Hot Cross Buns (Vegan)

• These hot cross buns are so easy to make.
• The perfect Easter recipe.
• Vegan-friendly – we used apple puree as an egg substitute!
• Serve toasted, with your favourite preserve.
• Makes 12 buns.

Strong White Bread Flour, Organic 1kg (Marriages)

600g (plus 2 tbsp extra for making the crosses)

Apple Puree, Organic 350g (Biona)

2 heaped tablespoons

Barista Oat Drink 1 litre (Oatly)

300ml

Instant Dried Yeast 250g (Sussex Wholefoods)

1 heaped tsp

Organic Ground Nutmeg 100g (Sussex Wholefoods)

1 tsp

Organic Ceylon Cinnamon Powder 100g (Sussex Wholefoods)

1 tsp

Organic Candied Orange Peel 500g (Sussex Wholefoods)

1 tbsp

Organic Candied Lemon Peel 500g (Sussex Wholefoods)

1 tbsp

Organic Mixed Vine Fruit 1kg (Sussex Wholefoods)

200g

Organic Maple Syrup 330g (Meridian)

50ml (or however much you need to glaze the buns)

Other Ingredients

50ml vegetable oil

80g White Sugar

4 Tablespoons of water

Method

1. Microwave your oat milk for around 1 minute until it’s warm (but not boiling). Stir in the sugar and the yeast and leave to the side. You want the mixture to turn frothy and for the yeast to bloom.
2. Add your flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, candied peel and dried fruit to your mixing bowl. Pour in the yeast and oat milk mixture and combine. We used a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment and kneaded the mixture for about 5 minutes. If kneading by hand, knead for about ten to fifteen minutes. The dough is super sticky, so it’s easier to do it with a stand mixer. If you find it too sticky to knead by hand, sprinkle flour over the dough and keep going until it becomes smooth and springy.
3. Pop the dough into an oiled bowl. Cover with a damp tea towel and leave to prove for 2 hours. The dough should double in size.
4. Tip the dough onto a floured surface. Knock the dough back and divide into 12 even balls. Arrange on a tray, cover and leave to prove for one hour. The buns should double in size. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees C (fan).
5. Prepare the cross mixture. For this you will need about 2 heaped tablespoons of strong white bread flour and enough water to make a smooth paste. We added about 4 tablespoons of water. You want the mixture to be slack enough to pipe onto the buns and still hold its shape.
6. Uncover the buns and pipe the flour mixture you just made onto the buns in the shape of a cross. Bake for 20 minutes, or until they’re golden brown.
7. Leave to cool for a few minutes, then brush the tops with maple syrup. You can enjoy while they’re warm, or toast and spread with plant-based butter and jam. These should keep for 2-3 days.