Hot cross buns are synonymous with Easter—as much asscrambling around town to buy Easter egg dye kits and basket fillers! There's so much legend and lore behind hot cross buns, which date back to the old country.
English folklore said that hot cross buns baked on Good Friday would never spoil throughout the following year. Some bakers believed that holding on to one hot cross bun and hanging it in the kitchen meant that all yeast products in the coming year would rise successfully. Some sailors took hot cross buns on their voyages to ensure their ships wouldn't sink. And friends who gift one another with hot cross buns every year are said to remain friends for life.
I'm not sure if that's due to inherent powers in the buns… or just all the yummy carbohydrate goodness. (The line is kind of blurry.) Either way, hot cross buns are a meaningful Easter tradition. My mom used to make them and now I do, too. They're so easy—they just take a little time!
What are hot cross buns?
They're puffy, perfect little yeasted buns filled with tangy raisins and heavenly spices, and decorated with a cross of sugary icing. They're one of my favorite traditions!
Are hot cross buns sweet or savory?
On the sweetness scale, think of a bun that's somewhere between a dinner roll and a frostedcinnamon roll. They're sweet, but not overly sweet.Sugar, cinnamon (plus cardamom, nutmeg, or allspice), and a handful of raisins are folded into the dough, then the icing piped on top adds another level of sweetness.
How do you make the cross on hot cross buns?
Once the rolls have risen, butbefore you brush on the glaze, you can use a very sharp knife to cut a cross in the surface of each roll. This is totally optional. I've done it before, but I usually skip this step to keep the buns as neat and tidy as possible. Either way, at the end,you'll usethe icing to create the cross on top. The grooves can provide achannel for the icing to fill, but I've found that the icingsits just fine on top of each bun without any cutting necessary!
Should hot cross buns be eaten hot?
If you have the urge to dive into one of these pillowy buns fresh out of the oven, who am I to stop you? But if you want to add the icing, it's important that you wait until they've completely cooled to do so. Otherwise, the icing will melt on the hot buns.
Can you make the dough ahead of time?
You sure can! Get a head start by making the dough (through Step 3) the night before. Just cover it with plastic wrap and store it in the fridge until you're ready to finish the buns for Easter brunch the next day.
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- Yields:
- 18 serving(s)
- Prep Time:
- 2 hrs
- Cook Time:
- 20 mins
- Total Time:
- 2 hrs 20 mins
Ingredients
For the Buns:
- 2 c.
whole milk
- 1/2 c.
canola oil
- 1/2 c.
sugar
- 1
(0.25-oz.)package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
- 4 1/2 c.
all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp.
(heaping) baking powder
- 1/2 tsp.
(scant) baking soda
- 2 tsp.
salt
- 1/4 c.
sugar
- 1 tsp.
cinnamon
Spices: cardamom, nutmeg, allspice (optional)
- 1/2 c.
raisins
Cooking spray
- 1
egg white
Splash of milk
For the Icing:
- 1
egg white
Powdered sugar
Splash of milk
Directions
- Step1For the buns: Combine 2 cups milk, canola oil, and 1/2 cup sugar in a saucepan. Stir and heat until very warm but not boiling. Turn off the heat and allow to cool until mixture is still warm, but not hot, about 30 minutes.
- Step2Sprinkle the yeast over the milk mixture. Add 4 cups of flour and stir to combine. The mixture will be very sticky. Cover with a towel and set aside for 1 hour.
- Step3Add the remaining 1/2 cup flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Fold together to combine. At this point, you can cover tightly and store the dough in the fridge overnight or continue on with making the buns.
- Step4Combine 1/4 cup sugar with the cinnamon and whatever other spices you want to use.
- Step5On a lightly floured surface, stretch and press the dough to slightly flatten. Sprinkle with a couple of tablespoons of the sugar/cinnamon mixture. Sprinkle on about a third of the raisins. Then fold the dough over on itself and flatten so the dough is "plain" again. Repeat the sugar/raisin process, then fold and flatten the dough again. Repeat a third time until all the raisins are used. (You won't use all the sugar/cinnamon mixture.) Fold the dough one last time.
- Step6Pinch off golf ball-sized bunches of dough. With floured hands, quickly roll the dough into a ball, then turn the edges under themselves slightly. Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Cover and allow to rise in a warm place for at least 30 minutes (an hour or moreis better).
- Step7Preheat the oven to 400°F. Mix 1 egg white with a splash of milk. Brush onto each roll. Bake for 20 minutes or until tops of buns have turned golden brown. Remove from the pan and allow them to cool completely.
- Step8For the icing: Mix 1 egg white with enough powdered sugar for the icing to be very thick. Add a splash of milk, as needed, for consistency. When the rolls are completely cooled, add the icing to a small plastic bag and snip the corner. Make a cross on each roll with the icing. Happy Easter!
Start by scalding milk, oil, and sugar. In my world, "scald" means to heat it almost to the point of boiling, but turn off the heat before it boils. Then walk away and let it cool for at least 30 minutes or so. Ultimately, you want it to be very warm but not hot to the touch at all.
Grab a packet of active dry yeast.
FYI: One packet = 2 1/4 teaspoons yeast.
10-4.
OK?
Sprinkle the yeast over the top of the warm milk mixture.
Next, dump in some flour. (Note that I made twice the quantity that this recipe calls for; your pan won't look this full! If you hadn't noticed yet, this is my trusty cinnamon roll dough recipe.)
Stir it together with a large spoon (it’ll be sticky and thick.)
When it’s all combined…
Cover the pan with a towel and let it sit for a good hour.
During that hour, special things will happen.
Amazing things.
Yeasty things.
Now, dump in a little more flour…
Some baking powder…
Baking soda…
And salt.
After this addition…
Just fold it all together…
Until it’s all combined.
Now, at this point you can walk away for awhile if you need to; Just cover it with a tea towel until you need it. You can also cover it tightly and store it in the fridge overnight.
Or…you can just make some hot cross buns! Time’s a wastin’!
In a bowl, mix together some sugar and cinnamon. You can also throw in other spices: cardamom, allspice, nutmeg, etc.
Now just lightly flour your countertop.
And just roughly flatten the dough with your hand.
Sprinkle a teaspoon or so of the sugar mixture…
And about a third of the raisins.
Then fold the dough over on itself so that the sugar/cinnamon raisins are totally enveloped.
Then repeat what you just did: stretch and pull and flatten…
Sprinkle on the sugar/cinnamon…
Sprinkle on the raisins…
And fold the dough in on itself. Then repeat this one more time, ending by folding the dough in on itself (is that even grammatically correct? Something tells me it isn’t.)
Next, pull off golf ball (maybe ping pong ball) size pieces of dough.
With floured hands, roll the pieces into balls, then (this is hard to explain) use your fingertips to sort of pull the edges of the dough downward so the ball is a little more neat and tight…and ball-like.
I’m so scientific with my terminology, aren’t I?
Place them on a lightly buttered (or sprayed) cookie sheet, then—IMPORTANT, BABY—cover them with a clean tea towel and allow them to rise in a warm place for a good hour. My kitchen is quite drafty, so what I do is heat up my griddle, turn it off, then place a couple of towels on top of it. Then I place the tea towel-covered cookie sheet on top of the tea towels.
Tea towels, tea towels, tea towels. I promise not to say that again for at least a year.
When the rolls have risen, mix 1 egg white with a splash of milk and whisk it together with a fork.
Lightly brush the mixture all over the surface of the dough.
Make any wisecracks about the condition of my brush and I’ll deck ya.
I love this brush and I don’t care who knows it.
Now just pop the rolls into a preheated 400 degree oven, on a rack just about the midpoint in the oven. The rolls will get more brown this way.
Bake ’em till they’re golden brown.
Yum!
Oh! I forgot to mention this. If you want to, after the rolls have risen but before you brush on the glaze, you can use a very sharp knife to cut a cross in the surface of each roll. I’ve done that before, and it’s kind of nice to have a little groove in which to lay the icing.
But I sort of like to leave them neat and tidy. Sometimes when you slice into the top of the rolls, you never know what craziness will happen.
Allow the rolls to cool completely on a cooling rack while you make the icing.
Ooooh, but first I had to tear into one of them. Perfection!
Now, throw an egg white into a mixing bowl.
With the mixer on low, gradually add in enough powdered sugar to achieve a very thick, smooth, white icing. Splash in a little milk here and there to help the consistency.
This is kind of a mess, as the powdered sugar sometimes has a tendency to adhere to the sides of the bowl. Don’t be afraid to turn off the mixer and scrape the bowl a few times. The milk helps too.
Just be sure to keep adding powdered sugar until the mixture is thick, and bump up the speed on the mixer toward the end so the icing will be nice and smooth and glossy.
Now, you could do the whole pastry bag and dig-through-your-drawer-trying-to-find-the-perfect-Ateco-tip thing… or you could just take the easy road and acknowledge that situations like these are why God invented Ziploc. I used a small zip-up bag for this.
With sharp scissors, just snip off the corner and pipe away!
IMPORTANT: Make sure the rolls are completely cooled. No warmth at all or the icing will spread and melt.
Awww. Pretty!
You can use any thick white icing for this, but I just love the pure, perfect glossiness of this.
Deliver these to your friends and neighbors tomorrow. It’s a nice Easter tradition, and it’ll keep you out of trouble.
Oh, and this is important: before eating a Hot Cross Bun, be sure to kiss it.
I’m just saying.
Happy Easter, my friends!
Love,
Pioneer Woman
