There is one thing that my husband and I always get excited about this time of year. The hot cross buns! They grace our shelves soon after Christmas and we always rush to get our hands on them while we have the chance. However, homemade Hot Cross Buns are a whole new level of Easter deliciousness.
Fresh out of the oven, these Hot Cross Buns are light and fluffy on the inside and shiny and golden on the outside. Filled with plump, juicy raisins and a handful of spices, including a boatload of cinnamon, they are a beautiful Easter-themed treat.
I’d love to tell you we’ve been making these in our family for years, but truth be told, this was the first year we decided to tackle making hot cross buns from scratch. After all, isn’t almost everything better homemade? I was so happy with the final result.
These buns are gorgeously light and fluffy on the inside, with a beautiful crust and a subtle, sweet flavour from the cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. You seriously need to try these as long as you promise me to eat one straight out of the oven slathered with either butter or Nutella. Ah, pure bliss!
Making bread at home is truly one of the most satisfying things in the kitchen. My husband and I have often spent a few hours baking focaccia or a crusty white loaf on the weekends, only to almost devour the whole thing when it comes straight out of the oven.
My favourite part is when the bread is still warm and you smear over a piece of whipped butter and it immediately starts to melt. You can tell I am one of those people who fills up on bread at restaurants! When these buns first make it out of the oven, you brush their golden tops with a simple sugar glaze so they become super shiny, just like the store bought ones.
The crosses are simply made from a flour and water paste which can be easily pipped onto the buns before they are put in the oven. It’s a little hard to get a straight line but there is nothing wrong with the rustic look, am I right? I hope you are looking forward to Easter and celebrating with your family and friends.
We are going to the beach for a family holiday for the long weekend. Don’t forget if you are looking for any last minute Easter treats to whip up, you can take a peek at our Easter recipes or try your hand at a batch of these Hot Cross Buns.
Let’s Bake
Homemade Hot Cross Buns
Light and fluffy homemade Hot Cross Buns filled with plump, juicy raisins and a handful of spices, including cinnamon.
Ingredients
Hot cross buns
- 120 ml (1/2 cup) warm water
- 2 and 1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
- 525 grams (3 and 3/4 cups) plain flour or all purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
- 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 160 grams (1 cup) raisins or sultanas
- 120 ml (1/2 cup) full fat or whole milk
- 60 grams (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 50 grams (1/4 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Flour cross
- 45 grams (1/3 cup) plain flour or all purpose flour
- 60 ml (1/4 cup) water
Sugar glaze
- 50 grams (1/4 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
- 60 ml (1/4 cup) water
Instructions
- To start
Line a large baking tray with baking or parchment paper and set aside. Add warm water to a small bowl and sprinkle yeast over the top and leave for a few minutes to react. - Add 280 grams (two cups) of flour to a large mixing bowl. Add cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Then add the raisins, separating them with your fingers if they stick together. Set aside.
- Add milk and butter to a small saucepan and place on a low heat, stirring, while the milk warms and the butter melts.
- Once the butter is melted, remove the milk mixture from the heat. If it is hot to the touch, leave to cool for a minute or two. You want the milk to be warm but not hot. Also, check your yeast has reacted and started to bubble a little on the edges.
- Make dough
To make the dough, add eggs and milk mixture to the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Add sugar and salt and whisk gently or stir with spoon just to combine. Then add your flour mix (with the spices and raisins) and start to mix on medium speed. Add yeast mixture, water and all, and continue to mix. - Gradually add the remaining flour, until a nice soft dough forms. Once the dough comes together, remove it from the bowl and place it on a lightly floured bench. Knead it by hand for a few minutes or until it is soft and smooth. Add a little flour to the bench and/or your hands if it gets a little sticky – but not too much as we want the dough to be nice and light.
- Let dough rise
Bring your dough into a ball and place in a large mixing bowl that has been lightly greased with butter or oil. Cover with plastic wrap and leave it to rise for approximately 1 hour or until its doubled in size. - Shape dough
Next, gently push the air out of your dough using your fist. Then take the dough out of the bowl and knead gently for a minute before cutting it into 12 even-sized balls of dough. Gently shape into balls and then place on prepared baking tray in four rows of three. Leave space in between each roll. Once they rise again, they should be touching. - Let dough rest
Cover with cling wrap and leave to rise for at least 30 minutes. Or until they have all joined together and almost doubled in size. - Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced.
- Make flour paste
Sift your flour into small bowl. Add water and stir with a spoon until smooth. Transfer your flour mixture to a piping bag fitted with a small tip and pipe a straight line over the buns, horizontally and then again, vertically to form a cross on each one. - Bake buns
Bake buns for approximately 18-20 minutes or until golden brown on top. - Make sugar glaze
Just before the buns are ready, start making the sugar glaze. Add your sugar and water to a small saucepan and place on a medium-low heat until bubbling. As soon as the buns are ready, remove them from the oven and then immediately brush them with the sugar glaze.
Notes
Hot cross buns are best eaten on the day they are made.
Julie says
Hi, I’m new to this site, I’ve made the blondies and brownies and they are amazing. I was wondering if you had a recipe for white chocolate and raspberry hot cross buns, we bought them last year but I would like to make them. Many Thanks
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Julie, so glad you’ve enjoyed my recipes. I don’t have a recipe for choc raspberry hot cross buns but they sound so delicious!
Nona says
This is a great recipe! I have never made anything like this before but found the instructions really well written, even though I didn’t know what I was doing, it all made sense in the end. I didn’t do the sugar glaze and halved the sugar and even doing that my sweet toothed family still really enjoyed them! Thanks for making this available.
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed them Nona! Thank you for your kind review!
Nirvana says
Hi. Do you think that leaving out the ginger powder would have much effect on the flavor? We are in lockdown at the moment so I wouldn’t want to go out just to get that one ingredient. I do have fresh ginger but I think that might be too strong? Thanks!
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Nirvana, no it’s totally fine to leave out the ginger! The cinnamon and nutmeg will make up for it. Hope you enjoy them!
Natalie says
Don’t have a bread machine, what adjustments do I need to make? Recipe lookes lovely.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Natalie! You don’t need a bread maker to make these hot cross buns. Just follow the recipe and you should be fine ☺️
riz says
This recipe looks very yummy. Im gonna make one today. Can i use mixed fruits instead of raisins? My boyfriend is ot a big fan of raisins.
Jessica Holmes says
Yes you definitely can! ☺️
Josh says
These were so much better then the supermarket ones!
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
Amazing, glad you enjoyed them!
Josh says
Yes!
★★★★★
Amanda says
There really is nothing like homemade bread. These look lovely. I’ve never made (or even had) a hot cross bun, so these sound fun. The cinnamon and ginger sound wonderful!
Jessica Holmes says
Wow! You really need to try one Amanda, I think you would love it! 🙂
Claudia says
Yes yes yes so with you Jess! Hot cross buns are one of my favourite parts about Easter, and the moment of eating bread straight out of the oven, smeared with half-melted butter… the best. (I eat WAAAY too much bread at restaurants as well…). your hot cross buns look super fluffy and glossy – absolutely perfect.
Jessica Holmes says
Hahaha yesss! Thanks Claudia! 🙂
Lauren says
There is NOTHING better than a warm homemade Hot Cross Bun, after seeing your gorgeous pictures I’m going to make some right now!
Jessica Holmes says
Aww I love it Lauren! Hot cross buns for the win! 🙂
Mary Ann says
These look wonderful Jess! Growing up we always had hot cross buns for Easter! The tops look perfect!
Jessica Holmes says
Thanks Mary Ann! I like that tradition! 🙂
Kristy says
These look absolutely perfect! And so much better than bland supermarket bought buns!
Jessica Holmes says
Thanks Kristy! I thought they were better too 😉
Amy says
Jess, you are amazing! I love making bread at home, even if I can’t eat it, but I’ve never attempted hot cross buns before! These look wonderful and I bet they were so good straight from the oven with melty Nutella on them….(drooling on my keyboard).
I hope you have a wonderful long weekend at the beach with your family – and eat lots of hot cross buns of course!
Jessica Holmes says
Aww thank you so much Amy! I do think making bread is so much fun. I hope you have a great Easter too!!
Lynn @ Fresh April Flours says
These are gorgeous, Jess! And I love all the spices involved! I seriously missed the hot crossed buns this year. I just had no idea they were a thing for Easter! Haha. Next year!
Jessica Holmes says
Oh no, quick Lynn, you must get your hot cross buns fix this year! haha
Lynn @ Fresh April Flours says
Silly me… Thinking like a food blogger! Here I think I’ve missed the Easter boat, but nope, INGESTING Easter food is just ahead of me, hahaha. These might have to happen this weekend!
Laura says
Snap! Homemade Hot Cross Buns in my neck of the woods today too! Yours look amazing!! So shiny 🙂
Jessica Holmes says
Thanks Laura! Hot Cross Buns for the win! 😉