I have loved raisin rolls since I was a child. They are delicious all year round, but they have a very special place on the Easter brunch table. The perfect raisin bun is soft and buttery and just sweet enough to be served with a spoonful of jam. This year, however, no raisin buns will end up on my breakfast table. Because I’ve found something better! Have you ever heard of hot cross buns? The sweet rolls actually originate from Great Britain and are traditionally eaten on Good Friday.
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The luxury version of raisin buns
Hot cross buns are actually just like raisin buns – only the luxury version! A raisin bun with warm spices and a good spoonful of orange marmalade – in the dough! For me, hot cross buns are the perfect spring pastry. They combine the fresh summery orange peel with warm winter spices.
Sourdough hot cross buns: Aromatic and soft
Hot cross buns – just like raisin buns – are actually made from yeast dough. But not this one! Everything tastes better with sourdough, doesn’t it? The sweet rolls are super aromatic, juicy and theoretically keep fresh much longer than yeast buns. Butter and sugar make the sourdough a little slower than with classic bread doughs. I mixed the dough for the hot cross buns the day before, left it to rest for a few hours at room temperature and put it in the fridge overnight. The next morning I formed the buns and let them rise again. Just before baking, I gave them the traditional cross made from a mixture of water and flour.
Baked goods made from sourdough are certainly not fast food, but the dough does most of the work all by itself. The buns are also perfect for freezing. So one big baking day and then freshly baked hot cross buns on the breakfast table every Sunday – how does that sound? So grab your apron and bowl and off you go!
Ingredients: What you need for sourdough hot cross buns
- Sourdough starter: It is not necessary to constantly feed the sourdough starter fresh, but the last refreshment should not be longer than a week ago. If you have a sourdough discard I will be happy to provide you with suitable recipes. My personal method is to feed my sourdough with an equal amount of water and flour. I use a mixture of wheat flour and wholemeal rye flour. If you choose a different water-to-flour ratio for your sourdough, remember to adjust the amount of water in the recipe accordingly. Here are some helpful tips to keep your sourdough starter vital and healthy at all times.
- Wheat flour: Bread flour is best for your challah.
- Water: Cold in summer and lukewarm in winter.
- Sugar and brown sugar for sweetness.
- Butter or a vegan alternative. The butter should be soft so that it combines well with the other ingredients.
- Salt, cinnamon, ground cloves and nutmeg for the taste.
- Orange marmalade and raisins provide a fruity aroma.
- Oil, with a neutral taste, for the typical crosses on the buns.
Helpful tools – My recommendations
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- A Danish Whisk* – especially if you don’t use a kitchen machine. This allows you to mix your ingredients without the whole dough sticking to the spoon.
- You can use a stainless steel dough knife* to cut your dough pieces or shape your loaves.
- A piping bag* for the cross on your hot cross buns.
- A stainless steel oven tray*.
- A steam tray consisting of a stainless steel oven mould* and lava stones*. The tray is filled with the stones and placed on the bottom of the oven during preheating. When you put your bread in the oven, pour hot water onto the stones. This creates steam, which ensures that your bread rises well.
- A sharp bread knife*.
You can find more product recommendations here.
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Recipe: Best Sourdough Hot Cross Buns – Easter Recipe
Ingredients
Pre-Dough
- 60 g sourdough starter
- 240 g wheat flour bread flour (or type 550)
- 170 g water
- 30 g sugar
Dough
- Pre-Dough
- 330 g wheat flour bread flour (or type 550)
- 150 g water
- 100 g soft butter or vegan butter
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 30 g sugar
Filling
- 3 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp. ground cloves
- 2 tbsp. orange marmelade
- ½ tsp. nutmeg
- 200 g raisins
Crosses
- 40 g cake flour
- 40 g water
- 1 tsp. oil with neutral taste
Sugar syrup
- 30 g brown sugar
- 30 g hot water
Instructions
Day 1
- Mix the ingredients for the starter dough and leave to rest for six hours at room temperature.
- Mix the ingredients for the main dough and leave to rest at room temperature for an hour.
- Soak the raisins in hot water for 30 minutes, drain well and mix with the spices and marmalade.
- Mix the raisin mixture into the dough and leave the dough to rest for an additional two hours at room temperature and place in the fridge overnight.
Day 2
- Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and shape into round buns.
- Brush the dough pieces with (oat) milk, cover and leave to rest at room temperature for two to three hours.
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees with a steam tray consisting of a stainless steel oven dish* and lava stones*.
- Mix the ingredients for the crosses and pipe onto the buns using a piping bag*.
- Bake the hot cross buns for 15 minutes with steam and 15 minutes without steam.
- For the syrup, mix hot water with brown sugar and brush onto the hot buns.
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