These traditional style classic Hot Cross Buns are perfectly spiced and filled with fruit. They are easy to make and have a vanilla bean pastry cream cross in place of the traditional flour and water cross for a super simple but delicious twist on the classic.
Original Post from 2019, Recipe slightly updated March 2021. Original images are below the recipe.
Table of contents
Hot Cross Buns with Custard Cross
Hi hi - just popping in to re-share this recipe for classic Hot Cross Buns with you. these are a Classic Hot Cross Bun - spiced dough, filled with fruit, and finished off with a pastry cream cross, which isn't technically a classic but is super, super good. The pastry cream cross is inspired by a restaurant in NZ called Ima who make the most incredible looking HCB every year - obviously I am a little far away so I had to make do with my own!
I re-made my recipe from 2019 and just updated the recipe a wee bit. I switched half the flour to Bread flour which provides a little more structure, and I also increased the milk and butter content in the dough by just a little. The recipe for pastry cream made way too much, so I've reduced it by half (although feel free to double as you can never have to much pastry cream!)
How to make Hot Cross Buns
These Hot Cross Buns are super easy to make, and just have a few extra steps to make them extra delicious. Here's the order that I do things in:
- Soak your fruit - The fruit goes into some strongly brewed Earl Grey Tea (see FAQ for other options) and is left to soak for half an hour to hydrate.
- Make the pastry cream - I do this while the fruit is soaking, then place it directly into the piping bag with a clip above the tip and another on the end of the bag, and leave it to cool in the piping bag, in the fridge. Alternatively you could pop it into an airtight container with some plastic pressed against the surface to cool.
- Make the dough - This step uses the stand mixer although you could do it by hand too. Bring the dough together and mix until smooth, then add the butter in a little at a time until you have a lovely smooth dough.
- Add the fruit - The fruit gets added in by hand - I find this is the best way to ensure it doesn't get squished.
- First rise - Leave the dough to rise at room temperature until doubled in size.
- Shape the Hot Cross Buns - The hot cross buns are shaped the same way as you would shape a bread roll. Tuck them into a pan and leave them to rise again until puffy.
- Score and bake - The key to getting the pastry cream cross on these is to score the buns before they go in the oven. The dough opens up and gives you a 'trench' to pipe the pastry cream into.
- Add the crosses - Add the pastry cream cross after 20 minutes in the oven, then return until done, another 10-15 minutes.
- Glaze and enjoy - Brush the buns with a syrup as soon as they come out of the oven, then leave to cool and enjoy!
FAQ for Hot Cross Buns
Yes, you can do the first rise overnight. I would leave the dough to stand on the counter for 30 minutes or so first to kick start the rise before you put it in the fridge. They will take a little longer to rise the next day.
If you don’t like Earl Grey Tea (you can’t really taste it, but some people just don’t like it), you can soak the fruit in some warmed orange juice, or strong black tea. They would be good soaked in chai too!
We can't get mixed spice here in the US but you can replace the spice mix with mixed spice if you have it! I just made my own. Feel free to swap things out or in etc as you see fit.
You can use all AP and it will be just fine!
The original recipe made way too much pastry cream so I have reduced the quantity by half. You shouldn't have loads left over but you can use it in the place of butter when serving if you like!
Yes, you will just need to make a flour and water roux instead of the pastry cream. 40g water and 40g flour combined until a paste and then piped into crosses over the buns (no need to score) before baking. You can see how that looks here
You can make these any size that you want - if you see the old images I did these as 20. Just weigh your dough and divide that amount by however many buns you want. You will need to adjust the pan size.
Cinnamon inhibits the rise on yeast, so make sure you account for that. It will take about 2 hours for your first rise and about 1 ½ for the second rise.
You can use either instant or active dry. I used instant in the second test. If you want to use active dry then activate the yeast in the warm milk with some of the sugar before proceeding with the recipe.
It should be fine to make these by hand, it will just take some elbow grease! Make sure the dough is super soft and smooth before adding in the soaked fruit.
Bread flour is high protein flour - it is called High Grade Flour in NZ and Strong Flour in the UK! All-purpose is 'plain flour'
It should work fine! Just divide everything in two. It may not work if you have a big mixer as it may not be enough dough but you should be fine!
I used a 9x13" pan for the 12 buns, if you are dividing them smaller you will want to use a regular baking sheet and place them so they are only just not touching - you want them to rise and join together
For more Classic NZ recipes, check out:
Made this recipe and love it?
If you make this Hot Cross Bun Recipe, I would LOVE if you could leave me a review below and let me know how you liked it! Please also make sure to tag me on Instagram if you make it!
A note on salt and oven temperature
It is important to note the type of salt that is called for in a recipe. I use Diamond Crystal salt throughout my recipes - if you use a different sort of kosher salt or regular table salt you will need to adjust accordingly as some salt is 'saltier' than others. Morton's salt is twice as salty, so you will need half the quantity. Same goes for a regular table salt. I am working to get gram measurements throughout my recipes for salt but still getting there.
All oven temperatures are conventional unless otherwise stated. If you are baking on fan, you will need to adjust the temperature. An oven thermometer is a great investment to ensure that your oven is the correct temperature.
Why is this recipe in grams?
I post my recipes in grams because it is the most accurate way to bake. Cups are not only inaccurate but they vary in volume worldwide. However, there is no way for me to provide one cup measure that works for everyone. Posting in weight fixes this issue. If you would like the recipe in cups, then you are welcome to convert it yourself via google. However, please do not ask me to do it for you as I am not comfortable providing a recipe using a method that I have not tested. Baking with a scale is easy, accurate, and also makes cleanup super simple. Here is the scale that I use if you would like a recommendation! Here's to accurate baking!
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Hot Cross Buns with Pastry Cream Cross
- Prep Time: 3 hours
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 buns 1x
- Category: Easter
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: New Zealand
Description
These traditional style classic Hot Cross Buns are perfectly spiced and filled with fruit. They are easy to make and have a vanilla bean pastry cream cross in place of the traditional flour and water cross for a super simple but delicious twist on the classic.
Ingredients
Pastry Cream Cross
- 20g corn starch
- 45g sugar
- 1 egg
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tsp vanilla bean paste
- 200g whole milk
- 20g unsalted butter, at room temperature
Bun Dough
- 300g strongly brewed earl grey tea (see notes)
- 200g raisins, golden raisins, or sultanas
- 50g dried currants
- 380g whole milk, lukewarm
- 120g granulated sugar
- 3 tsp instant yeast
- 300g all-purpose flour
- 290g bread flour (High grade or strong if you're outside the US!)
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 ¼ tsp cinnamon
- 1 ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 ¼ tsp ground ginger
- ¾ tsp allspice
- ½ tsp ground cloves
- ½ tsp cardamom
- ½ tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 130g unsalted butter, at room temperature
Sugar Syrup
- 30g water
- 25g Sugar
- ⅛ tsp vanilla bean paste (optional)
- tiny pinch of salt
Instructions
VANILLA BEAN PASTRY CREAM
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the corn starch and sugar. Add the eggs, salt, and vanilla bean paste, and whisk well to combine.
- In a medium saucepan, place the milk over a low heat until just shy of a simmer.
Whisking constantly, pour about half of the warm milk mixture into the egg mixture. Whisk until smooth, then add back into the saucepan. Whisking constantly, cook until thick. Add the butter and whisk to combine. - Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a round piping tip, and a clip just above the tip to prevent any leakage. Twist the piping bag closed, or secure with another clip, and store in the fridge until needed.
HOT CROSS BUN DOUGH
- Place the raisins and currants in a medium bowl, and cover with the hot Earl Grey tea. Leave to soak for 30 minutes, then drain thoroughly - I like to transfer them to a sieve and leave them to drain while I make the dough.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, place the sugar, yeast, all-purpose flour, bread flour, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, cloves, cardamom, and coriander, and mix well to combine.
- Add the milk and vanilla bean paste to the dry ingredients, and mix on low for 2-3 minutes. Increase the speed of the mixer to medium, and mix for a further 5 minutes. Add the butter a little at a time, waiting until it is incorporated until adding the next piece. Mix for a further 7-10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and soft.
- Turn out the dough onto a work surface and knead in the fruit by hand. It will take longer than you expect and feel squishy, but the fruit will eventually incorporate into the dough.
- Shape the dough into a ball, and place in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm spot until doubled in size, 1 to 1 ½ hours, or place in the fridge overnight.
ASSEMBLY
- Line a baking sheet or baking pan with parchment paper. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface, and weigh the dough. Divide the weight of the dough by 12, and divide the dough into 12 equal sized pieces (or however many buns you want).
- Roll each tightly into a ball, then arrange evenly on the baking pan. I find using a little bench flour helps to get the fruit all rolled on the inside. Leave a little space between - don’t space them too far apart if you want them to join together in the oven to give the ‘classic’ hot cross bun look.
- Lightly cover the pan with plastic wrap, and leave in a warm place for 1-2 hours, until the buns are puffy and the dough springs back when lightly pressed with a finger (rise time will depend on your environment).
- Preheat the oven to 350°f / 180°c. Using a sharp paring knife or razor blade, score crosses in the buns.
Bake the buns for 20 minutes, then remove from the oven and pipe the pastry cream in crosses in the holes provided by the scoring. - Return the buns to the oven and bake for a further 10 to 15 minutes, or until the buns are lightly golden brown, or until they register 200°f / 90°c on an instant read thermometer. While the buns are baking, prepare the sugar syrup.
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool, before brushing on the sugar syrup (recipe below).
SUGAR SYRUP
- Place all the ingredients in a small saucepan, and bring to a boil. Boil for 1-2 minutes, then leave to stand until ready to use.
Store leftover buns in an airtight container at room temperature. Reheat in the microwave briefly before eating. Serve with butter.
Notes
Pastry cream cross adapted from Ima
Keywords: Hot Cross Buns, Easy Hot Cross Buns, Classic Hot Cross Buns, Custard, Pastry Cream
Baked these yesterday but left out the pastry cream cross only because i had no vanilla bean paste and im a bit lazy like that! I did the second rise overnight in the fridge and baked in the morning. they turned out just like my favorite bakery store bought hot cross buns if not better! love your recipes, they are perfect! thank you!
So, so good! I made these with the chocolate pastry cream cross from your other recipe. So delicious and soft... thank you again!!!
Ah yayyy so happy you loved!
I think these may be the best hot cross buns I've ever made, maybe ever eaten? Could be because I got to enjoy them warm from the oven for the first time. Light, fluffy and perfectly spiced - they tasted just like home.
Ahhhh so happy you love!
I can't stop eating these! They're so good! Love the spices, the pastry cream on top, and how soft they are. Thank you for a wonderful recipe! Your recipes are worth the time and effort!
★★★★★
Ahh thank you so much!
Easy recipe to follow and they turned out perfect! My friends said they were the best hot x buns they've tasted! Thank you for the recipe
★★★★★
Of course! Thank you so much for the lovely review! x
These buns are wonderful. The pastry cream is delicious. This is my first attempt at hot cross buns! I cut the amount of raisins in 1/2 to suit our tastes. I did the second rise overnight in the fridge after about 30 min on the counter. I baked them Easter morning so they were fresh. Such a lovely spice blend and a tender bread. Very helpful information in this post. Your video on Instagram was also helpful. Thank you!
★★★★★
Ahhh I am so happy that you loved, thank you so much for the lovely review!
love the pastry cream cross!!!!
★★★★★
The best part!
the best!!
★★★★★
Hello Erin The buns are still rising so can't give a rating yet. I like how you add the measurements in grams as I really dislike cup measurements. I'd like it even better if the yeast measurement was also in grams.
Hi! I do a kind of hybrid mix when it comes to recipes. I can't guarantee that everyone will have a scale which does the accuracy needed for measuring yeast so it's safest if I do it in tsp etc! some scales only do 5g increments or aren't sensitive enough, so that's why I do it the way that I do 🙂
If you LOVE a good hot cross bun, then make these, and your life will be complete. You'll also NEVER want to know a boring old non-pastry-cream hot cross bun again, ever.
Yay yay so happy you loved them! Thanks so much for the lovely feedback 🙂
Maybe you could put the yeast measurements in g and teaspoon. My scales weigh to 0.1 g.
Not everyone has scales that do that though. I’ve put the gram weight in for yeast before and it didn’t go well which is why I have it in tsp. I have a lot of people on my site each month so have developed a method for writing the recipes that works for everyone and the way I can ensure that the recipes are made as accurately as possible. You’re welcome to do the conversion though for the yeast if you need 🙂
Absolutely delicious recipe - love the custard crosses.. going to try chocolate ones next!
★★★★★
Yay yessss they are so good!
Hey hey! Just a private comment, I’m making these again and in your rewrite you seem to have missed the instructions for what to do with the lukewarm milk and yeast - I seem to remember adding a bit of sugar to that and to leave the yeast and milk for 10? minutes?
Cancel! I see what you’ve done
Yesss I think I updated the recipe between you last making them and now! Switched to Instant yeast 🙂
These are delicious!!! The pastry cream is an amazing addition!! Thank you!
So happy you loved them! Isn't the pastry cream so so good!
I’ve made these several years in a row now and they are simply the best! I do the first rise overnight in the fridge and just did normal crosses rather than pastry cream this year. So good!
★★★★★
Yayyy yesss! Happy Easter!
Super soft and fluffy with great spice, just as promised! I didn't have bread flour so I used all AP flour, did the first rise overnight and opted for a classic flour-water cross - they turned out amazing. Be patient when folding in the raisins, it can take a while to incorporate. Thanks for the great recipe Erin!
★★★★★
Yay so happy that they turned out so well, thank you so much for the lovely review!
Made these yesterday and my friends declared these the best HXBs they'd ever tried! Subbed in the prepackaged mixed spice in place of the individual spices because that was what I had on hand, and only used 100g of raisins for the same reason, but they still turned out wonderfully.
I used a KitchenAid mini and found it helped to rest the dough for 5-10 mins after incorporating the butter and then finish kneading by hand for the last few minutes. I found this made a big difference to achieve a smooth dough (I struggle to achieve this in the KA mini normally with the dough hook). Also lazily nuked the syrup in the microwave to avoid washing the pot again.
The most delicious, fluffy (and best looking) buns I've made to date 🙂
P.S thank you for providing the recipe in grams. Nothing that makes me run away from a recipe faster than measuring ingredients in cups... too many variables!
★★★★★
Ahhh these are all such helpful notes, thank you so, so much!
Completely agree about cup measurements. They're a recipe for disasters.
Think I have finally found my go to HCB recipe!
★★★★★
Yayyyy!
These were incredible! Had a wee bit of pastry cream leftover after piping, so saved it and had it in the middle of the buns with butter - yum!!
★★★★★
Yay so happy you loved!
Always the best recipes from cloudy kitchen. The pastry cream crosses are delicious!
★★★★★
Thank you thank you!
Such a perfect recipe! ~SO~ weird how recipes in grams seem to turn out just the way they’re meant to. Love your work.
★★★★★
Hhahahahha it's wild right?! like they just work exactly as I intend!
Hi Erin, we don’t have all-purpose flour in South Africa. Can I use cake flour instead?
Hi! No please don't use cake flour as it is not high enough in protein. Sometimes all-purpose is called 'plain' flour?
Recipe is amazing! I’ve never cooked anything bread-y before so didn’t have super high hopes, but they turned out perfect!
★★★★★
Ah yayyy so happy that you loved them!
Made these classic hot cross buns yesterday for Easter and what a success! They are absolutely delicious - Recipe saved!
★★★★★
Yayyyy thank you for such a lovely review! I hope you had a great Easter 🙂
Yayyyy thank you for such a lovely review! I hope you had a great Easter 🙂
The smell and flavor of these hot cross buns are divine! I could eat these every day. The recipe was super easy to follow and very successful. I don't have a stand mixer currently, so I did everything by hand. I added a bit more kneading time because I'm not as stong as a stand mixer and it was a lot of effort, but totally worth it. I wonder if next time I could melt the butter and add it in with the milk, in order to save the work of kneading in soft butter? Thanks for the absolutely delicious recipe!!
★★★★★
Hiii! So happy you loved! The reason the butter is added after is to give the gluten some time to develop before the fat goes in. So you could try it but I have no idea how it would go!
Hey Erin, have you made tried this dough as a loaf? If so, how was it? The buns were great but a loaf would be great as well! Thanks!
I haven't sorry but it should work!
These were the first hot crumps buns I’ve ever made and honestly were the best buns I’ve had. I made them by hand and now have a mixer so gonna defo try and make them again with my mixer.
*cross
Tbh I kind of prefer hot crumps buns hahahahaha
Hot cross buns are my all time favourite and this recipe does not disappoint! A good amount of spice and the custard cross is a game changer! I slightly over proofed mine due to timing issues on my part, but it didn't even matter cause they came out great! Can't wait to make them again in Easter
★★★★★