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Hot cross buns

Hot cross buns

12 servings

A tasty tradition - our recipe for Hot cross buns is rooted in recipes going back to medieval times. The buns, mostly eaten at Easter, allow us to indulge in the prefered flavours of our forefathers, and even today the hot cross buns are popular with their exotic spice flavours and dried fruit bits.

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ingredients

  • 450 g flour
  • 200 ml semi-skimmed milk
  • 500 ml water
  • 50 g fresh yeast (25g dried yeast)
  • 55 g unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1½ tsp nutmeg
  • ¼ tsp cloves
  • ¼ tsp ground cardamom
  • ½ tsp ginger
  • 45 g dried apricots
  • 50 g raisins

For the cross:

  • 1 part flour
  • 1 part water

For the glaze:

  • 1 part sugar
  • 1 part boiling water

preparation

Preparation

Warm the milk and water over low heat. It should feel hot but not burning to the touch. Dissolve the yeast in the milk and set it aside.

Sift the flour into a large bowl. Add the salt and spices and stir.

Make a little hole in the flour mixture and add the butter and milk. Beat the egg slightly, then add to the flour.

Combine quickly until the dough comes together then knead for approx. 10 min. by hand on a floured surface or using an electric mixer.

Put the dough back into the bowl and let it rise covered with a cloth for approx. 1 hour until doubled in size.

When the dough has risen, dump it out onto a floured surface, knock the air out and then knead the raisins and apricots into the dough.

Divide the dough into 12 buns and place them on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment. Let them rise again under a cloth for about 30 min.

Preheat the oven to 175°C (fan setting).

Combine the ingredients for the cross and pour the mixture into a pastry bag.

Before putting the buns in the oven, draw a little cross on each bun using the mixture in the pastry bag.

Bake for approx. 17 min. until golden brown on top.

Meanwhile, combine the sugar and boiling water into a glaze.

When the buns are done, place them on a cooling rack and immediately brush with the glaze.

Serve with apricots and Castello Creamy White.