Spiced Hot Cross Buns
Happy Easter! We’ve put a twist on a well-loved favourite with these dark chocolate, orange & ginger spiced hot cross buns.
They are soft & fluffy and oozing with antioxidant-rich dark chocolate chunks & orange zest! Perfect to enjoy fresh out of the oven or toasted with some high quality salted butter—yum!
Recipe & Photography by Courtney Sutton @selfbycjs
serves: 12 buns | Time: 2.5 hours (including rise time)
Ingredients:
- 4 ¼ cup bread flour
- 3 tsp instant yeast
- ½ cup Flannerys OWN Coconut Sugar
- 2 tsp Flannerys OWN Cinnamon, ground
- 2 tsp all spice, ground
- 2 tsp ginger, ground
- 2 oranges, zest only
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 50g Copper Tree butter, melted & cooled
- 1 ½ cups Mungalli Biodynamic full cream milk, lukewarm
- 1 large chunk Flannerys bulk bin dark chocolate, roughly chopped (approx. 1 cup)
Cross:
- 1/3 cup flour
- 3-5 tbsp water, depending on flour
Sugar syrup:
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp water, boiling
Method:
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, spices & yeast.
- Add milk, butter, orange zest & egg and combine until you reach a shaggy dough.
- Lightly flour a clean surface and tip out dough. Using your hands, knead the dough until it comes together. This will take appox. 10 minutes. You shouldn’t need to add more flour, however, if the dough is sticking to your hands, slowly add in 1 tbsp at a time. Dough will be smooth, soft & stretchy. At the 8–9-minute mark, add in dark chocolate & knead a few more times. Do not add too early otherwise the chocolate will melt with your body heat.
- Oil a large bowl, place dough in there & cover with a clean tea towel or cling wrap. Set aside & allow to rise for 1-1.5 hours. Dough should be doubled in size & bounce back when lightly touched.
- Punch down the dough to release the air & then place on lightly floured surface. Roll out into a log & divide into 9 or 12 pieces. To form bun shape, pinch each side & wrap it underneath so that you have a smooth top. Roll it on the bench to secure base & place in your lightly oiled baking tray.
- Once buns are formed, cover again & leave to rest for 40-minutes in a warm space. After 20-minutes, preheat your oven. Line large baking dish with baking paper.
- In a small bowl, combine flour & water for your cross. Start with 3 tbsp of water & add more depending on consistency. You want it to be thick but runny. Pour into a zip-lock bag & cut a small hole off the corner. Pipe your crosses slowly to ensure they form solid lines.
- Bake in oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden on top. Once out of the oven, brush generously with your sugar syrup. Place on a cooling rack & enjoy with salted butter.
