Make My Day Camp: Hot Cross Buns

Saturday, April 11, 2020

Hot Cross Buns

Dave and I were watching Jeopardy the other night and one of the answers was hot cross buns. He looked at me and said he'd never had a hot cross bun - and neither have I. So guess what I made today as my boredom buster thing to do?

Yep. We got buns. (And they turned out great!)

Apricot-Raisin Hot Cross Buns

4-4.5 cups all-purpose flour
1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (110')
1/8 teaspoon sugar
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs (plus 1 egg white, see below)
1/2 cup finely snipped dried apricots
1/2 cup raisins, coarsely chopped
1 egg white, beaten
1 tablespoon water
dried apricots cut into strips (optional) or confections' sugar glaze (optional)

Step 1

In a large mixing bowl place 2 cups of the flour; set aside. In a small bowl combine the yeast, warm water, and 1/8 t. sugar. Stir until yeast is dissolved; set aside. In a medium saucepan heat and stir the milk, butter, 1/3 cup sugar, and salt until warm (120'- 130'F) and butter almost melts. Add to flour mixture along with the yeast mixture and eggs. Beat with an electric mixer on low to medium speed for 30 seconds, scraping sides of bowl constantly. Beat on high speed for 3 minutes. Stir in apricots, raisins and as much of the remaining flour as you can with a wooden spoon.

Step 2

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough remaining flour to make a moderately soft (not sticky) dough that is smooth and elastic (3 to 5 minutes total). Shape dough in a ball. Place dough in a lightly greased bowl, turning once to grease surface of dough. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double in size (about 1-1 1/2 hours).

Step 3

Punch dough down. Turn out onto a floured surface. Cover and let rest 10 minutes. Grease two baking sheets; set aside. Divide dough into 20 portions; shape each into a smooth ball. Place balls 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Cover; let rise until nearly double (45 to 60 minutes).

Step 4

Preheat oven to 375'. Make a crisscross slash across top of each bun with a sharp knife or scissors. In a small cup combine beaten egg white and water. Brush mixture over buns. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown, rotating baking sheets halfway through baking. Top with apricot strips or glaze in an x-shape if desired. Serve warm. Store remaining buns in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days. To reheat, place 1 or 2 buns at a time on a microwave-safe plate and heat 15-20 seconds. Makes 20 buns.