How to Make Traditional Hot Cross Buns
Hot cross buns are a delicious traditional treat that is perfect for Easter or any time of the year. While store-bought buns can be convenient, nothing beats the taste and satisfaction of homemade hot cross buns. This hot cross bun recipe is easy to follow and uses fresh ingredients like oranges, apricots, and raisins to create an irresistible flavor.
My original recipe had candied peel and little bits of candied cherries, but my sons loathe anything with candied peel. If your family dislikes hot cross buns, I bet the candied peel is the reason. This hot cross bun recipe uses dried fruit and orange rind, but you can swap out the orange for lemon, depending on your family’s preferences.
This traditional hot cross bun recipe is one of those Easter recipes everyone recognizes and most people enjoy. It starts with a light sweet bread dough and dried fruit and is topped with a fruit glaze for shine and the little cross using icing. It does take some effort, but in my humble opinion, it’s worth every minute!
My original recipe had candied peel and little bits of candied cherries, but my sons loathe anything with candied peel. If your family dislikes hot cross buns I bet the candied peel is the reason. This recipe uses dried fruit and orange rind, or you can swap out the orange for lemon, depending on your family’s preferences.
Ingredients for the Hot Cross Bun Sweet Dough
Ingredients for the Glaze (optional)
1 1/2 cup whole milk
1/3 c butter
2 eggs
1.5 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 pkg active-dry yeast
1/2 c of warm water
2 tsp sugar
Zest of one orange
1/2 cup of dried apricots
1 cup raisins
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
½ teaspoon cardamom
6 cups all-purpose flour
This glaze is optional, but it’s very quick to make, and for Easter, I think it’s worth it. It adds a tiny bit of moisture, but it mostly adds a shine to the top of the bun as you see in the pastry chef bakery hot cross buns.
1/4 c clear syrup or honey
1/4 c orange juice
1/4 c sugar
½ teaspoon cinnamon
Ingredients for the Criss Cross
This cross is what makes these buns special for Easter. My traditional recipe used just flour, which is then placed on the bun before baking. My family looks forward to the icing, so I add icing sugar to the orange juice to make an icing instead. Feel free to just use icing sugar if you want the extra sweetness.
1/3 cup of all-purpose flour
1/3 icing sugar (powdered sugar)
Orange juice from one orange, add more water if needed to thin it out.
Direction for Making the Sweet Hot Cross Bun Dough
Making the sweet dough is a process. None of it is hard to do, but there are a few steps.
Start with a small saucepan, add the milk, 1/2 c sugar, and the butter. Warm over medium-low heat until the butter melts. (about 5 min) Set aside to cool.
Take a large mixing bowl. Place warm water, and 2 tsp of sugar and yeast together in the bowl. Stir and let sit until the yeast softens (it will be fluffy floating on top). Takes about ten minutes.
While the milk is cooling and the yeast is softening, get the fruit ready. Cut up the apricots into little chunks. Grate the zest off of one orange (keep the orange), and measure the raisins. Place everything together in a small bowl.
By the time the yeast is soft, your milk mixture should be cooled enough. Beat 2 eggs, and add to the milk mixture, then add the vanilla.
Pour the warm milk-egg mixture into the large bowl with the softened yeast.
Add 3 cups of flour to the yeast mixture.
Then add the raisins, cut apricots, and orange zest. Stir in with a large wooden spoon.
Add two cups of flour, and sprinkle the top with cinnamon and cardamom. Mix together, making a sticky dough, this is normal before you begin kneading it before you knead it.
Spread 1/2 cup of flour onto a clean surface, turn your dough out onto the lightly floured surface. Knead your dough. Sprinkle with the last 1/2 cup of flour adding extra flour when needed.
Raising the Sweet Dough
Wash and butter the inside of your mixing bowl. Knead until your dough is much smoother and elastic.
Make sure your room is a nice warm natural room temperature, and there are no cold air drafts.
Form your soft dough into a large ball, and place it in the greased bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and set in a warm place. Let the dough rise until double in bulk about 2 hours.
Grease a large, rectangular baking pan (approx. 12 x 15′). Line with parchment paper.
Pinch the dough off in equal pieces about 1/2 cup in size. Form into buns and place in a pan with a little space between them.
Cover again and let rise for 45 minutes.
After the buns have risen, cut a small cross pattern in the top of the dough, across each bun using a small serrated sharp knife.
Recover with the towel and allow to rise for 10 more minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 F. Brush hot cross buns with melted butter, and place in preheated oven. Bake for about half an hour until golden brown.
I seriously wish I could use Smellavision for this part of the post. Cinnamon. warm spices and fresh yeast always smell so good, but the cardamon had Hubs coming down from upstairs to see how the buns were going.
Making the Classic Hot Cross Bun Glaze
This is optional, but if you want traditional hot cross buns I recommend making it. The glaze is easy to make, it’s just one more step.
Place the syrup(honey) sugar, juice, and cinnamon in a small saucepan, Place over medium heat stirring to dissolve the sugar and create a syrup. Once boiling, let boil for a minute, remove from heat, and spoon over the top of the buns while still warm.
Making the Criss Cross Icing
Place the icing sugar, flour, and orange juice in a small bowl.
Beat until smooth, add a little water if you need to thin the icing more. Transfer the icing to a small plastic bag. or piping bag.
I used a spatula to scrape all the icing into one little corner. Snip the corner tip of the bag then crisscross the top of the buns where the slits are to form a cross on the top of each bun.
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Ways to Enjoy Hot Cross Buns
Warm right from the oven, just as they are is my favorite. Or you can warm it in the microwave.
After a couple of days, they will start to be less moist, we like to eat them with butter.
If you have them longer than that, slice and make them into French toast, or use them in a simple bread pudding recipe.
How to Store Hot Cross Buns
Fresh homemade hot cross buns can be kept for about two days at room temperature in a sealed plastic container.
You can freeze hot cross buns, in a resealable container wrapped in parchment paper bundles. You can freeze them for up to two months. The buns should thaw in about an hour on the counter.
Classic Hot Cross Buns Recipe from Scratch
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups milk
- ⅓ c butter
- 2 eggs beaten
- 1.5 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 pkg dry yeast
- ½ cup warm water
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 orange or lemon
- ½ cup dried apricots chopped fine
- 1 cup raisins
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp cardamom
- 6 cups white four
Glaze (Optional)
- ¼ cup clear corn syrup or honey
- ¼ cup orange juice squeeze orange used for rind
- ¼ cup sugar
- ½ tsp cinnamon
Icing for Cross
- ⅓ cup flour
- ⅓ cup icing sugar
- 2 tbsp orange juice squeezed from orange or add water if needed
Instructions
- Start with a small saucepan, add the milk, 1/2 c sugar and the butter. Warm over med low heat until the butter melts. (about 5 min) Set aside to cool.
- Take a large mixing bowl. Place warm water, 2 tsp of sugar and yeast together in the bowl. Stir and let sit until the yeast softens (it will be fluffy floating on top). Takes about ten minutes.
- Cut up the apricots into little chunks. Grate the zest off of one orange (keep the orange), and measure the raisins. Place everything together in a small bowl.
- Beat 2 eggs, and add to the milk mixture, then add the vanilla.
- Pour the warm milk egg mixture into the large bowl with the softened yeast.
- Add 3 cups of flour to the yeast mixture.
- Then add the raisins, cut apricots, and orange zest. Stir in.
- Add two cups of flour, and sprinkle the top with cinnamon and cardamon. Mix together, the dough will be sticky.
- Spread 1/2 cup of flour onto a clean surface, turn your dough out onto the flour. Knead your dough. Sprinkle with the last 1/2 cup if flour a bit at a time as you knead.
Raising the Sweet Dough
- Wash and butter the inside of your mixing bowl. Knead until your dough is much smoother and elastic.
- Form your dough into a large ball, place in the bowl. Cover with a towel and place in a warm spot. Let rise until double in bulk about 2 hours.
- Grease a large, rectangular baking pan (approx. 12 x 15'). Line with parchment paper.
- Pinch the dough off in 1/2 cup sizes. Form into buns and place in pan with a little space between them.
- Cover again with the towel and let rise for 45 minutes.
- After the buns have risen, using a small serrated knife, cut a shall cross pattern across each bun. Recover with the towel and allow to rise 10 more minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Brush hot cross buns with melted butter, place in oven. Bake about half an hour until golden.
Making the Glaze (optional)
- Place the syrup(honey) sugar, juice and cinnamon in a small saucepan, Place over medium heat stirring to dissolve the sugar and create a syrup. Once boiling, let boil a minute, remove from heat and spoon over the still warm buns.
Icing Cross
- Place the icing sugar, flour and orange juice in a small bowl.
- Beat until smooth, add a little water if you need to thin the icing more. Transfer the icing to a small plastic sandwich bag.
- Snip the corner then criss cross the buns where the slits are to form a cross on the top of each bun..
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If you new to making yeast dough, I have another step by step recipe for making simple buns. These buns are always appreciated, and I make this recipe several times a year.
My family also loves homemade Easter eggs. Especially now that my boys are men, they enjoy these eggs, and I give the Easter bunnies to the little ones.
