13. Hot Cross Bun Loaf
Yep I admit it, I'm a failure at keeping up with anything online, and have been for many years now. My last entry on things I've made was also an Easter entry, but it wasn't even last Easter. It's not that I haven't made things since then, I have. I've even photographed some of them, but I lack the motivation to download the photos and then write up entries about them. It's not even that I don't want to, it's just I'm so tired from work most of the time, it's a real effort to do anything with my brain when I don't have to. I have however watched a lot of horror films, to the extent that unless it's a premier on the Horror channel or SyFy, I've probably seen it. I used to sew when watching TV, but again I can't be bothered most of the time. Anyway, I digress, onto something I have made recently, even if I didn't get to photograph it before it was all nommed. But that was because we were more interested in the nomming than the photographing.
I saw a recipe in an email I got in the run up to Easter and thought it looked really nice:
Baking Mad, Hot Cross Bun Loaf
We were visiting my Mother-in-Law last weekend and through being busy at work, it's ages since I've taken her any baked goods (mincepies, Christmas Pud and Christmas cakes excepted), so I thought it looked like a good thing to try. I changed the recipe a little bit though, partly because I didn't think it had enough butter in it and also because I was missing some of the fruit & the type of sugar it suggested. So here is my tweaked version:
For the loaf
400g Strong white bread flour
1 sachet Easy bake yeast
3 tbsp Soft brown sugar
Pinch of salt
4 tsp Ground cinnamon
The zest & juice of one orange
50g Mixed peel
50g Dried cranberries
50g Raisins
60g Unsalted butter
1 Egg
For the glaze:
1 tbsp Soft brown sugar
1 tsp Boiling water
Method
1. Put the flour, spice, yeast and sugar in a bowl, rub in the butter to create breadcrumbs. Stir in the fruit and zest.
2. Make the orange juice up to about 175ml with just boiled water, it should be no hotter than hand hot before adding to the mix, or you'll kill the yeast. Add the beaten egg, then gradually add in the warm orange and water mix to form a soft dough.
2. Knead the dough until smooth, approximately 5-10 minutes. Place back in the bowl and cover. Leave somewhere warm, not hot, until it has doubled in size.
3. Mix together the glaze ingredients and leave to cool.
4. Preheat the oven to 200°C, fan 180°C, Gas Mark 6. Once the dough is ready to be baked, put it in a lined 2lb loaf tin and brush with the glaze. Bake for 30- 45 minutes until golden brown.
The original said only 30 mins baking, but it came out anaemic in my oven, so I cooked it for 15 mins longer. I didn't add the cross on as my experience of them is they burn or don't taste nice.
It was lovely straight out of the oven with butter and the next day sliced beautifully and toasted well.
I need to make another for tomorrow's breakfast :-)