#TRADITIONAL HOT CROSS BUNS FREE#

Cover with oiled cling film and set aside in a warm, draught free place for 30 minutes, or until buns double in size.

Step 7 : Place balls onto the lined tray, about 1cm apart. Divide into 12 even portions and shape each portion into a ball. Knead for 30 seconds on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Step 6 : Line a large baking tray with non-stick baking paper. Set aside in a warm, draught free place for 1 – 1 ½ hours, or until dough doubles in size. Step 5 : Place into a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Knead for 10 minutes, or until the dough is smooth. Step 4 : Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Step 3 : Use a flat bladed knife to mix the dough until it almost comes together, then using clean hands, finish mixing to a soft dough. Add warm milk mixture and eggs to currant mixture. Step 2 : Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and add the milk. And when it is done, you can draw the cross on top of the bun.Step 1 : Combine 4 cups of flour, yeast, sugar, mixed spice, salt and currants in a large bowl.

#TRADITIONAL HOT CROSS BUNS HOW TO#

Therefore, show them how to roll it into a ball using the palm of their hand. You can even make the buns with your children. This recipe is surprisingly easy to make. Now, here is the original recipe for hot cross buns. So by 1733, the popular hot cross buns had its own song that could be heard by street vendors selling hot cross buns: ' Hot cross buns! hot cross buns! one a penny, two a penny, hot cross buns.' However, the traditon was further solidified when Elizabeth I passed a law permitting bakeries to sell them only on festivals such as Easter and Christmas. The Protestants considered this a Catholic tradition and attempted to stop the practice. The popularity of the hot cross buns grew when a monk named Father Thomas Rockcliffe began the tradtion of giving hot cross buns to the poor of St. Later, the Christian church reinterpreted the icing cross as a symbol of the crucifixion. However, the Romans believed the cross symbol represented the four quarters or phases of the moon. The Egyptians and Greeks considered the shape of the loaf to represent the moon. However, others can date the origin to the era of the Egyptians and Greeks who also had small loaves for their religious devotions and worship to their gods.

Many Christians today see hot cross buns as an imitation of the unleavened bread eaten during passover. The origins of hot cross buns dates back centuries ago. These buns are more popular than the hard-boiled Easter egg hunt. At the top of the buns there is always a cross marked on top or made with icing. These sweet spiced buns made with currants or raisins are very popular around this time. Hot cross buns is also a traditional Good Friday Bread here in Trinidad and Tobago. So, you would either have to do without or remember to buy two or three when the van came next time. The hard outer crust gave way to a moist, soft, interior that would have your taste buds craving for more, but by then it would be too late because the 'bread van' was long gone. There was always on sale currants roll, coconut turnovers, coconut sweet bread, jam tarts, butter bread, biscuit cake (sometimes), hops bread and on Holy Week there was Hot Cross Buns.Īh! hot cross buns I can taste it now. As soon as the side door opened the aroma of fresh baked goodies hit our nostrils. The common sound of the horn alerted us to its coming, and every child would be eager to see what the ' bread man' had at the back of his Suzuki Carry van. or was it Monday, Wednesday and Friday? - I can't remember but what I do know was it visited us.

The second, is the 'bread van' that visited our community every evening. The first is the obvious song 'Hot Cross Buns' which I learnt to play on the recorder and memoirs of a time gone by that can only be relived in my mind. Whenever I think of hot cross buns I always think of two things.

Traditional hot cross buns