Winter is officially over for another year. Lighter evenings, birds chirping, trees blossoming and a time for new beginnings. There's nothing like the feeling of trying something new. This week we have some great new additions and also a delicious perfectly spiced Easter Hot Cross Bun recipe!
Traditional Hot Cross Buns are a delicious part of the Easter feast or make a lovely afternoon snack and sweet additions to breakfast over the bank holiday. Fresh and tasty with a little bit of spice to them, they are a real treat to have over the celebrations and this vegan version of the spring classic is a delicious bake. Egg and dairy free, your whole family and Easter visitors will love.
INGREDIENTS
Dough:
- 2 1/4 tsp yeast
- 1 tsp coconut sugar
- 1/2 cup lukewarm water
- 3/4 cup room temperature/lukewarm unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 1/3 cup oil we used rapeseed oil
- 3/4 tsp Himalayan pink salt
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 3 1/2 cups spelt flour we used whole meal
- 1/2 cup Chilean Flame Raisins
- 1/4 cup South African Pink Flame Seedless Raisins
- Vegan "Egg" Wash 1 tbsp unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 1 tbsp pure maple syrup
Crosses:
- 3 tbsp white flour
- 1 tbsp water or more water if mixture is to thick.
METHOD
Dough:
- In the food mixer bowl, add the yeast, 1 tsp of coconut sugar and lukewarm water. Let stand for a few minutes.
- When the yeast has foamed up, add the room temperature/lukewarm milk, oil, salt, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, sugar, orange zest, lemon zest, and 1 cup of flour. Mix with a spoon to combine.
- Put mixer bowl in place, add 2 more cups of flour and using the dough hook, set the mixer to knead.
- If the dough is sticky, add flour 1/2 cup at a time.
- Let mixer knead dough for about 4 minutes and until it is no longer sticky. In the last minute of mixing, add the raisins to incorporate them.
- Lightly oil the inside of a medium-sized bowl.
- Remove dough from mixer bowl and place into the oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with a towel and let it sit in a warm spot until it has doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Line an 11" x 13" pan with parchment paper. Allowing overhang on each side so they can be easily removed from the pan when done.
- After the hour has passed, punch the dough down and knead for a few seconds to get rid of any air pockets.
- Separate the dough into 8 equal sized pieces.
- Roll each piece into a ball and place each one into the parchment lined pan. It's OK if they are close together.
- Cover with a towel and place in a warm spot. Let rise for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 F.
For the crosses:
- Mix the flour and water together and place into a piping bag with a very small tip or a small zip lock bag. If using a zip lock bag, snip off one of the bottom corners. pipe the flour onto the buns to make the crosses.
- Make the vegan "egg" wash...
- Mix the unsweetened non-dairy milk and the maple syrup together.
- After the rolls have rested, using a pastry brush, brush the vegan egg wash over each bun.
- Bake for about 20 minutes or until they are golden brown.
- Remove from oven and let sit for a few minutes in pan.
- Remove buns using parchment paper overhang as handles and place onto a cooling rack. The buns will have joined together while rising/baking. Do not separate them yet. Notes - If you don't have a stand mixer, you can still make this, just knead by hand for about 10 mins.
