I’ve never cared that much for chocolate eggs. I’m happy to go on an egg hunt, but for the chase not the prize. The overload of chocolate is not what gets me excited about Easter: it’s hot cross buns!
Fluffy and soft and pillowy, with dainty crosses piped not iced, super sticky and messy with honey glaze, they are my favourite Easter bakes.
Easter Sunday breakfast can’t be without a bun, and if you bake them a few days ahead, no matter: lightly toasted and heavily buttered, they are even better. And as we’re approaching hot cross bun season, here’s a small collection of my best hot cross and other bun recipes.
My best ever recipe for hot cross buns, the dough made with wholemeal flour so you can feel less guilty scoffing one or four. Plenty of raisins, perfectly piped crosses and the best honey glaze – such a shame Easter comes only once a year!
The ultimate Easter indulgence: if you want to fuse your chocolate eggs with hot cross buns, this is the thing to make. Chocolate hot cross buns are messy to eat, difficult to toast and absolutely irresistible! Flavoured with cocoa and of course the 'hot' spice mix, with a crunch of cacao nibs.
Chocolate hot cross buns
RECIPE
More Scandinavian than American, without the thick layer of icing, is how I like my cinnamon buns. These are prettily shaped into twisty knots, in the style of Swedish kanelbullar: not too sweet, fragrant with cardamom and cinnamon and to die for.
Maple and pecan sticky buns are baked upside down, flavoured with cinnamon and cardamom. It's a rich and sticky, sweet and spicy bliss, best enjoyed warm! You can swap maple syrup for honey and pecan nuts for walnuts too.
Maple and pecan sticky buns
RECIPE
You can use shop-bought marzipan but making it at home is easy-peasy and it’s such a treat! Try once, you’ll never go back to those weirdly white bars with forever use-by dates. And the dough for these buns is very forgiving.
These cherry buns look like a lot of work but they really are not. Soft and sweet, swirled with cherry jam, dried cherries and glace cherries for a triple cherry hit. Delicious for breakfast!
In Yorkshire they call their buns ‘teacakes’ which is not quite as confusing as Scottish teacakes (not teacakes but marshmallows coated in chocolate. I know, so bizarre!). But they are lovely too, with or without currants or raisins.
Boller means buns: Norwegian breakfast buns with cardamom flavour and a shiny glaze. They are really easy to make even by an unexperienced baker. Of course, like all buns they are gorgeous warm but as lovely toasted and buttered.