Last updated on April 2nd, 2018 at 03:57 pm
Traditional Hot Cross Buns with a cream cheese icing, brushed with a sweet syrup and filled with juicy raisins. Perfect for your Easter brunch.
I almost forgot all about Easter! Me who loves all holidays and plans for them way in advance, create my menu and get all excited way before the holiday! How is this possible?
Well I’ve been super busy at work and honestly Easter was the last thing on my mind. And to top it off I have a sore throat. But I’m here to make it up to you all and share with you my recipe for my favorite hot cross buns. After all we can’t celebrate Good Friday without some delicious hot cross buns.
I love these hot cross buns, they are so soft and flaky and sweet, they melt in your mouth. This dough is so perfect in every way. You may think I’m weird but I get very excited by dough. Dough to me is like gold, especially this kind of dough that makes these wonderful flaky rolls. They would even be perfect for a bread pudding with leftover buns the next day. Oh and how great they are with a hot cup of milk, or a hot cup of tea. These here, simple perfection. I really think in my other life I was a baker!
Traditionally these hot cross buns are not made with icing on top, but they are glazed with some syrup. The cross is usually made from just flour and water. But I wanted my buns to be extra special and I made a simple cream cheese icing and used that for my cross.
I chose to do it this way because this is how I remember hot cross buns to be with a sweet glaze on top. When I was a teenager and worked in a bakery every year for Easter we’d sell these gorgeous hot cross buns and while I can’t remember what the cross was made from I remember them being sticky and sweet and to die for. That’s how I wanted to make mine and this recipe is the best, at least in my eyes.
If you guys love this recipe, and most importantly make it yourselves, please let us know. Take a picture and tag it #jocooks on Instagram so we can see it. I always love to see what you guys come up with!
Traditional Hot Cross Buns with a cream cheese icing, brushed with a sweet syrup and filled with juicy raisins. Perfect for your Easter brunch.
- 1 1/2 cups milk lukewarm
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp active dry yeast
- 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 2 eggs
- 4 tbsp butter unsalted (1/2 stick), softened
- 1 cup raisins soaked in rum if preferred
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup icing sugar
- 2 tbsp cream cheese
- 1 tbsp butter unsalted, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tbsp water
- In a small bowl combine the lukewarm milk, sugar and yeast. Stir and let it rest for about 10 minutes until the yeast activates, you will notice bubbles forming.
- In the bowl of your mixer add 4 cups of flour, salt and nutmeg. Mix until combined.
- Add the eggs and butter to the yeast mixture and stir. Pour the yeast mixture over the flour, and using the dough hook attachment mix for about 5 minutes. Add raisins and continue mixing for another minute. If the dough is too wet add more flour as needed. The dough should be quite soft and elastic. You will know when it's done when it doesn't stick to the sides of the bowl anymore.
- In a large bowl add a bit of oil, about a tbsp and place the dough in the bowl, rolling it around so that it gets oil all over, this way it won’t get dry. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. You need to let the dough rise for a couple hours until doubled in size. You can also do my trick where I turn the oven on for about 1 to 2 minutes just until it’s warm in there, and place the bowl in the oven, close the door, make sure you turned off the oven and in about half an hour the dough would have doubled in size.
- Preheat oven to 375 F degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. I used a roasting pan that's 16x12 inches.
Clean and flour your work surface. Usually I don't add any flour to my work surface because I find it easier to roll the buns on a clean surface, but it's totally up to you. Punch down the dough, and cut it into 15 equal pieces and roll each one. Place the rolls in the pan and cover with a clean damp towel and let them rest for another 30 minutes until doubled in size.
- Bake for about 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.
- While baking make the syrup by mixing the sugar with the water in a sauce pan and bring to a boil over low heat. Continue boiling for another minute or until syrup thickens a bit. Set aside.
- To make the icing, whisk all the ingredients together and pour in a piping bag and refrigerate until ready to use. If the icing is too thin add more icing sugar, if it's too thick add more water until desired consistency.
- When the buns are out of the oven, brush with the sugar syrup. Let cool for about 5 to 10 minutes then pipe the icing over the buns to form a cross.
For a NO KNEAD version try these NO KNEAD HOT CROSS BUNS.
You can prepare these the day before up until step 4, cover the pan with plastic wrap and place it in the fridge overnight. The rolls should continue to rise in the fridge but if by morning they have not doubled in size, turn your oven on to 200 F degrees until it warms up, then turn it off. Place the pan in the oven for about 30 to 45 minutes until the rolls double in size. Then you can bake them as instructed.
Make sure your milk is not too hot or it could kill the yeast which will cause your dough not to rise at all. The ideal temperature for the milk should be between 105 F degrees and 110 F for proofing. While 95 F degrees is the best temperature for yeast to multiply, that's not warm enough for proofing active dry yeast.
If after dissolving the yeast in the warm milk, the yeast didn't start to froth up, do not continue with the rolls, your dough will not rise.
Always check the expiration date on your yeast and make sure it hasn't expired. All your yeast products whether it’s in a jar or a package should be stamped with a “Best if Used by” date. Always make sure you check this date, even when you purchase the yeast, who knows it could have been on the shelf past its expiry date.
To keep your yeast fresh and longer lasting, unopened yeast packages or jars should be stored in a cool or dry place such as your cupboard. However, you can also store your yeast in the fridge or freezer. If you do store it in the freezer and need to use yeast for your baking, make sure you take out the amount you need and let it sit at room temperature for at least half hour before using.
Once your yeast package or jar has been opened, you must refrigerate the yeast or freeze it in an airtight container.
One thing to remember about your yeast, is that it is a living organism and over time it will lose activity, even if you’ve never opened the jar or package. So if you don’t bake often, buy the smaller yeast packages rather than a big jar of yeast.
Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
★ Did you make this recipe? Don't forget to give it a star rating below!
Absolutely delicious! I made the buns smaller, and was able to get quite a bit more than 15! Had to reduce baking time just a bit because of their size.
I loved them so much, I made a second batch. Eastern Orthodox Easter is Sunday so I’m freezing them tonight to
keep them fresh, and will share them at coffee hour. Thank you!
Glad you liked them!
Fantastic, they look amazing, just waiting for them to cool down so i can eat one.😁
These were delicious! I will make them a part of my regular repertoire.
Glad you liked them! 🙂
I made three batches of this dough recipe. It turned out scrumptious. Everyone loved them. Very proud of you! Thx you for this easy recipe. All I heard was, “Oh em gee – delicious.” “Ahhh, so great.” “Yummy – I want more.” Happy in Alaska.
LOL Love the comments!
I loved these rolls the first year I made them! (I wasn’t able to make them last Easter due to nursing a baby with a dairy allergy. Ugh.) I can’t wait to make them again this year. When I made them, I made half with raisins soaked in water, and half with chocolate chips for those who don’t like raisins. They were quick and easy to make.
I’m curious how long you set the raisins in rum. How long? What type/brand rum did you use?
I’m excited to try this recipe for Easter dinner. We are a bread loving family and look forward to your delicious recipe.
I used Captain Morgan, shouldn’t matter though. I probably set them for around 15 minutes, should be enough for them to get nice and plump and soak in some of them rum.
I have been making hot cross buns for years. I am using this recipe right now for the first time ( I saw it on Facebook) and the dough is very easy to work with. I halved the sugar but also put in some lemon zest and matchstick-cut candied cherries. I am sure they are going to be delicious. I have never done a cream cheese frosting or a syrup glaze and I am sure folks will be asking for more. Your recipe tips throughout, plus notes at the end are very helpful for any beginner or experienced baker, so you are an excellent instructor! Thanks much for the share. Blessed Easter!
My pleasure! Happy Easter to you!
I tried 2 recipes before this one and yours is AMAZING. Super soft and just the right amount of spice. Tasted great even before the icing.
Can I use currants instead of raisins
Absolutely!
Definitely, it’s traditional. As are orange and lemon peel, which go great with the currants.
The cream cheese cross sounds yummy, very unusual.