Sourdough Hot Cross Buns
These sourdough hot cross buns are soft and light, loaded with fruit, spiced and lightly sweet. I call them hope on a plate.
A week ago my husband pulled a muscle while working around the yard. One wrong move was enough to immediately put a stop to his daily workouts around the neighborhood. As I watched him grow more impatient about being confined at home I patted myself on the back for being perfectly content waiting as the world heals.
As the week wore on, my husband’s condition improved but my spirits took a dive. Maybe it was the storm passing through that stole my sunshine or maybe it’s the three weeks of living this new and unfamiliar reality that finally did me in–yesterday I fought discouragement and the overwhelming feeling that I was doing nothing at all to contribute to the cause. I felt guilt for being safe at home, for having everything I need while others brave the frontlines to heal and to serve. As ridiculous as it may sound I even felt guilt for giving away (a few years ago) the sewing machine I owned for 15 years but hardly used because if there was ever a time I could use it, it’s now.
Eventually, I quietly stole away to the guest bedroom, closed my eyes and prayed. Before long I felt better.
My faith is what centers me, anchors me and lifts the darkness. After accepting that I will have moments like this every now and then and allowing myself time to bounce back, I set to baking for the activity boosts my spirits too.
In the spirit of being hopeful for better tomorrows and the coming of Easter I made hot cross buns. While they are a Lenten tradition for some Christian countries signifying resurrection, hot cross buns were not part of my upbringing. There is also the belief that they have pagan origins, a symbol of rebirth. Whichever is true, I had always been curious about them so given this season with much need for good news I couldn’t think of a better baking project to tackle.
Hot cross buns are sweet, spiced, loaded with raisins (or currants) and mixed (candied) citrus peel. They are enriched not only with sugar but also egg, butter, milk and call for commercial yeast.
But you know what’s coming…I skipped the commercial yeast and leavened mine with my sourdough starter, of course.
Substituting wild yeast for the store-bought kind is easy; the most important factor to consider is time. Sourdough refuses to be rushed so you can’t skimp on the time it takes for the yeast to do its thing. One way to mitigate this is temperature. A warmer environment encourages yeast activity so while I couldn’t promise hot cross buns in three hours from start to finish, it is possible to make them in the same day provided your temperature is in the mid-70s (ºF).
These sourdough hot cross buns are a mash up of the stretch-and-fold technique I’ve adapted for my bakes with Mary Berry’s generous use of add-ins and Paul Hollywood’s method of kneading them into the dough. In the absence of candied citrus peel which is traditional for this bread I borrowed Paul Hollywood’s use of fresh fruit to supplement. In this case I used diced fresh pear because it’s what I had and I didn’t even bother to peel it. You can also use a stand mixer to knead the dough but I found it unnecessary. This recipe is forgiving with the yeast doing most of the work. You’re simply called to be patient–we all have the time these days after all–and you’re rewarded with a slightly sweet, spiced, light and fluffy bun that was made for slathering with butter. It’s a treat and these days, more importantly, it’s hope on a plate.
Notes and Tips for Sourdough Hot Cross Buns
Sourdough Starter: If you have a strong, vigorous starter you can use one that was fed up to a day before. For this recipe my starter was fed 15 hours before.
Time and Temperature: This is a same-day bake though you must factor in inactive time for autolyse, stretch and folds, bulk fermentation and final proof. My dough proofed in a mid-70ºF environment so if your kitchen is cooler it may take longer. Alternatively, you can make this a two-day bake by storing the dough in the refrigerator overnight after the bulk fermentation. You can shape and final proof the next day.
Knead by Hand or Stand Mixer: I prefer to knead by hand but you are welcome to try using a stand mixer as Mary Berry has done with her recipe. I’ve linked her video below for guidance.
Incorporating the Add-Ins: I used Paul Hollywood’s method of incorporating the raisins, pear and lemon zest by hand. I’ve linked his video below for guidance.
Shaping the Rounds and Piping the Cross: Mary Berry’s video below demonstrates well the best way to shape the dough into rounds, as well as piping the cross.
Milk vs Water: You can use all milk or all water but I opted to use an equal measure of both.
Add-ins: Raisins (or currants), candied citrus peel and fresh lemon or orange zest are traditional add-ins but I liked Paul Hollywood’s use of fresh fruit since it happened to be available and it worked wonderfully.
Links:
Mary Berry’s Video for Hot Cross Buns
Paul Hollywood’s Video for Hot Cross Buns
Sourdough Hot Cross Buns
These sourdough hot cross buns are soft and light, loaded with fruit, spiced and lightly sweet. I call them hope on a plate.
Ingredients
- 85 grams sourdough starter (fed up to one day before)
- 150 grams water, luke warm
- 150 grams milk, luke warm (dairy or non-dairy)
- 30 grams melted butter
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 50 grams granulated sugar
- 475 grams bread flour (all-purpose is fine too)
- 6 grams kosher salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Zest of one lemon
- 80 grams raisins (soaked in water 30 minutes then drained)
- 1/2 fresh pear, unpeeled, diced small (or apple)
Flour-Water Paste
- 50 grams flour
- 60 grams water
Glaze (Optional)
- Apricot jam or orange marmalade
Instructions
Mix the Dough
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In a large bowl stir together the sourdough starter, water and milk until well combined. Follow with the melted butter, egg and sugar. Stir until well incorporated then add the flour, salt, allspice and cinnamon. Use a dough whisk or spatula to combine, making sure all the dry ingredients are fully incorporated into the mixture. You'll get a shaggy, somewhat moist dough. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for one hour.
Stretch and Fold
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Stretch and fold the dough every thirty minutes. Do this three times, covering the bowl with plastic wrap after each session. With each stretch and fold session you will begin to see and feel gluten development.
Add the Fruit
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Thirty minutes after the third stretch and fold session add the lemon zest, raisins and diced pear to the bowl. Stretch and fold to incorporate the add-ins. You don't need to be gentle here–the fruit will need to be completely incorporated into the dough so take a piece of the dough and fold over the top, repeating until all the fruit has been evenly distributed throughout (refer to the video link in the post). You'll break the gluten strands and this is okay. If your dough is too wet sprinkle one tablespoon at a time of flour, up to three tablespoons but be careful not to make the dough too dry. It's okay for it to be a little wet. Cover again with plastic wrap to continue bulk fermentation until the dough has roughly doubled in size. In my 77ºF kitchen this took roughly 3 1/2 to 4 hours. It may take longer in a cooler environment.
Divide and Shape into Rounds
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Turn the dough out on a lightly-floured surface. The dough will be airy so you can pinch some of the largest bubbles to de-gas. Divide the dough into 12 pieces. Flour your hands and the work surface, if necessary, to work with the dough. Take pieces of the dough and fold over the top, repeating until all the pieces meet in the middle, pinching to seal the ends together. Flip over so the seam is down on the counter and roll into a ball, cupping the round with the palm of your hand in a rolling motion (refer to the video link in the post).
Final Proof
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Take each rolled dough and lay on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Set them about a half-inch to one-inch apart. They need room to expand but should attach as a cluster as they proof. Cover the baking sheet with a towel and allow for final proof. The rounds will expand during this time to nearly double. In my warmer kitchen this took roughly 1 1/2 hours.
Pipe the Cross and Bake
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Preheat your oven to 375ºF.
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Combine the flour and water to make until you have a smooth paste. Transfer to a small piping bag or sandwich bag. Snip a small opening and pipe vertical and horizontal lines along the top of the rounds to form crosses.
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Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating the baking pan halfway through. Brush the tops of the buns with apricot jam or orange marmalade while they're still hot. Serve the buns warm with butter or toast them the next day.
sippitysup says
Sometimes the best medicine is a quiet room and our own thoughts. Other times it takes something “sweet, spiced, loaded with raisins” to lift our spirits. I’m happy to hear you got both bases covered. GREG
Ann says
Ty for the recipe. Next time, though, I will add some salt. As great as the aroma, the taste was a little bland most likely because of that lack of salt.
Jean says
Hi, Ann. You are absolutely right. My apologies for forgetting to include the salt in the recipe. My handwritten notes show 6 grams of kosher salt which I will correct immediately. Really sorry about this but I do appreciate that you tried the recipe. Hopefully it will be much better next time. 🙂
C & C says
Delicious!! Made dough yesterday -The dough was much less temperamental than I expected. We just enough a bun fresh from the oven, which went beautifully with Coffee & tea!!
Jean says
So glad to hear this, C&C0–thank you so much for taking the time to give me your feedback. 🙂
C + C says
** Just enjoyed a bun fresh from the oven