The Best Hot Cross Buns Recipes With a Sweet Twist

Ingredients

• 600 ml pouring cream
• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or 1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
• Finely grated rind of 1/2 lemon and 1/2 orange
• 8 egg yolks
• 140g (2/3 cup) caster sugar
• 8 David Jones Classic Hot Cross Buns
• 30g softened butter
• Icing sugar, for dusting
• Strawberries and raspberries, to serve

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160°C. Bring cream, vanilla and rinds to a simmer in a saucepan over medium heat. Meanwhile, whisk yolks and sugar in a bowl until pale, then whisk in the hot cream mixture.
2. Split buns in half and spread cut sides with butter. Arrange snugly in a buttered shallow 2.5-litre capacity baking dish, pour over custard and stand for 30 minutes.
3. Bake until custard is just starting to set (30-35 minutes), then increase heat to 200°C and bake until caramelised and golden (10-15 minutes). Remove from oven and rest for 30 minutes, dust with icing sugar and serve with berries.

Ingredients

• 100g butter (unsalted)
• 1 whisked egg
• 14gm instant yeast
• 2 1/3 cups sifted plain flour
• 2 cups wholemeal plain spelt flour
• 350ml milk
• 2/3 cup unrefined rapadura sugar
• 200g dried Turkish figs
• 50g walnuts, toasted, roughly chopped
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 cup honey

Piping

• 1/4 cup plain flour
• 2 tbsp milk
• 1 tbsp water

Cinnamon Butter

• 400g salted butter, at room temperature
• 100g pure icing sugar
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200°C and lightly grease a round 24×4 cm baking dish.
2. Place all the ingredients for the cinnamon butter in a food processor and gently blend until combined. Set aside to cool.
3. Place the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and gently melt. Once melted, add milk. Once warmed through, remove from heat and add the egg. Stir, and allow to cool.
4. Combine all of the flours, sugar, chopped dried fig, walnuts, yeast, and spices in a stand mixer using the dough hook attachment.
5. Slowly add the milk mixture, set to medium knead until combined. Increase speed to medium-high and knead for a further 8-10 minutes. Lightly butter a large bowl. Once the dough is smooth, place the dough in the buttered bowl, turning to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and allow it to rest in a warm space for 1 hour until the dough has doubled in size.
6. Place the dough on a lightly floured service. Divide into roughly 20 pieces (ensuring they are all even) and begin to roll each dough lump into a ball.
7. Place the first dough ball in the centre of the buttered pan, and continue in a concentric circle with the remaining dough balls. Allow for .5cm between each. Place a clean tea towel over the pan, and allow it to stand for 30 minutes more.
8. Make the piping by gently whisking all of the ingredients. Once smooth, transfer the mixture to a piping bag. Pipe a cross on each bun.
9. Bake buns for 10 minutes at full heat, and then reduce oven to 180°C and bake for a further 20 minutes. Once the buns are golden brown, transfer them to a wire rack and allow them to cool down (we prefer these buns when they are slightly warm). Gently brush honey over the buns and serve with a side of cinnamon butter.