I'm not gonna lie – the first time I tried making hot cross buns recipe at home, I thought I'd bitten off more than I could chew. These sweet, spiced Easter buns seemed way too fancy for my usual weeknight cooking routine!
But then Emily asked me about the history behind them for a school project, and we got totally hooked on the idea of making them together. Turns out, these beauties have been around since the 1300s, and they're not nearly as scary to make as I thought. The whole "cross on top" thing? It's actually super fun to do, and I'll show you all the easy ways to make it happen.
My kitchen smelled like a British bakery for days after I perfected this recipe, and honestly? I'm not mad about it. If you're looking for more delicious breakfast ideas, you'll love my Irish Soda Bread recipe – another traditional bread that's way easier than it looks!
Jump to:
- Why You'll Love This Hot Cross Buns Recipe
- Ingredients For Traditional Hot Cross Buns
- How To Make Hot Cross Buns From Scratch
- Storage & Reheating Tips For Hot Cross Buns
- My Best Tips For Perfect Hot Cross Buns
- Traditional Hot Cross Buns FAQ
- Recipes You May Like
- Final Thoughts On Making Hot Cross Buns
- Traditional Hot Cross Buns
Why You'll Love This Hot Cross Buns Recipe
- Ready in about 2.5 hours – Yes, there's proofing time, but most of it is hands-off while you binge your show
- Packed with warm spices – Cinnamon, mixed spice, and lemon zest make these smell AMAZING
- Perfect for Easter (but honestly great any time) – Don't wait for Good Friday to make these
- Three different cross options – Choose pastry, flour paste, or icing depending on what you have
- They freeze beautifully – Make a double batch and thank yourself later
- Way better than store-bought – Once you taste homemade, you'll never go back
Ingredients For Traditional Hot Cross Buns
Here's what you'll need to make these traditional hot cross buns happen in your kitchen:
For The Dough:
- ¾ cup dried currants or raisins
- ¼ cup diced candied orange and lemon peel (homemade is SO worth it!)
- ¼ cup hot black tea (or apple juice if you prefer)
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 2 teaspoons mixed spice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Zest of one lemon
- 1 ¼ cups milk, room temperature
- ¼ cup butter, room temperature
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1 egg yolk, room temperature
For The Cross: (choose your method)
- Option 1: Shortcrust pastry strips
- Option 2: ¼ cup flour + 3 tablespoons water
- Option 3: 1 cup powdered sugar + ½ teaspoon vanilla + 3 teaspoons milk
For The Glaze: (choose your method)
- Option 1: ¼ cup water + ¼ cup sugar
- Option 2: 3 tablespoons golden syrup
- Option 3: 2-3 tablespoons apricot jam
How To Make Hot Cross Buns From Scratch
Prepare The Fruit
- Pour the hot tea or apple juice over your dried currants and candied peel in a bowl.
- Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for about an hour until the fruit gets all plump and juicy.
- You can totally do this step the night before – I usually do because I'm lazy and like to split up the work!
Make The Dough
- Grab your stand mixer bowl and toss in the flour, sugar, yeast, mixed spice, cinnamon, salt, and lemon zest. Give it a quick stir to combine everything.
- Add the eggs, butter, and milk to the bowl.
- Use the dough hook attachment and let that baby knead for about 5 minutes until you've got a smooth, elastic dough. (My arm is grateful I don't have to do this by hand!)
- Drain any excess liquid from your soaked fruit, then add the fruit to the dough and knead for another 2 minutes until it's all mixed in.
First Rise
- Pop the dough into a lightly greased bowl and cover it loosely with plastic wrap.
- Place it somewhere warm to rise until it doubles in size. I heat my oven to about 80-90 degrees (NOT hotter – don't cook your yeast!), turn it off, and stick the bowl in there with the door closed.
- This usually takes 1-2 hours depending on how warm your spot is. Don't rush it – good things take time!
Shape The Buns
- Once your dough has doubled (it should be puffy and wobbly), punch it down. So satisfying!
- Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. I use my kitchen scale for this because I'm weirdly obsessed with making them all the same size.
- Roll each piece into a smooth ball and place them on a lined baking sheet.
Second Rise
- Cover the buns loosely with plastic wrap again.
- Let them rise in that warm spot for another hour until they're puffy and nearly doubled.
- About halfway through this rise (around 30 minutes in), preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
Add The Cross
- Now comes the fun part – choosing how to make your crosses! Here are your options:
- Pastry crosses: Roll out thin strips of shortcrust pastry and lay them in a cross pattern on each bun before baking. This is traditional and tastes great, but takes a bit more work.
- Flour paste crosses: Mix ¼ cup flour with about 3 tablespoons water to make a thick paste. Put it in a sandwich bag, snip off a corner, and pipe crosses onto the buns before baking. This is what I usually do – super easy!
- Icing crosses: Make a simple icing with powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk, then pipe crosses on after baking and cooling. This gives you the prettiest, whitest crosses but you have to wait until they're cool.
Bake The Buns
- Place your baking sheet on the middle oven rack and bake for 15-20 minutes until they're a gorgeous deep golden brown.
- They should sound hollow when you tap the bottom – that's how you know they're done!
Glaze While Hot
- As SOON as those hot cross buns come out of the oven, you need to glaze them while they're still hot. Choose your glaze method:
- Sugar syrup: Boil ¼ cup water and ¼ cup sugar together for 3 minutes, then brush it on.
- Golden syrup: Heat 3 tablespoons in the microwave and brush over the buns.
- Apricot jam: Gently melt some jam and brush it on for a fruity finish.
- Let the buns cool on a wire rack before digging in (if you can wait that long!).
Storage & Reheating Tips For Hot Cross Buns
I learned this the hard way when I made my first batch and left them on the counter overnight – they dried out fast!
Short-term storage: Keep your homemade hot cross buns in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. After that, they start getting a bit stale.
Freezing (my favorite option): These freeze like champions! Let them cool completely, then pop them in a freezer-safe container or bag. They'll keep for up to 3 months. When you're ready to eat them, just thaw at room temperature.
Reheating: Day-old buns are AMAZING when you slice them in half and toast them. Seriously, slather them with butter and you've got breakfast perfection. You can also warm them in a 300-degree oven for about 5 minutes if you want to serve them warm.
Pro tip: I like to freeze half the batch right away so we don't eat them all in two days (which has definitely happened before).
My Best Tips For Perfect Hot Cross Buns
After making these probably 15 times now (Emily requests them constantly), I've picked up a few tricks that make a huge difference.
Room temperature is key. This isn't me being picky – if your eggs, milk, and butter are cold, they'll shock the yeast and slow down your rise time. Just set everything out an hour before you start.
Don't skip the fruit soaking. I tried skipping this step once because I was in a hurry, and the dried fruit was hard and chewy instead of soft and delicious. The tea or juice makes such a difference!
Use instant yeast, not active dry. Instant yeast doesn't need to be proofed first, which saves you a step and gives more consistent results. I keep a jar in my fridge at all times.
Make your own candied peel if you can. I know this sounds like extra work, but store-bought candied peel can be weirdly chemical-tasting. Homemade tastes so much brighter and fresher. Plus Emily thinks it's fun to make!
The dough should be slightly sticky. Don't add too much flour trying to make it completely non-sticky. A slightly tacky dough = softer buns.
Want them to pull apart? Place the shaped buns closer together on the baking sheet so they touch as they rise. When baked, you can pull them apart for that classic square shape. I personally like round, separate buns better, so I space mine about 2 inches apart.
Test your mixed spice before using it. If your mixed spice has been in the cabinet for like three years (no judgment!), it might have lost its oomph. Give it a sniff – if it doesn't smell strongly spiced, it's time for a fresh batch.
Traditional Hot Cross Buns FAQ
Yes! Freeze cooled buns in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature and toast before serving for best results.
Mixed spice is a British blend of warm spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves). You can substitute with pumpkin pie spice or make your own blend using the linked recipe.
Dense buns usually result from under-proofing. Make sure dough doubles in size during both rises (total 2-3 hours in a warm place) and use room temperature ingredients.
Yes! Simply replace the candied peel with more raisins or currants, or try chopped dried apricots or cranberries for a different flavor twist.
Recipes You May Like
- Irish Soda Bread Recipe – Another traditional bread that's perfect for special occasions
- Mini Blueberry Muffins – Easy breakfast baking the whole family loves
- Sourdough French Toast – Turn leftover bread into something amazing
Final Thoughts On Making Hot Cross Buns
I'm so glad Emily's school project pushed me to try making these Easter buns from scratch! They've become one of our special traditions now.
Sure, they take a bit more time than my usual 30-minute dinners, but most of that time is just waiting for the dough to rise while you do other things. The actual hands-on work is maybe 30 minutes tops.
The smell of these baking in your oven is just magical – warm cinnamon, sweet spices, and that buttery golden crust. And when you slice one open while it's still slightly warm and slather it with butter? You'll understand why people have been making these for 700 years!
Don't be intimidated by the yeast or the multiple steps. Just follow the recipe, give the dough time to do its thing, and you'll have beautiful homemade hot cross buns that'll make you feel like a total baking rockstar.
Save this recipe to Pinterest so you can find it again when Easter rolls around – or honestly, any time you want your house to smell amazing!
Traditional Hot Cross Buns
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Pour the hot tea or apple juice over the dried fruits, cover with plastic wrap, and let sit for about an hour until the fruit has absorbed the juices. This can be done well in advance such as the day ahead or overnight.
- Place the flour, sugar, yeast, spices, salt and lemon zest in the bowl of a stand mixer and stir to combine. Add the eggs, butter, and milk. Use the dough hook to knead the mixture into a smooth and elastic dough, about 5 minutes. Add the dried fruit and continue to knead the dough another 2 minutes or until the fruit is incorporated.
- Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover loosely with plastic wrap and place it in a warm place to rise until doubled in size. I like to briefly heat the oven to 80-90 degrees F (not any hotter!), place the dough inside the oven, and close the door to rise. Rising time will vary depending on the temperature. Give it at least one hour but it might take closer to 2 hours.
- Punch down the dough and divide it into 12 equal pieces.
- Form each piece into a ball and place it on a lined baking sheet. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let them rise in a warm place for up to another hour until they're puffy and nearly doubled in size.
- Halfway into the rise preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Pipe or place crosses on top of each bun using one of these methods: 1) Make shortcrust pastry strips and lay them in a cross pattern, 2) Make a flour and water paste (¼ cup flour + 3 tablespoon water) and pipe crosses, or 3) Make sugar icing after baking (1 cup powdered sugar + ½ teaspoon vanilla + 3 teaspoon milk).
- Bake the buns on the middle shelf for 15-20 minutes until they're a deep golden brown and they sound hollow when you tap them on the bottom.
- Glaze the buns immediately while hot using one of these methods: 1) Sugar water glaze (¼ cup water + ¼ cup sugar, boiled and simmered 3 minutes), 2) Golden syrup (3 tablespoon heated), or 3) Apricot jam (melted).
- After glazing the buns let them cool. Serve while slightly warm or cooled. Slice the buns and spread with butter, clotted cream, jam, or honey.
