Hot Cross Buns Recipe (No Yeast) | Slimming Eats (2024)

FAQs

Why are my hot cross buns not rising? ›

The most common reasons are as follows: Over kneading – this is more likely to happen if you use an electric mixer and dough hook. If you over knead dough it will break down the glutens and make the buns hard. Under kneading – if dough is under kneaded it won't rise properly.

Spiced buns were banned when the English broke ties with the Catholic Church in the 16th century. However, by 1592, Queen Elizabeth I relented and granted permission for commercial bakers to produce the buns for funerals, Christmas, and Easter. Otherwise, they could be baked in homes.

Goat's cheese, fig and rosemary

2. Halve and toast the hot cross bun and spread both sides with goat's cheese. Add the fresh fig or spoon over the dried figs. Drizzle the fresh fig with honey or the dried fig with some of the syrup and add some finely chopped fresh rosemary.

DO NOT add too much flour – results in dry dough = tough buns. Sultanas: Some recipes say to add sultanas after the dough has been kneaded or risen. If you do this, you'll find it very hard to disperse them evenly throughout the dough. By adding them before kneading, some do get squished.

Let your dough proof at a high temperature (80–90°F or 27–32°C) and high humidity (about 75%) for at least 1 to 3 hours, as heat and moisture will make your dough rise faster. Add more yeast, blend in the starter, or knead in more flour to help initiate rising.

“If the dough has risen too long, it's going to feel fragile and might even collapse as you poke it,” says Maggie.

Hot cross buns contain a little fat from butter/shortening (around 5%) and are high in carbohydrate so consideration is needed around portion size for people with diabetes. Hot cross bun sizes vary a lot. For example, one commercial variety sold in a 6 pack contains 40g carbohydrate and 920 kJ (220 calories).

Your hot cross buns are made entirely out of vegetable products so there's no need for anyone to pray over the batter while the baker stirs in currants and citrus peel. The stamp on the package simply signals to Muslims that it's okay to eat those buns — not that someone prayed over them.

In Ireland, the UK and as far abroad as New Zealand, Australia, Canada and India, Hot Cross Buns are eaten every Good Friday in Christian communities. They are symbolic of this significant day in the Christian faith when Jesus was crucified.

A hot cross bun is a spiced bun usually made with fruit, marked with a cross on the top, which has been traditionally eaten on Good Friday in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, India, Pakistan, Malta, United States and the Commonwealth Caribbean.

Can I eat out of date hot cross buns? ›

They are not to do with safety. Food that has passed its best before date is safe to eat. Best before should be considered a rough guide rather than a strict rule. There is no reason to throw away food that goes past its best before date, it is perfectly safe to eat and will often taste just as good.

Your dough can become sticky when you add too much water or the flour isn't suitable for the type of dough you are making. Over proofing or fermenting the dough can also result in the gluten structure weakening causing sticky dough.

Sometimes this culinary innovation is attributed to a particular 12th-century monk, and other times it's a 14th-century monk from St Albans named Thomas Rocliffe. The so-called 'Alban Bun' was made with flour, eggs, yeast, currants and an expensive spice similar to cardamom fittingly called grains of paradise.

Traditional hot cross buns

So yes, you can definitely use an air fryer to warm up hot cross buns! The air fryer does a great job of heating them through while keeping the outside slightly crisp and the inside soft.

Keep hot cross buns in an airtight container and store them in a cool, dry place. You can also use a zip-lock bag with as much air removed from the bag as possible. Store homemade hot cross buns in an airtight container in the pantry for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

99% of the time this happens, the problem lies with the yeast used. The quality might be compromised, or you might have applied it incorrectly, or under poor cooking conditions. Read on for why your yeast is not working as it should and what you can do to avoid it.

Use a good-quality bread flour that has a high protein content, as this will give your dough the structure it needs to rise and become light and fluffy. Make sure to use the right amount of yeast for your dough. Too much yeast will cause the dough to rise too quickly, resulting in a denser texture.