Soft, sweet and spicy

The oven is warm, A sweet and spicy aroma, Fills the kitchen air. 

Hot cross buns baking, Golden brown and oh so soft, A treat for the senses.

Cinnamon and spice, Mixed with raisins and orange zest, A perfect delight. 

The timer goes off, The buns are ready at last, A feast for the eyes. 

Served warm with some tea, A delicious Easter treat, Hot cross buns for me.

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Ingredients: 

• 300ml unsweetened almond milk 

• 50g dairy-free spread 

• 500g strong white bread flour 

• 7g sachet fast action yeast 

• 70g golden caster sugar 

• ½ tsp salt 

• 2 heaped tsp ground cinnamon 

• 2 heaped tsp mixed spice 

• 1 large orange, zested 

• 70g sultanas 

• 50g mixed peel 

For the cross: 

• 70g plain flour 

For the glaze: 

• 50g apricot jam 

Method: 

• Put the almond milk in a saucepan over a medium heat. Once simmering, add the spread, remove from the heat and allow to melt. Set aside to cool to hand temperature. 

• Mix the flour, yeast, sugar, salt and spices in a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the centre and pour in the milk mixture, swiftly combining with a wooden spoon to create a sticky dough. Tip out of the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. 

• Knead the dough by stretching it back and forth on the surface for 5 - 7 mins or until smooth, springy and elastic. Shape into a ball and put into a lightly oiled mixing bowl. Cover and leave in a warm spot to rise, for 1hr or until doubled in size.


• Turn the dough back onto the surface and flatten into a round. Spread the orange zest, sultanas and mixed peel onto the dough and knead again until everything is well distributed. Form into a ball, return to the bowl, cover and leave to rise for another hour. 

• Line a large baking sheet with baking parchment. Knock the dough back by turning it out onto your surface and gently punching out the air. Divide the dough into 12 even-sized pieces, weighing for accuracy if you like. Roll each one into a ball. Arrange the buns on the baking sheet, leaving a 2cm space between each one. Cover with lightly oiled cling film and leave to rise for 45 mins. 

• Heat the oven to 220C/ 200 fan/ gas 7. To make the cross, in a small bowl, mix together the flour with 1 tbsp of water at a time to create a thick, pipeable paste. Spoon it into a piping bag fitted with a small round nozzle and pipe crosses on the buns. Transfer to the middle shelf of the oven and bake for 15-20 mins or until deep golden brown. 

• Meanwhile, gently heat the jam in a small saucepan over a low heat to loosen. Pass through a sieve to remove any lumps. Once cooked, brush the warm jam over the tops of the buns. Set aside to cool a little before eating.

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This recipe for vegan hot cross buns by Bing Chat from BBC Good Food takes about 35 minutes of preparation time and 20 minutes of cooking time. In addition to this, the dough needs to rise for a total of 2 hours and 45 minutes. So, in total, it takes about 3 hours and 40 minutes to make these buns.

There are a few different types of glazes you can make for vegan hot cross buns. One option is to use apricot jam . Another option is to make a glaze by mixing equal parts sugar and boiling water until the sugar dissolves . You could also use orange marmalade, agave nectar or maple syrup as a glaze… or dandelion honey!

To make the sugar and water glaze for vegan hot cross buns, you’ll need to mix equal parts sugar and boiling water. Stir the mixture until the sugar dissolves completely. For example, for this recipe, you could use 2 tablespoons of sugar and 2 tablespoons of boiling water . Once the sugar has dissolved, use a pastry brush to brush the glaze over the tops of the buns while they are still warm.

You can use a sugar-free alternative like stevia in the recipe for vegan hot cross buns. However, keep in mind that sugar substitutes like stevia can be much sweeter than regular sugar, so you may need to adjust the amount used in the recipe. It’s also important to note that sugar substitutes can behave differently than regular sugar in recipes, so the texture and flavor of the buns may be slightly different.

You can use gluten-free flour to make vegan hot cross buns. However, gluten-free flour behaves differently than wheat flour, so you may need to make some adjustments to the recipe. For example, you may need to add more liquid or use a binding agent like xanthan gum to help the dough hold together. It’s also important to note that the texture and flavor of the buns may be slightly different when using gluten-free flour.

Hot cross buns are traditionally topped with a cross made from a flour and water paste and then glazed with a sweet syrup or jam. However, you can get creative and use other toppings if you like. For example, you could sprinkle the tops of the buns with coarse sugar or chopped nuts before baking. You could also drizzle them with a simple icing made from powdered sugar and water or lemon juice after they have cooled.

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