Recipe For Hot Cross Buns

Keep Good Friday Traditional With Grandma's Recipe For Hot Cross Buns

Grandma's easy recipe for hot cross buns will help you to make the traditional buns for your Easter time celebrations. The fact that they are homemade makes them extra special.

Hot cross buns are traditionally served on the Christian holiday of Good Friday and during Lent. They are smallish, slightly sweet buns containing spices and raisins, or currants, and they sometimes contain chopped candied fruit. Their tops are marked with a distinctive white cross made of glazed sugar or lightly cooked dough to symbolize the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

These festive buns are best served warm from the oven with a butter spread. They taste so good you will want to eat them the year-round.

The History Of Hot Cross Buns

2-1/2 cups flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 4 teaspoons baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 1/2 cup currents or small seedless raisins, 2 tablespoons peel, 1 egg, 1/2 to 2/3 cup milk or water, 2 tablespoons shortening.

Mix dry ingredients, make well in center and add melted shortening and liquids. Divide dough into small rolls and put on greased sheet. Put cross on top using a little bit of rolled dough and brush on butter and sugar. Bake 25 to 30 minutes in a moderate (375°F) oven.

An Alternate Way To Decorate

With a sharp knife, slit top at right angles or press a cross onto top of each bun with a long pencil. When nearly baked, glaze, and dredge the cross thus produced with granulated sugar; repeat glazing and dredging until cross is filled with sugar. Complete baking.

Cinnamon may be mixed with the sugar, or lemon extract.

Ingredients: 1 tablespoon yeast, 6 cups flour, 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 3/4 cup raisins, 1/2 cup mixed candied fruit, 1-1/2 teaspoons salt, 1 cup confectioner’s sugar, 1 teaspoon sugar, 2 cups milk, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 egg, 1/3 cup melted butter.

Method: Add yeast and 1teaspoon sugar to 1/2 cup warm water. Let sugar and yeast mixture sit 10 minutes. Warm milk, add 1/2 cup sugar, salt, egg, and butter. Pour mixture into bowl, add yeast mixture, and stir. Add 5 cups flour, cinnamon, raisins, and candied fruit. Mix well. If dough is very sticky, add about 1 additional cup of flour. Knead as for bread dough until smooth. Cover dough, let rise until doubled, then punch down, knead briefly, and cut into buns.

Place buns on cookie sheet and cut a cross in the top of each, then let rise till doubled in size. Bake at 325°F for 25 minutes, or until golden. Remove buns from oven and let cool. After buns have cooled, blend confectioner’s sugar with enough milk to form a paste and put icing in each cross. Makes about 2 dozen buns.