Hot Cross Buns

  Ingredients

For the buns

  • 500g plain flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp mixed spice
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 50g soft brown sugar
  • 50g butter or magarine
  • 25g of fresh yeast or 10g dried activated yeast.  I use as per instructions in the Panasonic Bread Oven
  • 175 ml warm millk
  • 1 large egg
  • 75g currants
  • 25g mixed peel
For the Cross
  • 3 tbsp spoons plain flour
  • 2 tbsp milk
  • 1 tsp oil
For the Glaze
  • 2 tbsp milk
  • 2 tbsp sugar

Method

  1. Sift the flour and in a mixing bowl add spices, sugar and rub in the fat.  Easier in a Kenwood Mixer.
  2. cream the yeast with a little of the milk and leave until frothy.
  3. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients, pour in the yeast, add the egg, furitt and remaining milk and mix to make a smooth dough.
  4. Turn onto a floured surface and knead for 8 minutes until smooth and elastic.
  5. Place in a clearn bowl, cover with a damp cloth and leave to rise for about 2 hours until double in size.

Or you could have put everything in a Pansonic Bread Oven and use the dough mixture.  Note follow the Panasonic Instructions with regards to yeast.

  1. Divide the dought into 12 roughly equal pieces.  Form buns and place on a greased baking tray and cover with cling film one side of which has been sprayed with oil.  Oil side down on the buns.
  2. Leave to rise in a warm place for 25 minutes or more until double in size.

to make the paste.

  1. Note the quanitites and puny and I usually double or treble them so that I can mix in the Kenwood.
  2. Put the flour into a small bowl and gradually pour in the milk and oil to make a thick batter. 
  3. It is a lot easier to make the paste in a Kenwood Liquidiser.
  4. Spoon into a piping bad fitted with a 5mm plain nozzle and pipe a cross on each bun.
  5. Bake in an oven preheated to 200C / Gas Mark 6 for 20 minutes until Golden Brown.

to make the glaze

  1. Note the quanitites and puny and I usually double or treble them so that I can mix in the Kenwood.
  2. Place the milk and sugar in a small pan and boil, then simmer for 20 minutes.
  3. As soon as the buns come out of the oven glaze immediately and then leave to cool on a wire rack.