Hot Cross Bun Loaf

  • Serves : 5
  • Makes : 1
  • Difficulty level : Easy
  • Type : Dessert

Hot cross bun loaf, hot cross bun loaf… it might cost you a little more than one or two pennies, but our fruit-packed, lightly spiced, cross-topped take on the traditional Good Friday favourite is so easy to bake in our Bread Maker Plus –  and makes a simply delicious addition to your Easter tea table.

Ingredients

  • 175ml semi-skimmed milk 
  • 2 medium eggs 
  • 450g strong white bread flour 
  • 1/2 tsp salt 
  • 50g golden caster sugar 
  • 50g butter 
  • 1 tbsp mixed spice 
  • 1 1/2 tsp dried yeast 
  • 100g  dried mixed fruit chopped
  • 25g cut mixed peel 
  • 3 tbsp plain flour 
  • a little golden syrup to glaze

Method

  1. Add the milk, eggs, flour, salt, sugar, butter, spice and yeast to the pan of the bread maker in the order listed above and close the lid.
  2. Place the dried fruit and mixed peel in a bowl. Add a tablespoon of the plain flour and stir through until the fruit is coated – this helps it stop sticking together and sinking to the bottom of your loaf. Place the fruit in the auto dispenser drawer and close it, making sure it locks into place securely.
  3. Press MENU and select programme 5, SWEET, then select the 700g LOAF size and medium crust COLOUR. Press START/STOP.
  4. Half an hour before the end of the programme, mix the remaining 2 tablespoons of plain flour with enough water to make a solid paste and decant into a piping bag. 20 minutes before the end of the programme, press PAUSE, lift the lid of the bread maker and pipe a cross onto the top of your loaf. Close the lid and press PAUSE again to restart the programme.
  5. At the end of the programme, press START/STOP, lift out the bread pan and turn out the loaf onto a cooling rack. While the bread is still warm, brush a little golden syrup over the top to glaze.

By | 1 February 2024