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5 from 11 votes

Hot Cross Buns

By Sam MerrittPublished Apr 02, 2021

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Servings: 12 buns

2 hrs

These Hot Cross Buns are a traditional recipe for celebrating Easter weekend. These soft, spiced, sweet yeast rolls are made with instant yeast and flavored with cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and orange zest. Recipe includes a how-to video where I’ll show you step-by-step how to make these in  your own kitchen!

Hot Cross Buns

I’m sure you’re familiar with Hot Cross Buns, thanks to the popular children’s nursery rhyme or their popularity in grocery stores and bakeries around Easter. These sweet sticky rolls are traditionally made and sold during Lent (though I’m yet to see them as cheap as “one a penny, two a penny”).

Aside from being delicious, they also are an important part of Good Friday and Easter traditions, and you can read more about their origins, traditions, and superstitions here.

Soft, fluffy (though a bit denser than my dinner rolls), and lightly sweetened yeast rolls, this recipe is traditionally flavored with spices (and optional orange zest) and in this case topped with simple icing crosses.

They deserve a spot at your table next to the homemade peanut butter eggs, coconut cream pie, and old-fashioned Easter candy.

What You Need

• All-Purpose Flour. I use all-purpose because it’s what I have on hand, but bread flour can be used instead for a chewier hot cross bun.
• Granulated Sugar. This adds sweetness and flavor.
• Instant Yeast. You can use active dry yeast instead of instant, but you will have to wait longer for the dough to rise. (see the recipe notes)
• Salt. Adds flavor and balances the taste.
• Spices. We’re using cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg. These spices are part of what give hot cross buns their spiced flavor.
• Whole Milk. I use whole milk to bring the dough together and gives the buns their rich flavor. You can try another milk, such as 2%, but the buns will lose some of their richness and be a bit more dry.
• Butter. I use unsalted. This makes for tender, flavorful hot cross buns.
• Eggs. For best results use room temperature eggs (they’ll combine into the dough better) and lightly beat them before adding (ditto).
• Orange zest (optional). Adds to the flavor of the buns, but it is not necessary.
• Currants or Raisins…

I know I’ve mentioned in my Oatmeal Cookie and Carrot Cake recipe that I kind of really hate raisins. You can leave them out if you also have good taste 😉without causing any problems or issues with the recipe. Even though I don’t love them, they are a traditional ingredient in hot cross buns so I felt I had to include them.

And in case you’re wondering, yes I definitely did pick around the currants like a 5 year old when I ate mine.

How to Make Hot Cross Buns

Yes, there’s yeast involved, but this recipe really isn’t that difficult to make. I’ll walk you through all the steps below, and don’t forget to check out my video if you’re nervous about baking with yeast.

1. Combine sugar, yeast, salt, spices, and some of the flour in the bowl of a stand mixer (I include notes to make by hand if you don’t have one).
2. Melt together milk and butter and add to the ingredients in your bowl. Be sure that you stay within the temperature range indicated in the recipe, otherwise you may kill your yeast. You may notice the temperature for this recipe is a tiny bit higher than the temperature for the proofing liquid that I use in some of my other recipes (like pizza dough or sticky buns), this is purposeful for this recipe to make sure the yeast is activated despite being mixed with a number of other ingredients.
3. Stir in raisins or currants and the orange zest (if using).
4. Add more flour as needed. Yeast recipes can be fussy, how much flour you will need may vary depending on a number of factors, so make sure that you pay attention to the consistency of your dough. It should be smooth and clinging to itself while pulling away from the sides of the bowl. It should be tacky when you touch it, but it shouldn’t stick to your fingers.
5. Place the dough in an oiled bowl and turn to coat with oil (this helps to keep the bread from drying out and developing a dry outer crust and makes it easy to remove when it’s finished rising). let rise until doubled.
6. Divide the dough into 12 evenly sized pieces, evenly space in a lightly buttered 13×9 baking dish and allow to rise again for another 30 minutes. After the buns have risen, brush with the egg wash and bake until golden brown.
7. Wait until the hot cross buns have cooled (cooled cross buns?) and then pipe icing crosses on top of each. Serve and enjoy!

Frequently Asked Questions

More Recipes You Might Like

The Best Carrot Cake Recipe

The Best Dinner Rolls

Hummingbird Cake

Sweet Bread (Braided Bread)

Enjoy!

Let’s bake together! Make sure to check out the how-to VIDEO in the recipe card! 

5 from 11 votes

Hot Cross Buns

These Hot Cross Buns are perfect for celebrating Easter. I’ll walk you through how to make these sweet yeast buns from scratch. This recipe can be cut in half if desired.

Be sure to check out the how-to VIDEO at the bottom of the recipe!

Prep: 30 minutes mins

Cook: 30 minutes mins

Rising Time: 1 hour hr

Total: 2 hours hrs

Servings: 12 buns

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Equipment

• Stand Mixer
• Small saucepan
• Mixing bowls
• 9×13 Baking Pan
• Piping bag

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Ingredients

• ▢ 5 ⅓ cups (665 g) all-purpose flour, plus additional as needed
• ▢ ⅔ cup (140 g) granulated sugar
• ▢ 5 teaspoons instant yeast¹
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ▢ 1 ⅓ cups (315 ml) whole milk
• ▢ 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces
• ▢ 2 large eggs, lightly beaten, room temperature preferred
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon orange zest, optional
• ▢ ⅔ cups dried currants or raisins

EGG WASH

• ▢ 1 large egg
• ▢ 2 teaspoons water

ICING (Please see notes if you would like to make traditional pastry crosses instead).

• ▢ 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
• ▢ 2-3 Tablespoons whole milk
• ▢ ¾ teaspoon lemon juice

Instructions 

• In the bowl of a stand mixer (see note if you do not have a stand mixer), combine 2 cups (250g) flour, sugar, yeast, salt, and spices.
  5 ⅓ cups (665 g) all-purpose flour, ⅔ cup (140 g) granulated sugar, 5 teaspoons instant yeast¹, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ground allspice, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• In a small saucepan, heat milk and butter until butter is melted and mixture reaches 120-125F (48-52C) (if the mixture becomes too hot, let it cool back down to the correct temperature range, otherwise you run the risk of killing your yeast).
  1 ⅓ cups (315 ml) whole milk, 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter
• Turn mixer to low speed and gradually pour liquid ingredients into dry. Once just combined, add eggs and stir until combined.
  2 large eggs
• Stir in currants or raisins and orange zest, if using.
  1 Tablespoon orange zest, ⅔ cups dried currants or raisins
• With mixer on low speed, gradually add remaining flour (415g) as needed (it’s possible you will not need to use all of the flour) until dough attains a smooth elastic texture that’s tacky to the touch but not too sticky. The dough should be clinging to itself and pulling away from the sides of the bowl. Add additional flour if needed.
• Form the dough into a ball and place into a lightly oiled bowl. Roll dough through oil and cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Place in a warm, draft-free spot and allow to rise until doubled in size (usually 30-60 minutes). I usually preheat my oven at this point and place my dough on the top of my preheating oven, as that’s the warmest spot in my house.
• Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and lightly butter a 9×13 baking dish. Set aside.
• Once dough has risen, punch down and transfer to a lightly floured surface. Form into a log that’s 12” long and cut into 12 even slices. Form each slice into a round ball/roll and place rolls almost touching in prepared plan. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow to rise again for 20-30 minutes. If making pastry crosses (rather than the recommended icing), please see notes section below.
• Once rolls have finished their rise, combine large egg and 2 teaspoons of water in a small dish. Use a whisk or fork to beat until well-combined. Remove plastic wrap from rolls and use a pastry brush to brush the top of each roll with egg wash mixture.
  1 large egg, 2 teaspoons water
• Transfer to 350F (175C) oven and bake for 30-32 minutes or until rolls are golden brown and are firm and sound hollow when tapped on top. Allow to cool before adding icing.

ICING

• Prepare icing by whisking together powdered sugar, milk, and lemon juice. It should have a thick consistency that holds its shape for piping, if it’s too thin then add more sugar, if too thick then add more milk.
  1 ½ cups powdered sugar, 2-3 Tablespoons whole milk, ¾ teaspoon lemon juice
• Spoon icing into a small piping bag or into a ziploc bag and snip one corner. Pipe crosses over buns.
• Enjoy!

Notes

¹Yeast

I have successfully made this recipe by substituting an equal amount of active dry yeast. To do this, heat the milk to only 115F (46C) then add the yeast with a generous pinch of sugar, stir, and let sit for 5 minutes until a foamy cap forms. Then add melted butter, flour, sugar, salt, and spices and proceed with the recipe as indicated.  It will need to rise longer (approximately 1-2 hours or longer).

Making without a stand mixer

To make by hand, simply combine the ingredient using a wooden spoon through step 5. Once the dough is dry enough to do so (but still a bit tacky to the touch), turn it out onto a clean, lightly floured surface and knead by hand until smooth and elastic (about 5 minutes). Add more flour as needed by sprinkling over the surface of the dough and working it in as you knead.

Pastry crosses

This recipe can be made with traditional pastry crosses instead, though it is not my preference for taste. To do so:

Stir together 1/2 cup all-purpose flour (65g), 1 1/2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, and 1/4 cup water (60ml). The mixture should be thick enough to pipe and hold its shape, add more flour if needed.

Pipe crosses over the buns before baking (use a piping bag or a ziploc bag with a corner snipped off), brush with egg wash if desired, and bake. After baking you can brush with some melted apricot jam over the buns for added sweetness, if desired.

Storing

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3-4 days. For best results, warm slightly before enjoying.

Nutrition

Serving: 1roll with icing | Calories: 382kcal | Carbohydrates: 69g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 238mg | Potassium: 126mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 26g | Vitamin A: 250IU | Vitamin C: 9.1mg | Calcium: 60mg | Iron: 0.9mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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