Hot Cross Buns

Ingredients

For the buns:
• 3/4 cup of warm (not hot) milk
• 2 1/2 teaspoons of dry yeast
• 1 tablespoon of white sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
• sprinkle of vanillin sugar
• 85g of softened salted butter
• 3/4 cup of packed light brown sugar
• 3 1/4 cups of bread/high-protein flour [if using all-purpose flour, use an extra 1/4 cup]
• 1 cup of raisins
Spices:
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of dutch cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon of allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
For the cross:
• 1/4 of flour [you may need more, depending on the thickness of your cross]
• enough water to make a paste, maybe 1/4ish cup
For the glaze:
• 1/2 cup of pure icing sugar
• 1 tablespoon of orange juice
• sprinkle of vanillin sugar

Method

Making the dough:
1. Pour warm milk into a large mixing bowl, sprinkle your yeast and sugar on top. Whisk briefly, then cover with a tea-towel and let sit for a few minutes until it gets frothy.
2. Add the vanilla extract, eggs, spices, butter and brown sugar together, and stir a little until it forms a mixture.
3. Stirring the mixture, add a cup of flour at a time, until it is fully incorporated, it should form a soft, sticky dough. If the dough is clinging to the bowl, add a little more flour - if it is dry or crumbly, try adding some melted butter or a little milk to moisten it.
4. Gently fold the raisins in.
5. Knead dough on a slightly floured surface for a few minutes until it is a good consistency: a trick is to grab a little ball of dough and stretch it to make a "window" - if the dough rips, it needs more kneading. It is perfect when the dough stretches thin enough to let sunlight through :-)
6. Form dough into a large ball and place into the mixing bowl. Cover the bowl with a tea-towel and place it in the warmest place possible for 2.5 hours.
7. When dough has risen, form 15 small buns, making sure the dough is nice and tight. Place them on a baking tray, cover with a tea-towel and let them rest for another hour
8. Preheat oven to 180°c
Making the cross:
9. Whisk flour, water and sugar together, adjusting measurements if needed to make a icing-like paste.
10. Pour/spoon the mixture into a zip-lock bag, cutting a few cms off the corner to make a makeshift piping bag - then pipe crosses onto buns once then have finished rising.
Baking and glazing:
11. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, until the buns are golden in colour.
12. Mix glaze ingredients together, and brush over warm buns. I use a silocone pastry brush but you can drizzle it or use anything really. The glaze will form a light crust on the buns - add as much as you like.