It doesn't always go according to plan, be that in the kitchen or life in general. Take this easter weekend in the Hills-Daniels household, family visiting, big days out planned and then what could possibly go wrong, both our boys come down with chickenpox Easter Sunday. So by Monday, the pox were out on show in full force, so keeping the beasts quarantined, we bake, because baking means fun family times.
Being Easter, we just had to make hot cross buns, this simple, fun recipe can have the whole family getting involved, with good breaks for proving (playing) inbetween, so they don't get kitchen fever. Have a go at the recipe below and let us know how you get on.
HOT CROSS BUNS
INGREDIENTS
BUNS
- 200ml Full fat milk
- 100ml Boiling water
- 1 Tbsp Softened butter
- 7g Sachet quick yeast
- 450g Good quality plain flour
- 2 Tbsp Brown sugar
- 1 Tsp Salt
- 1 Tbsp Mixed spice
- 1 Cup currants, sultanas, raisins or a mixture of the three
BUN CROSSES
- 25g Butter
- 1/4 cup Water
- 3 Tbsp Plain flour
- 1 F.R.Egg
METHOD:
- Pour the milk into a measuring jug, add the boiling water and butter and sprinkle on the quick yeast.
- Stir and set aside for 10 minutes.
- Sift the flour, sugar, salt and mixed spice into the bowl of an electric mixer or into a large mixing bowl.
- Add the liquid and fruit. If using an electric mixer, use the dough hook to knead for 7 minutes. If mixing by hand, mix in the bowl to start with, then turn out onto a floured bench and knead for 10 minutes.
- Return the kneaded dough to the mixing bowl, grease the bowl with a teaspoon of butter to stop the dough from sticking.
- Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and leave in a warm place until doubled in size. After the dough has risen in the bowl, lightly form it into a sausage and cut it into 16 pieces.
- Form each into a ball and place on a warmed baking tray. Put in a warm, moist place and leave until doubled in size.
8. Crosses: Put the butter and water into a small saucepan over a gentle heat. Heat until the butter melts and the water boils. Remove from the heat and beat in the flour. Add the egg and whisk until smooth. Put this mix into a piping bag and use it to make crosses on the buns.
9. Pipe crosses onto the buns just before baking.
10. Bake at 220C for 5 minutes, then reduce heat to 180C for a further 10 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven and, while the buns are still hot, brush with a glaze made by melting a couple of teaspoons of marmalade in the microwave or in a pan over a low heat.
To the batch I made this Easter Monday, I added the zest of an orange and the juice to the mix, this meant I had to add a little extra flour, so when you’re confident in your baking, start adapting your recipes with added twists and flavour combinations, as you never know when you’ll strike kitchen gold! If you'd like to be more confident in the kitchen, get in touch for more details on Maz's private chef tuition
in your kitchen.
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Get in touch if you'd like to get IN or OUT of your kitchen, Maz and her team will take care of the rest.
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