Makes 16 to 20 buns

Hot Cross Buns, Hot Cross Buns,

One a Penney, Two a Penny,

Hot Cross Buns

In the U.S. unfortunately, the old Mother Goose rhyme is about as far as it goes.  Sure, there are Hot Cross Buns sold in stores, but they are a cottony, pathetic facsimile of the real thing.  In England however, there was a time when hot cross buns on Good Friday were almost a way of life.  An English friend of mine said that when he was a kid, you had to have your order in at your local bakery for weeks before Good Friday in order to be guaranteed of having them.  In Victorian times, venders roamed the streets early in the morning on Good Friday selling fresh Hot Cross Buns from baskets.

A traditional and worthy Hot Cross Bun should not have the crosses made of powdered sugar icing.  The crosses should be made of, first choice, Marzipan, or, second choice, Lemon Curd.

Basic Rich Yeast Dough

At the sponge stage add:

2 teaspoons powdered cinnamon

1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 cup currants

1/2 cup finely chopped candied orange and, or lemon peel *

When the sponge has worked, proceed as directed.  After the dough has risen the second time, you are ready to form into your buns.  Divide the dough into sixteen or twenty equal pieces and form into round buns.  Place them on a baking sheet lined with Baker’s Parchment. Place them so that they are just barley touching each other.  Paint all the exposed surfaces with egg wash – (an egg beaten with 1 tablespoon of cold water).  Allow to sit in a warm place until they have risen to about twice their original size.  Bake in a preheated 350° oven for twenty to thirty minutes, or until golden brown and when you tap them they sound hollowish.  While still warm paint with Baker’s Syrup.  Allow to cool for a bit before applying the crosses.  The crosses should be made by piping on Lemon Curd or forming them out of Marzipan.** 

* When chopping something sticky like candied peel, dates, raisons etc.  Sprinkle them with a bit of flour. It will help keep them from sticking to the knife.

There is a charming and sad folk legend envolving Hot Cross Buns.  A widow was expecting her son, who was a sailor, to be home by Good Friday.  In preparation for his return and the Easter holidays, she baked some Hot Cross Buns.  The son was lost at sea and never returned.  Ever hopeful, the widow continued to bake Hot Cross Buns every Good Friday until her death.  She kept all the buns in a net hanging from the ceiling of her cottage.  When she died the cottage was turned into a pub. The story of the widow baking Hot Cross Buns and waiting for her son to return from the sea has been kept alive ever since.  Every year on Good Friday, a royal Navy sailor adds a new Hot Cross Bun to the collection of buns already there.  A religious service in honor of those lost at sea and those who waited for their return is held and then those gathered sing sea shanties and drink toasts to those departed sailors.

There was a bar in San Francisco that held a similar tradition.  In late December of 1941 a group of young recruits were in a dock side bar hefting a few before shipping out the following morning to join with forces in the pacific champagne.  They decided to leave their hats on the shelf behind the bar and come in for a drink and retrieve them when they returned from the war.  The bar owner pledged that he would not take down the Christmas tree that stood in the corner until the last hat had been claimed.  In the 1970’s when the bar was torn down for a redevelopment project, the needleless Christmas tree still stood in its corner and three hats still sat on the shelf behind the bar.

** Marzipan is a malleable substance made from almond paste that is often used to sculpt fruits and vegetables.

Fruits and vegetables sculpted from marzipan.