Happy Easter, lovelies!
I was chatting to my darling friend Emilie the Clever Carrot last week, and she mentioned that she was posting a new sourdough hot cross bun recipe. It looks amazing – the link is here if you want to check it out. The secret, she whispered to me, is more butter…
With that in mind, I’ve rejigged our yeasted hot cross bun recipe this year. It was only a small change, but it’s made such a difference – the buns are lighter and more brioche-like, and the extra butter seems to mask the taste of the instant yeast (which I’m quite sensitive too, hence the focus on sourdough). I could have made sourdough buns (here’s our recipe from 2018) and most years I do, but I didn’t have the energy this Easter. We just do what we can, when we can, right?
Here are the revised quantities I used (I’ve highlighted the changes). It makes a double batch of 24 hot cross buns, which fit perfectly in a half-sheet pan from Costco. I figured I’d better write it up before I make another batch, because trying to double all the quantities and make adjustments at 5am in the morning was doing my head in!
Dough
- 1kg bread flour
- 20g instant yeast
- 16g fine sea salt
- 80g brown sugar
- 180g unsalted butter
- 3 large free range eggs
- 4 tsp mixed spice
- 150g currants
- 500g full cream milk, heated gently and then cooled to blood temperature, or UHT milk, unrefrigerated
Cross
- 3 Tbsp self raising flour
- 2-3 Tbsp cold water
Glaze
- 4 Tbsp milk
- 4 Tbsp caster (superfine) sugar
Notes:
1. The original tutorial is here, and I follow the same method with one exception – instead of rubbing in the butter, I now melt it and add it to the dry ingredients with the eggs and milk. I suspect you’d get a better result if you did rub it in, but this way is much easier (and less messy).
2. The true secret here (ok, apart from the extra butter) is patience. For a yeasted dough, this takes a very long time to rise. Let the first bulk prove and get properly puffy before you shape it, and then let the shaped buns rise and rise. They need to be fat and a bit squishy and touching each other before you pipe and bake them. My second rise (and our weather is a bit cooler at Easter) usually takes a good hour to an hour and a half…
Here’s a piping video just for fun. Actually, I just wanted to show off that I was piping with my right hand while filming with my left! I doubt I’ll be able to pull it off again, so I thought I’d better record it for posterity…
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3. Paint the still warm buns with two coats of glaze – it will thicken up as it cools…
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These have really been a huge hit! Small Man ate four for afternoon tea and then we divvied up the rest, wrapped them carefully, and left them outside for the neighbours to pick up. After they’d all been distributed, that son of mine said “You know Mum, I could have eaten eight…”
Needless to say, I now have another batch proving! ♥
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
Those look delicious! I will be making some tomorrow. I will write the new amounts into my recipe book so I don’t forget. I think I’m going to use yeast instead of sourdough as well, it goes a bit faster.
Do you ever have a problem with the milk for the glaze curdling? Mine always seems to curdle, unless I’m doing something wrong? I have been using water instead because I never have success with the milk.
M, I’ve never had a problem, but I always use UHT milk, so that might make a difference?
That might be the difference. Maybe I should try store bought milk. I’ve always tried it with raw whole milk. Thanks!
They look delicious! And just wanted to say how much I am enjoying your posts at the moment. So thank you for the effort – and that piping with one hand whilst filming? Incredible!!
I have made these and they are GOOD!
I will be trying the more butter version as the other turns out ok but next day super dry inside.
We’ve never had any last two days 😆
I’m supposed to be on the 800 calorie a day diet so would like to halve the recipe, in your recipe you say 3 eggs would I use 1 or 2. I’m inclined to use 2 but am a bit worried the mix may be too wet. There’s only 2 of us so I don’t need 2 dozen and my flour ration is a little low, there is no way I can get more in Hobart with the panic buying.
Try using one egg and upping the butter a tiny bit?
I’ll give it a go thank you Happy Easter, I love your posts when I wake at 8.00 there they are, lucky for me you’re an early riser.
Perfect Celia, how delicious! Happy Easter x
Yes. I discovered the difference butter made when I compared the texture and butter content of sweet buns with hot cross buns. So last few years I’ve been making hot cross (peace ☮️) buns with http:/chefindisguise.com/2013/07/20/amazing-sourdough-cinnamon-rolls dough between challah and brioche, and hot cross buns fruit and spices. This year I indulged my love of chocolate, and made sourdough chocolate hot cross ☮️ buns, which for some reason have a lovely texture without all the butter. Mind you the chocolate is adding a bunch of fat 😅
Wow these look amazing. You are such a professional baker
Thanks for sharing.
I shall have to make sourdough rye with a whisker of bread flour that I have left…not even a skerrick of yeast to be found in this neck of the woods. I have your Petes’s choc chip cookies as a backup in case all else fails.
No yeast to be had here so I’ll have to wait to try these.
Perfection, perfection! They look incredible my friend. Happy Easter! xx
[…] The final recipe came from Celia of Fig Jam and Lime Cordial who has been working variations of her yeasted HC bun for years. The buns were easy to make, and using a stand mixer made the process even faster. Her two recipes can be found here and here. […]
They look delicious! Enjoy this strange and very quiet Easter.
Celia … I made the final version of your sourdough hot cross buns yesterday and today (they are still rising for the oven and are looking magnificent) and decided to follow your lead and added in the extra butter yesterday afternoon when preparing the dough … I can’t wait to try them! Thank you as always … and when I post your recipe I will tag you so that you can see the results xo
Happy Easter Celia. I wasn’t organised enough this year to make hot cross buns plus with just KP (dried fruit hater) and me in isolation I would have to eat them all myself. However after reading this I started to think how I could make a batch and freeze them to defrost one at a time!
Love to you all
I eventually made a loaf instead of buns, it worked a treat. Used your bun recipe and just put it in a loaf tin. Thanks so much for the tip to reduce the amount to 1 egg and just a small amount of extra butter. It’s delicious.
She’s so right everything’s been with more butter.🐣🐰 Happy Easter holiday