Advertisement
Home Entertaining

How to make perfect chocolate hot cross buns

A delicious chocolate twist on the traditional homemade hot cross buns recipe.
chocolate hot cross buns recipePhotography: Mikkel Vang / Styling: Emma Knowles & Lisa Featherby

This hot cross buns recipe is a simple homemade Easter treat chocoholics will love. Get the kids in on the action by letting them help out with the kneading. Follow our easy step-by-step instructions using basic ingredients such as sugar, cocoa, cinnamon, milk and butter. Your home will be filled with the sweet aroma of baking bread with a dash of chocolate before too long. Traditionalists will be glad to see the addition of sultanas and candied orange, while chocolate lovers will enjoy the explosions of chocolate sweetness in the mouth as you bite into one.

This hot cross buns recipe shares a few tricks of the trade, too – like tapping the buns to check they sound hollow before declaring them ready. Then it’s time to add the sugar and cinnamon glaze and enjoy with a generous slather of butter. Lured by the aroma, you can guarantee that you’ll draw a crowd. Have one for brekkie or serve with brunch. Pop some in the freezer so you can have a hot cross bun any time.

If you’re in the mood for chocolate baking, cook this chocolate babka, make this no-bake chocolate tart or check out these decadent chocolate desserts.

Ingredients

Cinnamon glaze

Method

1.

Combine sugar, cocoa, yeast, cinnamon, 450g flour and 1 teaspoon of salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook and mix on low speed to combine. Heat milk and butter in a small saucepan over low heat until butter melts, cool to lukewarm, then whisk in egg. Add milk mixture to flour mixture and knead until smooth and elastic (8-10 minutes; dough will be quite soft). Add sultanas, chocolate and candied orange, knead to combine, then transfer dough to a lightly buttered bowl, cover and stand in a warm place until doubled in size (50 minutes to 1 hour).

2.

Knock back dough, divide into 12 even pieces, then roll each into a smooth ball. Arrange in four rows of three on a large baking tray lined with baking paper, leaving 1.5cm between each for dough to expand. Cover with a tea towel and stand in a warm place until doubled in size (30-40 minutes).

3.

Preheat oven to 220ËšC . Stir remaining flour, sunflower oil and 50ml cold water, adding a little more water if necessary to achieve a smooth paste. Spoon into a piping bag fitted with a small plain nozzle and pipe a cross on each bun. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce oven to 200ËšC and bake until buns are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped (8-10 minutes).

4.

For the cinnamon glaze, stir sugar, cinnamon and 50ml water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves, bring to a simmer, then cool briefly to thicken a little (5 minutes). Brush warm buns with glaze and serve.

Tip: For an extra-indulgent treat, serve choc-cross buns warm from the oven with chocolate hazelnut spread.

chocolate hot cross buns recipe
(Photography: Mikkel Vang / Styling: Emma Knowles & Lisa Featherby)

Related stories


Advertisement
Advertisement