Aussies love their hot cross buns during Easter, most people love the traditional fruit buns, and there are usually newspaper articles about the perfect buns around the time - the Hot Cross Bun season, the perfect hot cross buns, are as important as the perfect chocolate eggs.
There is this article in Melbourne's local newspaper, the age, about How to spot a good hot cross bun. I agreed to bring some buns to MIL, as we are visiting on Easter Sunday.
So, might as well get busy baking. One useful hint from the newspaper article is the fruits should be soaked, and what else can be nicer than masala... And I was keen to try out the hot dough version of bread making, so this is how I made the latest batch of hot cross buns:
The Day Before, prepare the fruit and the hot dough.
70g flour
100ml milk
Bring milk to a slow boil, I used the microwave. Pour over the flour, knead into a pliable dough, put away in fridge in sealed freezer bag or container to develop gluten.
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp all spice (that's nutmeg, cloves, cumin)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1.5 tbsp masala
1.5 cup mixed fruit, including glazed cherries, peels etc.
Mix all ingredients and set aside in a clean container, let fruit soak in the spices.
The day to make the buns:
700g strong bread flour
15g dry yeast
500ml full cream milk
1 egg - lightly whisked
75g butter
4 tbsp raw sugar
2 tsp all spice powder
2 tsp cinnamon powder
1 pinch of salt
Bring butter, milk and sugar to a slow boil, scald and let cool to luke warm, add yeast, stir properly and let activate.
Put salt at the bottom of the mixing bowl, and mix all other dry ingredients, flour, spices, and add to the mixing bowl. Slowly add in frothy yeast liquid, egg and the hot dough made the day before, and make the dough. Once the dough is slightly elastic, knead in the fruits, you might need extra dry flour as the liquid from the fruit will make the dough wetter.
Knead dough as normal process of bread making.
Once the dough is elastic and smooth, let it set to proof.
Once the dough is dougle the size, knock it back and shape into small balls.
Most Aussie hot cross buns are sticking to each other, they rise higher that way, but are ready to be pulled apart, so I did the same.
Meanwhile, make the paste for the cross. These are traditional flour based paste, flour and water to a runny consistancy, and I just pipe them across.
Bake them in preheated 190C oven for 25-30 minutes, until ready, and brush on glaze. This time, I used home made marmalade. 2 heap tablespoon of marmalade, add 2 tablespoon of boiling water, brush on to the hot buns just out of oven...
Fluffy buns... The best buns made this season the family voted, and until next year...
Do we have hot cross buns for Good Friday? Of course, we have them for breakfast...
Children, the younger two, don't like the traditional fruit buns. Luke doesn't like saltanas, raisens, and Monique doesn't like peels.
So normally, I make a batch of chocolate chip ones for them, but this time, as I promised to make more fruit ones to MIL, we are only doing the chocolate chip ones for Good Friday.
I was playing around with the cross recipe and definitely the crosses are not the best for the buns, the stripes method didn't work.
For 6 Big Chocolate Chip Hot Cross Buns:
25g butter
7g dry yeast
300g plain flour
1 tsp ginger powder
2 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tbsp sugar
1 pinch of salt
220ml milk
2/3 cup chocolate chips (roughly)
Bring milk sugar and butter into a slow boil, cool to lukewarm and add in yeast and let it activate.
Put salt, flour, cocoa powder, ginger powder in a large kneading bowl, and make a well. Put frothy yeast mixture in there, and slowly to combine into a soft dough. Work the dough till elastic and fold in the chocolate chips. Set to proof under damp cloth or closed container.
Once double the size or more, shape them into buns and set to proof again, for around 30 minutes to an hour depending on room temperature. Pipe on crosses (mine was too stiff this time, it needs to be a runny paste, usually it's just plain flour and water, cocoa was added to make the chocolate cross)
Bake in pre-heated oven 190C for 20-25 minutes and brush on glaze when hot.
Glaze:
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp gelatine
2 tbsp boiling water.
Enjoy a chocoholic Easter!
I'd like to try make different Easter Cakes, but before I do that, I have to fill the order from hubby, of his annual Hot Cross Buns...
Hubby loves the traditional Hot Cross Buns, which is basically the fruit buns with a cross on top.
My buns are not as big as the ones in the shop, but I end up with 21 buns, and some of them went to his work mates for morning tea.
The Bun:
400ml milk
600g strong bread flour
12g yeast
50g butter
2 tsp cinnamon powder
1.5 tsp all spice
1 cup mixed fruit and peels
a tiny pinch of salt
The Cross:
1/2 cup plain flour
4-5 tbsp of water
The Glaze:
1/4 tsp gelatine
2 tbsp hot water
1 tsp sugar
Disolve yeast in warm milk, and let it froth for 5-10 minutes.
Make dough using all the ingredients apart from the fruits and butter. Once the dough is smooth, slowly knead in the butter, bit by bit. Once the dough is smooth again, fold in the fruits.
Knead till the dough is elastic, and let it proof.
Once proofed, shape the dough into small buns, line up the tray.
Add water to the plain flour and make a smooth paste, pipe onto the buns as crosses.
Bake in 190C oven for 15-20 minutes until ready. Meanwhile, make the glaze by pouring hot boiling water into gelatine and sugar, mix until disolved. Brush warm glaze onto the just baked buns....
Voila...
I love fluffy hot cross buns.... I think I might have to make some more, and chocolate chip ones as well.
