Hot Cross Buns

Name: Hot Cross Buns
Prep time: 45 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 12 serving(s)
Ingredients: 600 g strong white bread flour, plus extra to dust; 2 tsp. mixed spice; 50 g cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes, plus extra to grease; 75 g caster sugar; finely grated zest of 1 lemon; 1 x 7 g sachet fast-action dried yeast; 325 mL semi-skimmed milk; 1 medium egg; 150 g sultanas; 2 tbsp. plain flour; 1-2 tbsp golden syrup, to glaze

These sweetly spiced hot cross buns are our go-to recipe. They do take a little bit of time but it's worth it.

By The Good Housekeeping Cookery TeamUpdated: 29 February 2024

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Traditional hot cross buns mark the end of Lent and are traditionally eaten toasted, beginning with the evening of Shrove Tuesday (the evening before Ash Wednesday) to midday Good Friday at Easter. Although generally these tasty sweet buns are available all year round in most supermarkets.

There is a number of taboos and folklore traditions surrounding hot cross buns, such as buns baked and served on Good Friday will not spoil or grow mouldy during the subsequent year, and If taken on a sea voyage, hot cross buns are said to protect against shipwreck.

In the United Kingdom, major supermarkets produce variations on the classic hot cross bun recipe such as toffee, orange-cranberry, and apple-cinnamon.

Our best tips for a fail-safe hot cross bun dough

Make sure your yeast is within date, it's surprisingly common to accidentally use an out of date packet of yeast as it can easily be forgotten about in the back of your cupboard! Out of date will set you up for a failed hot cross bun as your dough won't rise, resulting in a flat and dense bake.

Getting your milk to 'just warm' is key. It should only feel lukewarm when a clean finger is dipped into it. Too hot and you'll kill your yeast, too cold and you won't activate it.

It's important to knead your dough until it's 'elastic'. This means that when you pull it into a taught ball and press the dough lightly, it should spring back, or when stretched and held up to the light, it should be almost translucent.

Allowing your dough to rise then 'knocking it back' to add the raisins and eventually kneading again before rolling the dough into balls, will prevent large air bubbles from forming in your hot cross buns. This will result in a more even textured and uniform rise.

If you're after more hot cross bun recipes, we've compiled our favourite recipes which includes a pudding variation, a chocolate version with spiced orange butter, a savoury goat's cheese stuffed version and a lemon drizzle option too.

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Yields:

12 serving(s)

Prep Time:

45 mins

Cook Time:

15 mins

Total Time:

1 hr

Cal/Serv:

307

Ingredients

For the buns

600 g
strong white bread flour, plus extra to dust
2 tsp.
mixed spice
50 g
cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes, plus extra to grease
75 g
caster sugar
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
1
x 7 g sachet fast-action dried yeast
325 ml
semi-skimmed milk
1
medium egg
150 g
sultanas

For the Hot cross bun topping

2 Tbsp.
plain flour
1-2 tbsp golden syrup, to glaze

Directions

1. Step 1
  Put the strong flour, mixed spice, butter and ½tsp salt into a food processor, and pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs (alternatively, rub the butter into the flour mixture using your fingers).
2. Step 2
  Add the sugar, lemon zest and yeast and pulse again (or stir) to combine. Empty the mixture into a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Gently heat the milk until it's just warm, then add the milk and egg to the flour bowl and stir quickly to make a soft dough (add a little more cold milk if the mixture feels too dry).
3. Step 3
  Dust a work surface with flour, then knead the dough for 5min or until elastic. Transfer dough to a large lightly greased bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave in a warm place to rise for 1hr.
4. Step 4
  Transfer the dough to a work surface and knead in the sultanas (you may need to flour the work surface again). Return the dough to the bowl, recover with clingfilm and leave to rise again for 30min.
5. Step 5
  Lightly grease a baking sheet with butter. Turn the dough out again on to a floured work surface and divide it into 12 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball, then flatten slightly. Arrange balls on the baking sheet, spacing a little apart. Cover with a clean tea towel and leave to rise for 45min.
6. Step 6
  Preheat oven to 220°C (200°C fan) mark 7. To make the cross topping, put the flour into a small bowl and mix in just enough cold water to reach a smooth, pipeable consistency (about 2tbsp). Transfer the flour mixture to a piping bag (no need for a nozzle), then snip the tip and, working quickly, pipe a cross on top of each bun.
7. Step 7
  Bake the buns for 12-15min, or until golden and risen. As soon as the they come out of the oven, brush with golden syrup. Then allow to cool completely on a wire rack - or eat warm with lashings of butter.