Growing up, around Easter Time, our mother would bake hot cross buns. I liked them a lot, but never took the time to consider this delicious breakfast bread beyond the icing cross on the top. That cross, of course, reminded us of the Jesus Christ’s crucifixion on the cross, but according to Ina Turner and Taylor, there is more meaning:

“To mark the end of the Lent fast Christians eat hot cross buns. These have a special meaning. The cross in the middle shows how Jesus died. Spices inside remind Christians of the spices put on the body of Jesus. Sweet fruits in the bun show that Christians no longer have to eat plain foods.

Turner, Ina; Taylor, Ina (1999). Christianity. Nelson Thornes. p. 50

Traditionally these sweet buns are made with dried fruit, marked with a cross on top, and eaten on Good Friday in most English-speaking countries, including the UK, USA, and other British Commonwealth countries.

Hot cross buns! Hot cross buns!
One a penny, two a penny—Hot cross buns!
If you have no daughters
Pray give them to your sons,
But if you have none of these little elves,
Then you must eat them all yourselves.

My wife recited this familiar English nursery rhyme each Easter to our children. But it has its origins going back to the early 1700s. It “may have been sung out by a baker’s child from the storefront of a steamy bakery preparing for the Easter rush, the scent of warm currants and spices pulling in as many customers as the song,” explained Seth Elliott. Continuing he explained: “Tradition has it that these buns came to be the only food allowed to the devout on Good Friday and were even made from the same dough used for bread consecrated for use in Holy Communion—therefore considered to be the body of Christ.”— Weaver Street Market Newsletter, 2007

The tradition of the bun in our family was passed down through the generations from our British ancestors, but over time quick yeast replaced the long use of sourdough and the dough cross was replaced with icing. This recipe reclaims that tradition by using a sourdough starter instead of yeast for leavening and a dough cross to top the buns. There is not much hands-on prep time but you will need to start about 24 hours before baking them.

Sourdough Hot Cross Buns

Serving Size:
12 Buns
Time:
15 min Prep
8-12 hours long-ferment
30 min Bake
Difficulty:
Moderate

Preferment Ingredients (or use and active sourdough starter)

  • 1 tablespoon / 15 g sourdough starter
  • ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon / 50 g flour
  • 3 ½ tablespoons / 50 spring or filtered water

Dough Ingredients

  • 4 cups/ 500 g bread flour 
  • 2-3 tsp / 5 g mixed spice (or pumpkin pie spice)
  • ½ tsp / 1 g ground nutmeg
  • ¼ cup, packed/ 60 g light brown sugar or 2 Tbsp+2 tsp (40mL) honey
  • 1¼ tsp / 7 g salt
  • 3½ Tbsp / 50 g butter, cut into cubes
  • ¾ cup / 125 g sultanas and/ or currants
  • ⅔ cup / 50 g chopped mixed citrus peel
  • 1 egg lightly beaten
  • ½ scant cup / 100 ml sourdough starter
  • 1½ cups / 360 ml warm water or milk

Cross Ingredients

  • ⅔ cup / 50 g all-purpose flour
  • cold water to mix

Glaze Ingredients

  • 1 cup melted apricot jam/jelly
  • 3 heaping Tbls / 25 g powdered sugar
  • 3½ Tbls / 50 ml water
  • ½ tsp / 1g  mixed spice (pumpkin pie spice) or zested citrus peel

Directions

  1. The day prior to baking, activate your starter so that you have ½ cup (100 g) on hand or build a preferment using the ingredients listed in a clean jar. Cover the jar with a loose lid and set it to rise at room temperature. 
    (The ingredients listed will create a total of 115 g active preferment, but because some will stick to the jar’s sides there is a bit more than needed.)
    The sourdough starter or preferment is ready to use when a teaspoon of it floats in water, or it has doubled, with plenty of bubbles visible.
  2. For the dough, combine the flour and spices in a mixing bowl with the sugar and salt.
  3. Rub the butter into the flour combination with your fingers.
  4. Stir in the sultanas and mixed peel.
  5. Make a well in the center and drop the egg into it.
  6. Add the sourdough starter and most of the water.
  7. Mix to a soft, sticky dough, (only add the remaining water if the dough needs it).
  8. Knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic and not too sticky.
  9. Place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, turning to coat it with the oil.
  10. Cover and leave in a warm place to rise for about 12 hours or overnight
  11. Then turn the dough out and divide it into 12 pieces, rolling each into a ball.
  12. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet about an inch / 2cm apart.
  13. Slip the baking sheet inside a large plastic bag and leave it to rise for 10-12 hours or overnight until doubled in size
  14. Preheat the oven to 375°F / 190℃.
  15. To make crosses, put the flour into a bowl and stir in enough water to mix to a soft paste.
  16. Spoon this mixture into a disposable piping bag and pipe a cross on each bun
    OR
    wait until baked and cooled, then pipe icing on the buns, but you should know these are best fresh from the oven
  17. Bake between 20 -25 minutes until a golden brown.
  18. While the buns are baking, make the glaze by mixing sugar and water in a small pan OR heat the jelly OR both.
  19. Heat on low, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Then add the spice or peel.
  20. Once the buns are baked transfer them to a wire cooling rack placed over a tray or baking sheet. Brush the tops with the melted jelly and/or sugar glaze.
  21. If adding an icing cross wait until the buns are glazed and coool

Notes from Little Spoons Farms and Recipes Made Easy for Better Hot Cross Buns

  • Jacqueline Bellefontaine writes: “Hot cross buns are best eaten warm and on the day they are made. However, they can be refreshed by popping them in the microwave for a few seconds to warm through. They are also delicious toasted. Freeze for up to 2 months. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight and warm in the oven …4 for 5 minutes. And, “Hot cross buns are delicious toasted.”
  • Serving: 1bun | Calories: 282kcal | Carbohydrates: 54g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 284mg | Potassium: 128mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 125IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 17mg | Iron: 0.9mg</li><li>
  • Amy at Little Spoons Farms uses an eggs wash instead of apricot jam and her ferment is a bit shorter ferment time, but still long enough:
    • 8:00 PM: Feed sourdough starter.
    • 7:30 AM: Melt butter, milk, salt and sugar and allow it to cool down to room temperature.
    • 8:00 AM: Mix dough and lest rest 1 hour.
    • 9:00 AM: Stretch and fold dough, cover and let rest 30 minutes.
    • 9:30 AM: Stretch and fold dough, cover and let rest 30 minutes.
    • 10:00 AM: Stretch and fold dough, cover and let rest 2 hours.
    • 12:00 AM: Add dried fruit, divide dough and shape rolls. Place in baking dish, cover and let rise 3-4 hours or until puffy.
    • 4:00 PM: Egg wash, add cross and bake. Add glaze

Tell us about your Easter Sourdough baking plans in the comment section below