These are great. Not a lot of recipes follow this traditional technique where the crosses are baked into the bun. These taste great. If you like raisins you can double the measurement.
At last, a traditional recipe for hot cross buns the way they should look and taste! If you are not familiar with the spices, they can be halved or omitted and you will still have a lovely breakfast roll, even if not entirely traditional.
I've made Hot Cross Buns for Easter for years, but this is by far the best recipe I have ever tried. They were so good, I think I may have to make them for Christmas this year too!
I've been trying to make good hot cross buns for years and finally I have found the recipe I needed. these buns are exactly as they should be. delicious. easy to make. I didn't have rum so I used Canadian whisky instead. I forgot to pipe on the cross while the buns rose so I just piped an icing cross. I'll pipe them on according to the recipe next time. Thanks, Chef John! this is my hot cross bun recipe from now on.
I have never written a review and I use this app every day but I just had to say the fragrance in this bread is so amazing... I just finished kneading this bread and I can't stop smelling my hands because the smell so good from all of the spices and orange and lemon zest. This will definitely be an Easter tradition for my family from now on. Thanks Chef John
I've made these twice now, both times they were delicious.
First time the only change I made was I used raisins (what I had in the pantry) instead of currants and divided the dough to make 12 buns instead of 16. Baked them in a 9x13 pan and they came out great but were lacking in fruit quantity.
Second time I doubled the all the ingredients (to make 24 buns) except the raisins. Instead of 1/2 cup of raisins I used 1 and 1/2 cups and my kids still complained "not enough raisins!" I thought they were about right tho.
I also learnt not to over mix the flour/water paste for the crosses. Stirring until just combined helped the crosses not be chewy the second time.
Great recipe and easier to prepare than I expected. The only issue is they. must be consumed the day they are made. The crosses become wallpaper paste overnight and cannot be chewed. Overall, a fun recipe to prepare. I've been humming the nursery song since making them.
I’ve tried other hot cross bun recipes, but I was looking to try a new one that used dough for the crosses. I really enjoyed the combination of the spices and fruit. Next time, I will probably double the raisins and zest, and use heaping measurements for the spices. The glaze was a wonderful addition I hadn’t tried before, though I wasn’t familiar with making glazes and mine turned out a bit thick and grainy—I recommend removing from the heat earlier than you think you need to rather than later if in doubt. The crosses themselves looked a lot nicer than other dough and icing techniques I had tried before—the technique worked well for a uniform appearance, and they stuck to the buns well; however, they were a bit hard (but better than others I had tried). The texture of the buns themselves was good, but a bit more work than other dough recipes I use frequently just because it was new and I was unfamiliar with using the dough hook (I usually make no knead doughs, or sometimes use the bread machine or knead by hand). I will probably try this spice combination with a different dough I’m more familiar with next time and see if there’s anything I can do to help the crosses have a better texture. I substituted raisins for currants and water for rum, and I made 12 rather than 16 buns. Thanks for the recipe!
My first attempt came out great.! Thanks Chef John. It will be one to keep.:)
I did not care for this recipe. It's tough and dry once baked.
