Easter Treats - Hot Cross Buns

This year I thought I would try a different Hot Cross Bun recipe. Just for a change. Thanks to last Saturday's The Press we all had plenty of inspiration with three recipes from local bakers to choose from. After careful consideration, and because I didn't have the time to leave the Le Panier buns to rise overnight, I decided on the Bellbird Baked Goods version. Being me, I have tweaked it a bit. The fresh orange and ginger gives these buns a delicious fresh flavour. I mixed these by hand as we didn't have a dough hook attachment at Mum and Dad's house.

Hot Cross Buns - adapted from the Bellbird Baked Goods Recipe

1 whole orange
60g fresh ginger
500g strong flour
200ml lukewarm water
10g salt
50g brown sugar
8g instant dry yeast
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 
1 teaspoon ground cloves
100g sultanas
100g currents
100g softened butter

Cut up the orange and ginger and blend in a food processor to make a chunky pulp.

Combine the flour, salt, brown sugar, yeast and spices in a large bowl.

In a smaller bowl combine the orange and ginger pulp with the water. 

Add the wet mixture to the dry and, using your hands, mix until a firm dough is formed. 

Add the fruit and butter to the bowl and mix again until a soft ball of dough is formed. 

Turn it out onto a clean bench. 

No extra flour or oil is required as the butter stops the dough from sticking. 

Knead the dough for about 10 minutes until it springs back when pressed. 

Return the dough to the bowl and cover with a sheet of dampened plastic film. 

Leave in a warm place to rise for 2 to 3 hours. 

It should double in size. 

Turn out and cut into 16 even sized pieces. 

The easiest way to do this is to cut the dough in half, then the halves in half again, then the quarters in half again. 

Roll each bun until smooth and place then in a greased meat dish, or alternatively, two large baking tins. 

Cover again with greased plastic food wrap and leave to rise for an hour until well risen. 

While the buns rise preheat the oven to 190deg. C 

Make the paste to pipe on for the crosses: mix 2 tablespoons of flour and a tablespoons of sugar mixed with a little water. Once the buns have risen, brush on some egg wash and pipe on the crosses.

Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown. While still hot from the oven, brush with watered down apricot jam to glaze.  Delicious with butter and a nice cup of tea!

Here is the link to last year's bun recipe.

Raspberry Marshmallow Recipe

I think the last time I made marshmallow I was still in High School! It was always a quick, easy and cost effective treat that could be whipped up with everyday ingredients from the pantry. Marshmallow has been making a quiet comeback lately, thanks I think to its ease in getting an impressive result. Ballantynes are even offering a Marshmallow making class, and the web is bursting with creative ideas. With Easter just around the corner I thought now would be a good time to reacquaint myself with this fluffy treat. 

I adapted this recipe from one I found on TheKitchn. This recipe uses a large quantity of corn syrup. It gives the marshmallow a more gooey quality. It also makes it more expensive than the more traditional sugar only recipes. In the next week or so I'm going to do some experimenting with a less corn intensive recipe, but in the mean time, this one is definitely worth a try. I got my corn syrup from New World, as not all supermarkets have it. The raspberry extract came from Ballantynes.


Raspberry Marshmallow

For the gelatine:
3 tablespoons unflavoured gelatine powder
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon essence for flavouring - I used Raspberry extract

For the sugar syrup
3/4 cup water
a pinch or salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/4 cups corn syrup
a few drops of pink colouring

For the coating:
1/2 cup icing sugar
1/2 cup maize cornflour

You will also need cooking spray or oil, a medium sized baking tin and a sweet thermometer.

Oil the baking tin and set aside ready to receive the beaten marshmallow.

Hydrate the gelatine with the water and flavouring by combining them in a small container. Set aside to allow the gelatine to swell. 

Pour the water, sugar, salt and corn syrup into a medium sized pot. 
Place over a high heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Take care to scrap down the sides so no sugar crystals stick. If a grain of sugar falls into the boiling syrup it can cause it to crystalise. 





Do not stir once the sugar has dissolved. Place the sugar thermometer into the pot and turn the heat down to a rolling boil. Boil the sugar until it reaches 121deg C or 250deg F. 
Take the pan from the heat and remove the thermometer. 

Place the hydrated gelatine into the mixer bowl. 

Pour the hot sugar on top of it and set it into the mixer. 












Using the lowest speed setting begin to beat the mixture. Be very careful not to burn yourself with the syrup! 











As the mixture starts to thicken increase the speed and beat for approximately 10 minutes. 









Add the colouring at this point. The marshmallow should have beaten up into a fluffy cloud.

Turn the beater off and immediately transfer the marshmallow into the oiled tray. 

Don't worry if you cant get it all out of the bowl; it is very sticky stuff. If required, smooth the top over using oiled hands. 













Let the mixture stand uncovered for 6 to 24 hours to set and cure. 

I popped ours in the pantry, as I didn't want to find the cat stuck to it in the morning!

Mix the coating and spread a thin layer over the surface of a chopping board. 

Turn the marshmallow out onto the board. Sprinkle the top with more dusting powder. 

Now use a sharp knife to cut the marshmallow up into rows. Its easier to dust each row, then cut into squares and dust the cut edges. 

The marshmallows will store in an airtight container for a week or two. 
Happy sweet making!

My little sweet tester loves her role as quality controller.

Lovely Hot Cross Buns for Easter

Baking up a batch of Hot Cross Buns is one of our family's favourite seasonal treats. Often disappointed by the supermarket product, these buns have a far more generous amount of fruit and spices. You don't have to include the crosses; however it doesn't take long and they add the seasonal finishing touch to the buns.

Little Miss 4 is such a generous and caring little button. After we took some buns to Preschool to share with her teachers, she wanted 'my buddies to try the Hot Cross Buns'. So back home we went to bake another batch.

I adapted these from an old Alison Holst recipe. You can vary the type of fruit and spices depending on whats in the pantry. Any combination of sultanas, currents, raisins or even cranberries will do the trick nicely.

Hot Cross Buns

1 cup milk
1 cup hot water
2 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 cups high-grade flour
100g butter
1 cup soft brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon mixed spice
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
3 cups dried mixed fruit
approx 3 cups high grade flour

For the crosses
60g cold butter
1 cup flour
a little milk for glazing

For the glaze
2 tablespoons golden syrup
1 tablespoon warm water

Measure the milk, hot water and sugar into a large bowel. Stir to dissolve the sugar and allow to cool to blood temperature, then sprinkle on the yeast granules. Stir to mix, then mix in the first measure of flour. A whisk is quite useful to remove any lumps. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set into a sink of warm water until the mixture has at least doubled in size.
Prepare the dried fruit by putting it into a bowl and covering with boiling water. Stir and leave for about 5 minutes to plump up. Drain and rinse, then leave in the sieve to drain. 








In another bowl cream the butter and sugar until pale and creamy. Beat in the spices, salt and egg.

Turn the oven to bake on its lowest temperature setting. It should feel warm but not hot.







Once the yeast mixture has sufficiently risen, add the butter mix, fruit and second measure of flour to the bowl. Stir until blended.

Continue to stir until the mixture starts to become more elastic. Turn out onto a floured bench and knead.





The mixture will be sticky and difficult to work with in the beginning. Add more flour to the bench if required, and continue to knead until the dough feel satiny and springs back when pressed.








Cut the dough into four equal sized pieces. Cover the dough pieces with plastic wrap while you work on shaping the buns, as it shouldn't be allowed to dry out. 

Grease or spray a couple of baking tins ready to receive the buns. Cut each dough quarter into 6 pieces and roll each bun between your hand and the bench until it forms a neat round. Pop the buns into the tin, leaving gaps between them to allow for rising. 

Once full, cover the trays with plastic wrap that has been greased and sprinkled with a little water. Place into the warm oven to rise. Put a small stainless steel bowl of water into the bottom of the oven to provide some steam. The buns should rise until they are twice the original size and have filled the gaps in the tin.





While the buns are rising, prepare the dough for the crosses. Rub the butter into the flour, then add a little water to form a stiff dough. Roll out between two pieces of plastic wrap. 

Once the buns have risen take them from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 225deg. C. Cut the cross dough into strips, brush the buns with a little milk and place the strips onto the unbaking buns.



Bake uncovered for 12 to 15 minutes until brown. Tap on the top of the buns, they should sound hollow once baked. Gently turn the buns out onto a tea towel and flip over into a cooling rake.

Mix the golden syrup and hot water and brush on the cooked buns to glaze.

These buns are best served warm. They don't have any preservatives so don't keep for very long and are best served soon after being baked.

So call up your friends and get them round for a coffee and a tasty Easter treat.

Little Miss 4 was so excited to take her buns to Preschool for her buddies to try. We are always looking for opportunities for her to share things with others, and food is always a perfect opportunity. Happy little girl.