Hot Cross Buns (Recipe from 1893)

Hot Cross Buns (Recipe from 1893) >>>

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1103, 21 April 1893, Page 16

Please let us know if you’ve tried this recipe and if it worked. Feel free to send us a photo, and we’ll publish it along with this recipe. Please note that these are historical recipes and may require some adjustments to align with contemporary tastes and ingredients.

HOT CROSS BUNS (metric Version)

Ingredients

• 900g flour (2 lb)

• 225g sugar (½ lb)

• 1 tsp mixed spice

• 450g mixed currants (1 lb)

• 300ml thick yeast starter (about 1 glassful)

• 285ml warmed milk (½ pint)

• 115g melted butter (¼ lb)

• Additional milk to make a soft paste

• Flour for dusting

Instructions

1. Make a hole in the middle of the flour and pour in the thick yeast starter and the warmed milk.

2. Mix to make a thin batter and cover with a thick cloth. Leave by the fire until it begins to ferment.

3. Add the melted butter and enough milk to make a soft paste of all the flour.

4. Cover with a dusting of flour and let rise for 30 minutes.

5. Shape the dough into buns, lay them on buttered plates in rows, and let rise for another 30 minutes.

6. Mark crosses on the buns with the back of a knife.

7. Bake in a hot oven at around 200°C (392°F) for 15-20 minutes.

Yield

• Makes about two dozen buns (24 buns).