thing turning 90° and punch it down until the dough is smooth and supple (about 10-20times) shape into a ball and place in your bowl. Cover rest for 1 to 1.5 hours (I do 1 hour in my oven with light on)

Grease your tin and add parchment paper (this stops the paper moving around)

Once dough is ready punch it down and take out of the bowl. Weigh on the scale and divide the weight by 9 (or 12 if you want them smaller) once you get the weight right for each piece fold each piece over and then roll them out into a ball. Place in your dish, cover and rest for 30 min.

While resting preheat your oven to 180C whisk your paste ingredients and place in piping bag or corner of a food bag (put the bag in a large glass before you pour paste in) mix marmalade and boiling water and set aside.

Once rested snip the bag and pipe the crosses. Keep it moving all the way down and hold the bag upwards when you’re not using it.

Directions

Bake for 10 min at 180C then turn oven down to 170C and bake for another 14-17 min till dark golden. Brush glaze on as soon as they come out

Enjoy D 🫶