Learn how to make our rendition of hot cross buns using this deliciously spiced yeast dough. Brown sugar, raisins or currants, butter, and vanilla add exceptional flavor and each dense bun is marked with a traditional cross. Orange icing is a tasty finishing touch to this Easter recipe!
What are Hot Cross Buns?
A nursery rhyme, of course! And the first song we usually learn on the recorder. But what are the hot cross buns we eat? Hot cross buns are rich with history dating back to the 12th century. They’re yeasted sweet buns filled with spices and various fruits such as currants, raisins, and/or candied citrus. They’re decorated with a white cross representing the crucifix, either marked right into the dough or etched on top with icing. Hot cross buns are a traditional Easter food, typically eaten on Good Friday.
We’ve been making these for years and I would love to share our family’s version here today. If you’re looking for a more traditional hot cross bun recipe using a little less sugar, candied peel, and lemon, we’ve always loved Mary Berry’s hot cross bun recipe.
What Do These Hot Cross Buns Taste Like?
These hot cross buns are a cross between a dinner roll and cinnamon roll. They’re soft, yet dense with a deliciously spiced flavor from cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. You can play with the spices, even adding a little cardamom too. The buns are sweetened mostly with brown sugar, then topped with a glossy orange icing. For extra flavor, sometimes we throw a little orange zest or candied orange peel into the dough. This recipe uses raisins. We always enjoyed hot cross buns with currants, a type of raisin, but I couldn’t find them anywhere this year.
You’ll love these hot cross buns if you enjoy:
- Sweet orange icing
- Raisins
- Cinnamon spices
- Brown sugar
- Buttery bread
Video Tutorial: How to Make Hot Cross Buns
This recipe begins just like dinner rolls. Hot cross buns require basic baking ingredients like flour, yeast, butter, eggs, sugar, and milk. Less milk, more butter and more eggs produces a slightly denser roll compared to the dinner rolls. These are more of a dessert/breakfast roll. Here are the basic steps:
- Make the bread dough.
- Knead the dough for 5 minutes. Reference my How to Knead Dough video tutorial if you need extra help with this step.
- Cover the dough and let it rise. The dough rises in about 1-2 hours.
- Punch down the dough to release the air, then shape into rolls.
- Let the rolls rise for about 1 hour.
- Pipe the crosses on top.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.
- Top with orange icing.
For extra plump and moist raisins, soak them in hot water for 5-10 minutes before using. You could also use dried cranberries.
After the dough rises in the bowl (above), punch it down to release the air. Divide into 15 portions, then roll into balls as shown in the video above. Take a piece and stretch the top of the dough while pinching and sealing the bottom. Make sure the rolls are smooth on top and sealed on the bottom. This is the same way you shape honey butter rolls and sage dinner rolls.
Cover the shaped rolls, then let them rise for 1 more hour.
Crosses on Hot Cross Buns
There’s a couple ways to make crosses on hot cross buns:
- Flour Cross: Pipe a “paste” of flour and water on top of each bun BEFORE baking. This is the most traditional application of the cross and the method I usually choose. It gets a *little* hard after baking, but it’s still perfectly chewy.
- Icing Cross: Pipe a thick cross made from icing on each bun AFTER baking.
Use a piping bag—no piping tip needed—or a zipped-top bag. Snip the corner off. If making the flour cross, make sure the corner opening is small because you want a thin line.
Orange Icing
The lush orange icing is the best finishing touch and it’s even better if you brush it on the buns right out of the oven. It’s sticky, sweet, and warm—orange and cinnamon spices are just meant to be.
Hot cross buns are an excellent addition to any Easter gathering menu. See more Easter brunch recipes and Easter dessert recipes.
More Easter Recipes
- Coconut Cream Pie
- Biscuit Breakfast Casserole & Easy Breakfast Casserole
- Coconut Cake
- Easter Egg Buttercream Candies
- Carrot Cake
- Easter Cookies
- Lemon Meringue Pie
- Easter Cake
- Easter Cupcakes
- Jelly Bean Sugar Cookies
Hot Cross Buns
- Prep Time: 3 hours, 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 22 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 45 minutes
- Yield: 14-16 buns
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: English
Description
Learn how to make flavorful hot cross buns using this deliciously spiced yeast dough. Each bun is marked with a traditional cross, baked until golden, then topped with orange icing. See recipe notes for icing cross alternative, as well as freezing and make-ahead instructions.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk, warmed to about 110°F
- 2 and 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast or instant yeast (1 standard packet)
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 5 Tablespoons (71g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature and cut into 5 pieces
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 and 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon (see note)
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 3 and 1/2 cups (438g) all-purpose flour or bread flour (spooned & leveled)*
- 1 cup (140g) raisins or currants*
Flour Cross
- 1/2 cup (63g) all-purpose flour or bread flour
- 6–8 Tablespoons (90-120ml) water
Orange Icing
- 1 cup (120g) confectioners’ sugar
- 3 Tablespoons (45ml) fresh or bottled orange juice (or use milk and a splash of vanilla extract for plain icing)
Instructions
- Prepare the dough: Whisk the milk, yeast, and granulated sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer. Cover and allow mixture to sit for about 5 minutes or until foamy on top. *If you do not own a mixer, you can do this in a large mixing bowl and in the next step, mix the dough together with a large wooden spoon or silicone spatula. It will take a bit of arm muscle. A hand mixer works, but the sticky dough repeatedly gets stuck in the beaters. Mixing by hand with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula is a better choice.*
- Add the brown sugar, butter, vanilla extract, eggs, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and 1 cup (125g) flour. Using the dough hook or paddle attachment, mix on low speed for 30 seconds, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, then add the remaining flour and the raisins. Beat on low speed until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 2 minutes. Dough should be a little sticky and soft. If it’s too sticky and not pulling away from the sides of the bowl, mix in additional flour 1 Tablespoon at a time.
- Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer and beat for an additional 5 full minutes, or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 5 full minutes. (If you’re new to bread-baking, my How to Knead Dough video tutorial can help here.) If the dough becomes too sticky during the kneading process, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of flour at a time on the dough or on the work surface/in the bowl to make a soft, slightly tacky dough. Do not add more flour than you need because you do not want a dry dough. After kneading, the dough should still feel a little soft. Poke it with your finger—if it slowly bounces back, your dough is ready to rise. You can also do a “windowpane test” to see if your dough has been kneaded long enough: tear off a small (roughly golfball-size) piece of dough and gently stretch it out until it’s thin enough for light to pass through it. Hold it up to a window or light. Does light pass through the stretched dough without the dough tearing first? If so, your dough has been kneaded long enough and is ready to rise. If not, keep kneading until it passes the windowpane test.
- 1st Rise: Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick spray. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise in a relatively warm environment for 1-2 hours or until double in size. (I always let it rise on the counter. Takes about 2 hours. For a tiny reduction in rise time, see my answer to Where Should Dough Rise? in my Baking with Yeast Guide.)
- Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan or two 9-inch square or round baking pans. You can also bake the rolls in a cast iron skillet or on a lined baking sheet.
- Shape the rolls: When the dough is ready, punch it down to release the air. Divide the dough into 14-16 equal pieces. (Just eyeball it– doesn’t need to be perfect!) Shape each piece into a smooth ball, pinching it on the bottom to seal. I do this entirely in my hands and you can watch in the video above. Arrange in prepared baking pan.
- 2nd Rise: Cover shaped rolls with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow to rise until puffy, about 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C).
- Add the cross: Whisk the cross ingredients together, starting with 6 Tablespoons of water. You want a thick paste that will pipe easily. Add remaining water if needed. Spoon paste into a piping bag or zipped-top bag. (No need to use a piping tip if using a piping bag.) Snip off a small piece at the corner. Pipe a line down the center of each row of buns, then repeat in the other direction to create crosses.
- Bake the rolls: Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on top, rotating the pan halfway through. If you notice the tops browning too quickly, loosely tent the pan with aluminum foil. Remove from the oven and allow rolls to cool for a few minutes as you prepare the icing.
- Make the icing: Whisk the icing ingredients together, then drizzle or brush on warm rolls. Serve immediately.
- Cover leftover rolls tightly and store at room temperature for 1-2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Prepare recipe through step 6. Place shaped buns in a greased baking pan, cover tightly, and freeze for up to 3 months. Once frozen, the dough balls won’t stick together anymore and you can place them in a freezer bag if needed. On the day you serve them, arrange the dough balls in a greased baking pan, cover tightly, then let them thaw and rise at room temperature for about 4-5 hours. Continue with step 8. You can also freeze the baked hot cross buns. Allow them to cool completely, then freeze without icing for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature, then reheat as desired and add icing.
- Overnight Instructions: Prepare the recipe through step 6. Cover the shaped buns tightly and refrigerate for up to about 15 hours. At least 3 hours before you need them the next day, remove the buns from the refrigerator, keep covered, and allow to rise on the counter for about 1-2 hours before baking. (Skip step 7.) Alternatively, you can let the dough have its 1st rise in the refrigerator overnight. Cover the dough tightly and place in the refrigerator for up to 12 hours. Remove from the refrigerator and allow the dough to fully rise for 2 more hours. Continue with step 5.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Stand Mixer or Glass Mixing Bowl and Wooden Spoon / Silicone Spatula | 9×13-inch Baking Pan, two 9-inch Square Baking Pans, two 9-inch Round Baking Pans, Cast Iron Skillet, or Baking Sheet | Piping Bag (Disposable or Reusable)
- Optional Add-Ins: Instead of (or in addition to) raisins, try using dried cranberries, chopped pecans or walnuts, chopped candied citrus, or chopped dried apricots. Keep total add ins to about 1 and 3/4 cups total. Feel free to add the zest from 1 lemon or orange to the dough when you add the butter. Add 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves or cardamom, if desired. Feel free to adjust the spices to your liking. You can plump up the raisins, currants, or dried cranberries if desired. Soak in hot water for 5-10 minutes, drain, then pat dry before adding to dough.
- Whole Milk: Lower fat or nondairy milks work in a pinch. The rolls will lose a little flavor and richness. I highly recommend whole milk or even buttermilk.
- Cinnamon: Cinnamon can prohibit doughs from rising. We use 1 and 1/4 teaspoons in this dough to produce dense buns. If you want a fluffier roll-type hot cross bun, feel free to reduce the cinnamon down to 1/2 teaspoon or leave it out completely.
- Yeast: Use instant yeast or active dry yeast. Rise times will be slightly longer using active dry yeast. Reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
- Flour: You can use all-purpose flour or bread flour. All-purpose flour is convenient for most, but bread flour produces chewier hot cross buns. Either flour is fine and there are no other changes to the recipe if you use one or the other.
- Icing Cross: If you prefer to make a cross from icing and pipe it onto the buns after baking, skip step 9 and skip the orange icing glaze on top. However, you can use the orange icing recipe to make the icing cross. Reduce orange juice to 1 Tablespoon to yield a very thick icing. Replace with milk and add a splash of vanilla extract, if desired. Feel free to also make the orange glaze for topping if you want double icing—a cross and glaze all over.
Keywords: hot cross buns
I didn’t have a dough hook, so I made these by hand. You need to knead them way more than two minutes when doing it by hand. I probably kneaded the dough for 15 minutes before it was smooth enough.
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Hi Sally, I am going to make these today (shape this evening and refrigerate) to bake tomorrow morning – first time making hot cross buns! If I am using instant yeast do I still need to do step 1 or is that just for active dry yeast? Thanks!
You don’t HAVE to, but it doesn’t hurt or change anything if you still proof the instant yeast like you do the active dry.
Hi Sally, I’m attempting these buns for the first time and am a bit confused by the overnight instructions. I prepared last night through step 6. This morning do I need to leave them out to rise for 3 hours total or just 1-2 hours total before baking? Excited to see how they turn out. Thank you!
Thanks for sharing this recipe with us. Loved this recipe. So easy and delicous that everyone should try this. Also sharing with you guys a post on hot cross bun recipe. Check it out now: https://www.recipespack.com/hot-cross-buns-recipe/
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These are absolutely delicious Sally! Easy to make and super fluffy. Happy Easter.
Absolutely delicious! I shared some with a neighbor and she loved them. My husband was all smiles when he tried one too. Thanks for the great recipe and the easy to follow instructions. Have a blessed Easter!
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This was my first time making hot cross buns and they came out AMAZING!! They really are like half soft dinner rolls and half cinnamon rolls! Absolutely wonderful flavor and perfect consistency. I’m not a great baker and the instructions here were easy to follow and weren’t intimidating at all. I’ve already recommend the recipe to friends and it’s part of our now yearly Easter traditions. THANK YOU!!!!
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I’m English & it’s been years since I had hot cross buns. Recipe was easy to follow, used the buttermilk substitute, & orange icing is delicious. However, they don’t seem cooked all the way through. I did the right temp, rotated 1/2 way & pulled them out as the tops seemed golden brown. Inside the buns they’ve got that Paul Hollywood “underdone” texture. I even put them back in for 7 more mins. Bummed. Maybe if I toast them….?
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Tried to make today and failed! Did not temper the yeast properly and also used wrong setting on my mixer…threw that out and started again and voila beautiful buns, tasty and easy to make if you follow instructions! Thank you for this recipe.
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OMG..these are delicious. I followed your directions and they came out perfect. I didn’t have confectioner sugar so I made cooked frosting and made my crosses. My husband is a fan and about to have his second one. Btw, there is a shortage of yeast in my area. I had one pack left from my last purchase.
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Best hot cross buns I’ve ever made. Have tried two other recipes and this one tops them by far. Instead of the cross paste I slashed crosses on the unbaked buns before second rising. The orange glaze is delicious and I have a feeling the buns will stay softer because of a glaze rather than piped icing.
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Perfection … ! Didn’t have icing sugar so just softened some marmalade with orange juice over low heat and poured over. Delicious!!
Tried to make them this morning…when you say sticky dough exactly what does that mean. Also did not rise within the 2 hours..yeast used was dated 2021….did I over eat…so disappointed ..not the in the recipe but my poor skills!
Hi Jackie, You want to mix the dough until it comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl (but it will still be a bit sticky/tacky to the touch). If it’s not pulling away from the sides of the bowl you can add more flour a TBS at a time. In regards to the rise time, what type of yeast are you using? I use instant yeast. If you are using active yeast the rise time will be longer (see recipe notes for details).
Got up at 530 this morning to start them and they came out wonderfully! Froze half of them so I’m excited to taste the next batch too. Thanks for the recipe!
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Can I use whole wheat flour?
Hi Mary, You can try the combination of all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour, but I recommend sticking to all all-purpose flour for better results.
Such a great recipe! I made these this morning. They’re being devoured! So easy to follow and the buns are beautiful!
I don’t know how to add a photo here, wish I could. Am so proud of how they turned out.
I’m so happy they were a hit, Preeti! You can always tag me on a photo on social media or email me a photo to sally@sallysbakingaddiction.com.
Just made some: delicious!
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Hi Sally, recipe sounds great and want to try it today. Do I use the dough hook on my Kitchen Aid for the entire time? (Novice stand mixer user)
And I only have vanilla soy milk on hand. Do you think it would substitute for the whole milk? Should I cut the brown sugar a bit?
Thank you!
Holy moly, these were AMAZING. They were so easy to make too (Easier than any bread I’ve tried). Thank you for sharing this.
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Delicious, fairly straight forward recipe (read it all first) and they look amazing. Bun itself has a brioche style texture. Love the addition of orange (icing and zest in the dough for the vitamin C of course). Only problem I am encountering is eating all 15 sticky fruity buns all to my self in my little isolation world. Will do contact-free drops to neighbours so I can make more.
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Hi Sally, is it that I’ll have to do two separate orange icing mixtures ? One with 1 tbsp of orange juice for the cross and the other, 3 tbsp of orange juice for the glaze?
If yes, do they BOTH require that whole 1 cup of Icing sugar?
Hi Kami, if you prefer to make a cross from icing and pipe it onto the buns after baking, skip step 9 and skip the orange icing glaze on top. However, you can use the orange icing recipe to make the icing cross. Reduce orange juice to 1 Tablespoon to yield a very thick icing. Replace with milk and add a splash of vanilla extract, if desired. Feel free to also make the orange glaze for topping if you want double icing– a cross and glaze all over.
Can these be made with 2% milk? Also trying to make these with what I have!
Thank you!
Definitely!
Made these today, and started with another recipe which called for buttermilk (which I happened to have on hand for once!) but way less sugar, so I pivoted back to yours that I had bookmarked… so, the only sub I made was buttermilk for whole, and they are so nice!! I love that it’s all the same day AND that I can eat them pretty hot – the bread I’ve been involved in lately takes overnight and has to cool before cutting. The spice, raisins, and brown sugar make this sweet bun so special. Even my stoic no-compliments husband asked what was baking and is thrilled! I feel bad for any bakers who stayed with the other recipe from the other book, haha!
★★★★★
Delicious and easy recipe. The best recipe for hot cross buns!
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Can I make these with heavy cream in place of milk and use a little less butter? Trying to make these with what I have ….quarantine restrictions. 🙂
Hi Danielle! I haven’t tried those substitutions, but heavy cream is significantly thicker and denser than milk. Keep that in mind if you test this dough out that way!
Thanks for the recipe, we made these today, a 2nd attempt, we used Mary Berry’s recipe yesterday and they were like rocks! These were beautiful! So exciting when anything bread related actually works!
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Hi Sally! Do you think a 8×8 square pan will be big enough for a half recipe? I don’t think I have a 9×9.
You can try to squeeze them in, yes!
As a novice baker, I made th buns exactly as written, and they came out perfect. I did not glaze, and I only “crossed” four buns because my plastic bag burst. It’s a perfect consistency and taste of a hot cross bun.
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Hello Sally! Do you have the exact weight for the 2 1/4 teaspoons of instant yeast? A standard packet here in Malaysia is 11g, not sure if it’s the same over there and I’d like to try this out for Easter! Thank you
Hi Nameeta! 1 standard packet here is about 7g. Use the teaspoon measurement instead.
Thank you! I did just that. My dough was a little stickier than it needed to be – not sure if that had to do with the crazy hot weather today, so I kneaded more flour into it. After the first rise, the dough had tripled in size! Didn’t need the full hour for the second rise, the first few I had shaped were already starting to fluff by the time I finished. They’ve turned out absolutely beautiful – soft and fluffy and super tasty. Great recipe! It’s making Easter a little happier for my family 🙂
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Hi Sally-
Thank you for posting the link for the conversion chart for the cake yeast. I weighed it out on a food scale for 0.6oz and that was perfect! I never worked with yeast before and these came out fantastic!!!! Think I’ll try the dinner rolls tomorrow! 🙂
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