Food : Hot Cross Bun

History & Recipe

Ingredients

• 175ml warm water
• 1 sachet dry instant yeast
• 550g plain flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 75g sugar, any sort
• 4 tsp mixed spice
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 75ml milk
• 75g butter, cut into smallish pieces
• 150g raisins or 100g currants
• 150g chopped glacé ginger, or mixed peel
• Finely grated zest of an orange or lemon
• 1 large egg
• Sunflower oil or extra flour for kneading

Method

1.    Heat the oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/390°F/gas 6.

2.    Measure the water into a jug, stir in the yeast and leave it while you get everything else ready.

3.    Bring the milk to the boil then remove from the heat and add the butter, stir until it melts, then add the dried fruit, ginger or peel, and beat in the egg.

4.    Put the flour, salt, sugar, and spice in a large mixing bowl and give it a quick toss around to roughly combine it. Crumble any lumps of sugar finely with your fingers, but don't worry about any hard ones that won't break up.

5.    Stir the fruit and yeast mixtures together then pour this in with the flour.

6.    Stir everything together, or use your hands, and leave for 10 minutes. The dough should be a little sticky and soft.

7.    Lift the dough out of the bowl and onto the work-top then give it a good quick knead for 10-15 seconds. No, I don't mean minutes. By giving the dough a quick knead now and leaving it for 45 minutes it will be in perfect shape when we divide and shape the buns.

8.    Next, divide the dough into about a dozen equal pieces, just under 100g each. Shape each piece into a smooth tight ball - that's the tricky bit - and place them evenly spaced on a tray lined with non-stick paper. Cover with a tea-towel and leave somewhere warm for about 90 minutes until risen by about half.

9. Mix extra flour with water to a paste and pipe crosses on each. Bake the buns for 25 minutes. Finally, mix a tablespoon each caster sugar and boiling water and brush over the buns while they're still hot.

10. FREEZER TIP

Make the buns in advance an freeze them unglazed. When defrosted, put them in a hot oven for 2-3 minutes, then glaze them.

A hot cross bun, or cross-bun, is a sweet, yeast-leavened, spiced bun made with currants or raisins, often with candied citrus fruits, marked with a cross on the top. The cross can be made in a variety of ways including: of pastry, flour and water mixture; rice paper, icing & two intersecting cuts. They are traditionally eaten on Good Friday but in the UK they are now sold all year round.

In many historically Christian countries, buns are traditionally eaten hot or toasted on Good Friday, with the cross standing as a symbol of the Crucifixion. They are believed by some to pre-date Christianity, although the first recorded use of the term "hot cross bun" was not until 1733;  it is believed that buns marked with a cross were eaten by Saxons  in honour of the goddess Eostre (the cross is thought to have symbolised the four quarters of the moon); "Eostre" is probably the origin of the name "Easter". Others claim that the Greeks marked cakes with a cross, much earlier. 

History

Protestant English monarchs saw the buns as a dangerous hold-over of Catholic belief in England, being baked from the dough used in making the communion wafer. Protestant England attempted to ban the sale of the buns by bakers but they were too popular, and instead Elizabeth I passed a law permitting bakeries to sell them, but only at Easter and Christmas.  

Superstitions

English folklore includes many superstitions surrounding hot cross buns. One of them says that buns baked and served on Good Friday will not spoil or become mouldy during the subsequent year. Another encourages keeping such a bun for medicinal purposes. A piece of it given to someone who is ill is said to help them recover.

Other versions

Sharing a hot cross bun with another is supposed to ensure friendship throughout the coming year, particularly if "Half for you and half for me, Between us two shall goodwill be" is said at the time. Because of the cross on the buns, some say they should be kissed before being eaten. If taken on a sea voyage, hot cross buns are said to protect against shipwreck. If hung in the kitchen, they are said to protect against fires and ensure that all breads turn out perfectly. The hanging bun is replaced each year.


UK

In the UK, the major supermarkets produce variations on the traditional recipe such as toffee, orange and cranberry, and apple and cinnamon.

Australia

In Australia a chocolate version of the bun has become popular. They generally contain the same mixture of spices but chocolate chips are used instead of currants.

Czech Republic
In the Czech Republic mazanec is a similar cake or sweet bread eaten at Easter time. It often has a cross marked on top. 

Mazanec