Hot cross buns

Hot cross buns!
Hot cross buns!
One a penny, two a penny,
Hot cross buns!
If you have no daughters,
Give them to your sons
One a penny,
Two a penny,
Hot Cross Buns!

This nursery rhyme refers to buns which are usually bake on Good Friday in Ireland and UK. Hot cross buns are yeast - leavened, sweet, spiced, made with raisins buns with a cross on top of them. The cross is a symbol of The Crucifixion. I haven't made traditional buns, as my blog is devoted to muffins and cup cakes. I have chosen recipe for no fuss buns from BBC Good Food which are baked in muffin tin.

As I am Polish and live for a few years in Ireland, I combine customs and I put hot cross buns into Easter basket. Traditionally in Poland, Easter baskets are prepared on Holy Saturday filled with boiled coloured eggs, slice of bread, ham, sweets and taken to a Church for blessing. This food is served for Easter breakfast, most important meal for Polish during Easter and everybody have to take a piece of blessed food. 

Ingredients for 12 buns:

• 500g plain flour
• 1/2 tsp dried yeast or 3g fresh one
• handful raisins
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 50g marzipan
• 1 tbsp granulated sugar

In a large bowl place the flour, raisins, mixed spice and add 350 ml of warm water. If you use dry yeast simply put them into flour before water. When you add fresh yeast instead of dry ones dissolve them in the water. Stir everything together, cover the bowl with a tea towel and leave to rise for 3 hours. You can also place the bowl in the warm oven (no more then 50C) for 1 1/2 hour.

Before baking

Heat up the oven to 180C. Butter a 12 hole muffin tin. Sprinkle a worktop with some flour put the dough on it. The dough is a little bit sticky. Divide it into 12 balls and drop each into muffin hole. Leave them again to rise for 10 min. In a meantime dissolve 1 tbsp of sugar in 2 tbsp of water. Brush each bun with sugary water. Bake for 20 min. If they don't turn brown after 15 min in the oven you may brush them again. 
When baked remove them from the oven. Brush again it will help to stick marzipan cross better. Use golden marzipan, make small stripes, roll it in your hands as play dough, and lay cross on the top of each bun. Return to the oven for 5 min.

Before returning to the oven

Happy Easter !!!