Hot Cross  Buns

What better way to spend the morning than to have nice hot cross buns for breakfast?   

Of course, homemade buns best eaten fresh -- and these are my family's all time favourite 

breakfast buns! 

Preparation Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Rising: 2 hours

Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes 

Ingredients

1 tbsp (9 g) instant or rapid rise yeast

1/2 cup (110 g ) Caster Sugar ( Super Fine Sugar)

1 1/2 cups (375 ml) warm fresh milk

4 1/4 cups (640 g) Blue jacket bread flour

2 tsp cinnamon powder

2 tsp all spice or mixed spice

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups dried mixed fruit or sultanas

1 - 2 orange, zest only

3 1/2 tbsp (50 g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 egg

Extra Flour for dusting dough

1/4 cup ( 35 g) Blue Jacket bread flour

Crosses

1/2 cup ( 75 g) Blue Jacket Bread Flour

5 tbsp water

Glaze

1 tbsp apricot jam

2 tsp water

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180C or 350F.
2. Place flour, yeast, sugar, all spice, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl. briefly mix with a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.
3. Add butter, warm milk, egg, sultanas ( mixed fruit) and zest.
4. Standmixer: Mix until a smooth elastic dough forms - 5 minutes on speed 2. Remove dough, dust with flour and hand knead for 2- 3 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.
5. Hand kneading: Alternatively, dust a work surface and knead by hand for 10 minutes.
6. Dough is kneaded enough when it is smooth and does not break when stretched.

Rise #1

1. Spray oil in the bowl to prevent from sticking. Leave dough in the bowl, cover with cling wrap and place in a warm place to rise until double in size. This will take anywhere between 30 minutes to 1 1/2 hours depending on how warm it is.

Forming balls

1. Line a 31.5 x 23.5 cm / 9 x 13 “ tray with baking paper with overhang,
2. Remove cling wrap and punch dough to deflate.
3. Dust work surface with flour, place dough on work surface, shape into a log— cut into 12 equal pieces.
4. Take one piece, press down with palm, then use your fingers to gather into a ball, then roll the dough briefly to form a ball. This stretches the dough on one side, to get a nice smooth surface.
5. Place the ball with the smooth side up on the tray. Repeat with the remaining dough. Line them up 3 x 4

Rise #2

1. Spray a piece of cling wrap lightly with oil, then loosely place over the tray.
2. Return tray to warm place and leave for 30 - 45 minutes, until the dough has risen by about 75% ( less than double in size.

Crosses

1. Mix flour and water until a thick runny paste forms.
2. Spoon into a round 3 mm piping bag.
3. Remove cling crap and pipe crosses into the buns ( after Rise #2). Go slow, so it hugs the curves.

Baking/Glaze

1. Bake for 22 minutes or until surface is deep golden brown.
2. Meanwhile, place jam and water in a bowl, microwave for 39 seconds. Mix to combine.
3. Remove buns from oven— use over hang to lift buns onto a cooling rack.
4. Brush buns with jam mixture while warm. Allow to cool to warm before serving.

Storing

1. As with all homemade bread, it is best served on the day it’s made.
2. For the day after, rehearing makes all the difference to make them soft and moist again. 15 seconds in the microwave! These freeze great, then just defrost. To reheat in batches, put them into a tray and cover with foil to avoid surface from getting too crisp, then reheat at 160C or 320F for 8 minutes.