Orange Flavoured Hot Cross Buns

Every year I bake my home-made hot cross buns for a Good Friday breakfast, and today I baked some for tomorrow!.

This year I modified my usual recipe, adding some orange juice and zest to the dough, and orange extract to the biscuit dough and icing. I made two types, 12 of them with biscuit crosses and the other 9 have icing crosses.

Both hot cross buns are awesome!  I have been baking hot cross buns for many years, but these are definitely No.1!

So, I would like to quickly publish my newly modified recipe, so that, if you are planning to bake some tomorrow, I can share my gorgeous hot cross buns with you.

The measurements shown below are metric scales which I usually use.  I did not have time to convert the figures into avoirdupois.  If necessary, I would appreciate it if you could do so yourself.


Ingredients for 21 buns
(bread dough)
540g all-purpose flour (alternative to British plain flour) + dusting
1.5 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg powder
1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger
1.5 teaspoon salt
60g butter
60g sugar
1 egg
zest of 1 orange
juice of 1 medium orange, pour into a measuring cup
milk, add to the measuring cup holding the orange juice to make it up to 260ml
2 teaspoons bread machine yeast

(dried fruits)
70g raisins
40g golden raisins
40g currants

(other)
butter to grease the baking pans
1 egg, well beaten with pinch of salt for egg wash

(biscuit dough for 12 buns)
100g all-purpose flour + extra for dusting
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
30g icing sugar
50g butter, cubed (half inch) and chilled
1 teaspoon orange flavour extract (sometimes called orange water in the supermarket)
A little milk (enough to make the dough smooth)

(icing for 9 buns)
100g icing sugar
1 teaspoon orange flavoured extract
more or less than 1 tablespoon milk


Instructions
Place all the dough ingredients in a bread machine pan according to the recommended order by the manufacture, then select the raisin dough cycle.  Add the dried fruits when beeps.

To make the biscuit dough, sieve the flour, baking powder and icing sugar into a mixing bowl.  Add the butter to the flour, then with your fingertips or using a pastry blender, rub the butter into the flour lightly until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

Add the orange extract and then, little by little milk (about 1 teaspoonful each addition) to the flour mixture, then mix the pastry until it becomes smooth.  Do not put too much milk!  As the flour mixture has quite high amount of powder sugar, it will end up becoming too sticky to roll.  Wrap the pastry in aluminium foil and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Remove the biscuit dough from the fridge, then unwrap.  On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to the size of 12 x 6 inch rectangular.  Using a pie cutter or knife, cut the dough into half inch x 24 strips.  

When the dough cycle finishes, remove the dough from the pan and place on a lightly floured surface.  Punch down the dough, then divide it into 21 equal sized balls.  Place 9 of them in a greased 8 inch square disposable aluminium baking pan and cover with a damp cloth and let them rest in a warm room for 50 minutes to 1 hour.  These buns are for presents and given away in the pan.

As for the rest of buns, first of all, grease well a 11 inch flan tin with butter and line the base with parchment paper.  Now, place two strips of biscuit dough on the bun forming a cross, cut the extra biscuit dough and roughly tucking each end of the cross to the bottom of bun.  Remember that the bread dough will rise but the biscuit dough will not.  This means if you tuck the cross tightly under the buns, the biscuit strips will break easily as they do not expand as much as the buns.

Place three buns close together (forming a triangle) in the centre, then place the rest evenly around the circumference of the tin.  Cover the rolls with a damp cloth and let them rest in a warm room for  50 minutes to 1 hour, or until they double in size.

Brush all the buns with egg wash and bake in the preheated oven at 200C (400F) for 12 - 15 minutes.

When the buns are baked, remove from the oven and cool for 15 minutes.  As for the 9 buns to be given as a present, leave to cool down as they are, and as for the other 12 rolls, remove from the flan tin and cool.  Do not attempt to remove the 12 rolls from the tin without the 15 minutes cooling time, as the biscuit dough is very fragile when hot and will break.

To make orange flavoured icing, place the icing sugar in a mixing bowl, add the orange flavoured extract and gradually add the milk to make icing which is quite thick but still able to pipe.  Pipe the icing on the 9 buns forming a cross.

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Below is the Japanese version of the recipe.  If you would like to read this recipe in Japanese with pictures covering every step, please click HERE.

Bon appetit! 


＜材料　２１個分＞
（パン生地）
強力粉．．．２７０ｇ＋打粉
薄力粉．．．２７０ｇ（粉をあわせる代わりに、オールパーポスかプレーンのみ５４０ｇでも可）
シナモンパウダー．．．小さじ１．５
ナツメグパウダー．．．小さじ１／２
ジンジャーパウダー．．．小さじ１／２
塩．．．小さじ１．５
バター．．．６０ｇ
砂糖．．．６０ｇ
卵．．．１個
オレンジ皮．．．普通サイズ１個分
オレンジ汁．．．普通サイズ１個分を計量カップに入れる
牛乳．．．オレンジ汁の入った計量カップにメモリ２６０ｍｌまで注ぎ入れる
ドライイースト．．．小さじ２

（ドライフルーツ）
レーズン．．．８０ｇ
サルタナ（ゴールデンレーズン）．．．４０ｇ
カランツ．．．４０ｇ
ドライフルーツは、３つ揃わない場合は２種類でも１種類でも、またクランベリーなどを代用してもオーケーです。

（その他）
バター．．．型に塗る分適宜（型を使わず個別にトレーに載せて焼いてももちオーケー！）
溶き卵、塩ひとつまみを加えよく溶く．．．生地に塗る分適宜

（ビスケット生地　約１２個分）
薄力粉（またはオールパーポスやプレインでも可）．．．１００ｇ＋打粉
ベーキングパウダー．．．小さじ１／４
アイシングシュガー（粉糖）．．．３０ｇ
無塩バター、角切りした冷蔵庫から出したてのもの．．．５０ｇ
オレンジエッセンス．．．小さじ１
牛乳．．．少量

（アイシング　約９個分）
アイシングシュガー．．．１００ｇ
オレンジエッセンス．．．小さじ１
牛乳．．．少量
オレンジエッセンスが手に入らなかった場合は、ビスケット生地にもアイシングにも、バニラエッセンスを代用されると良いです。


＜作り方＞
１．パン生地の材料をホームベーカリーの容器に入れ、レーズン生地コースを選択。ブザーと同時にドライフルーツ３種を投入する。（フルーツディスペンサーの付いた機種は、そちらをご利用くださいまし！）

２．生地を捏ねている間にビスケット生地の準備をする。粉、ベーキングパウダー、アイシングシュガーを合わせ篩う。冷蔵庫から出したてのバターを加え、ペーストリーブレンダーか指で、そぼろ状になるまでよく粉に擦り込む。

３．２にオレンジエッセンスを加える。牛乳を少量ずつ（小さじ１程度）徐々に加え、スムーズな生地にまとめる。（牛乳の入れすぎには注意です。小麦粉に対する粉糖の割合が多いので、水分を加えすぎるとベタベタの生地になります。）

４．３をラップに包み、更にその上からアルミフォイルで包んで、冷蔵庫で最低１時間冷やす。

５．生地コースが終了する約３０分ほど前、ビスケット生地を冷蔵庫から取り出し、打粉をした台の上で、縦１０ｃｍｘ横３０ｃｍ程度の長方形に延ばす。パイカッターなどを使い、約１ｃｍ間隔に縦に生地を切り、十字架用の帯を準備しておく。

６．コースの終了した生地を打粉をした台の上に取り出す。ガス抜きをし、２１個に均等に分けて丸める。内９個は、バターを塗った２０ｃｍのアルミ角型に、生地と生地、及び生地と型の間に平均にスペースを取って並べ、濡れ布巾を被せて２次発酵。

７．残りの１２個の生地には５で準備したビスケット生地の帯を、十字の形に貼りつける。余分な生地を切り取り、バンズの底面に軽く折り込む。

８．バターを塗り、底面にはパーチメントペーパーを敷いた２７～２８ｃｍのタルト型に、真ん中に３つ、周囲に９つを、平均にスペースを取りながら並べる。濡れ布巾を被せこちらも２次発酵。

９．溶き卵をどちらの型のバンズにも薄く塗り、２００度で予熱を済ませたオーブンで、１２～１５分、または表面にこんがりと焼き目が付くまで焼く。オーブンから取り出したらラックに移し、型を抜くバンズはまず側面を抜き、３０分程度冷ましてから底面とペーパーを取り除く。

１０．アイシングを作る。粉糖にオレンジエッセンスと牛乳少量（量的には大さじ１程度。但し一度に加えず、徐々に加えてくださいませ！）を加えてよく混ぜ、歯磨き程度固さのアイシングを作る。冷めた９つのバンズの表面に十字架を描く。

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Spicy Double Pumpkin Rolls

These rolls are a delicious modification to cinnamon rolls.  I first baked these using one of the pumpkins that we decorated for Halloween 2012.

Homemade pumpkin puree is included in both the dough and the puree, and the fillings are both spicy and far more moist than ordinary cinnamon rolls.

These rolls are exceptionally tasty and I am 100% sure that you'll love them!

Ingredients for 12 rolls
1 medium size sugar pumpkin

(Dough)
3 cups all-purpose flour + for dusting
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons soft brown sugar
4 tablespoons butter + for greasing
5 5/8 oz pureed sugar pumpkin
1/2 orange zest grated
3/10 cup milk
3/10 cup water
2 teaspoons dry yeast

(Sweet Pumpkin Paste)
10 1/2oz pureed sugar pumpkin
5 1/4 soft brown sugar
1/2 orange zest grated
1 orange juice
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

(Vanilla Icing)
2 oz powder sugar
1 level tablespoon milk
few drops vanilla extract

1 egg yolk and 1 tablespoon of milk beaten together to make the egg wash
some chopped hazel nuts for topping (optional)


Instructions
Rinse the pumpkin, cut off the top and halve.  Scrape off the seeds and spongy fibers and cut into large cubes.  Arrange the pumpkin cubes on a steamer basket in a single layer.

Put a couple of inches of water in a pan which is slightly larger than the steamer basket.  Put on the lid, place the pan on the heat and bring to a boil.  When the pan starts steaming, place the steamer basket over the boiling water.  Cook until the pumpkin flesh is soft when pierced with a skewer.

Cool the pumpkin and scoop out the flesh.  Discard the skin.  Roughly mash the pumpkin, then force it through a strainer to make it smooth puree.  Divide the puree to 5 5/8 oz for the dough and 10 1/2 oz for the sweet pumpkin paste.  The rest can be stored in the freezer for later meals.

To make the dough, place all the dough ingredients in a bread machine pan according to the recommended order by the manufacture, then select the dough cycle.

To make the sweet pumpkin paste, put all the ingredients in a pan and place on a low heat.  Stirring constantly, cook it until most of the liquid evaporates and the consistency becomes thicker.  Remove from the heat and cool completely.

When the dough cycle finishes, remove the dough from the pan and place on a lightly floured surface.  Punch down the dough, then form it into a ball.  Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest for 10 - 15 minutes.

Lightly punch down the dough again, then roll it out into about 16 x 12 inch rectangle.  Spread the sweet pumpkin paste all over the dough.

Starting at one of long sides, roll up the dough and pinch the seam to seal.  Slice the dough into 12 equal pieces.  Make sure you clean the knife with a damp cloth after every slice.

Grease well a 11 inch flan tin with butter and line the base with parchment paper.  Place three rolls close together (forming a triangle) in the centre, then place the rest evenly around the circumference of the tin.  Cover the rolls with a damp cloth and let them rest for 40 - 50 minutes, or until they are doubled in size.

Brush the rolls with egg wash and bake for 30 - 35 minutes in a preheated oven at 350F.

Cool a little then remove from the tin.  Let the rolls cool on a wire rack.

Mix well all the icing ingredients and glaze the cooled rolls.  Top with the chopped hazel nuts if you like.


If you would like to read this recipe in Japanese, please click HERE.

Bon appetit!

Lou’s Cinnamon Rolls

Lou and I became friends through our respective Japanese blogs. We have never met, but we have been keeping up our friendship for 3 – 4 years and now we are more than just “blog friends”.

Lou is a Japanese housewife with two lovely kids. She is extremely good at baking different breads. Her bread recipes vary from soft loaves to sweet rolls.

Lou often introduces her masterpieces in her blog. One day, she wrote an article about the cinnamon rolls that she baked that day and showed the picture of these yummy rolls to her blog readers. They looked so delicious and I immediately fell in love with them! So, I asked her for the recipe.

The recipe I am going to introduce to you today is a modification of Lou’s Cinnamon Rolls. I changed the flour from 100% bread flour to all-purpose flour, the liquid from only milk to a mixture of milk and eggs, the filling from just cinnamon sugar with raisins, to cinnamon butter cream with rum, raisins and walnuts, and finally coated them with some vanilla icing.

I know you can buy ready-made cinnamon roll dough at any supermarkets, but just once, spare a couple of hours and make it from the dough following Lou’s recipe. You will never buy the ready-made dough again, as these are super delicious cinnamon rolls!


Ingredients for 32 rolls
(Dough)
1 1/3 lb all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
4 1/4 tablespoons butter
4 1/4 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 large eggs, beaten
Milk, add to the beaten eggs and make it to 14 oz (1 3/4 cups)
2 teaspoons bread machine yeast

(Fillings)
1 1/2 tablespoons butter, soften
1 1/4 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon powder
6 oz raisins
4 tablespoon rum
5 oz walnuts, chopped

(Glaze)
1 egg yolk + 1 tablespoon milk for glazing

(Vanilla Icing)
4 oz icing sugar
few drops of vanilla essence or oil
1 1/2 – 2 tablespoonsof milk to make your preferred thickness of icing

Instructions
Put the dough ingredients into the pan following the directions for your bread maker. Select the dough course.

Prepare the filling. In a small mixing bowl, place the butter, brown sugar and cinnamon powder and mix well. In a microwavable cup, place the raisins and pour in the rum, then cook them in the microwave for 1 minute. Leave to cool completely.

When the dough course finishes, remove the pan from the machine and turn the dough out to a lightly floured surface. Push down the dough gently, then divide it into 4 balls. Cover with a damp cloth or with lightly greased cling film and let them rest for 15 minutes.

Push down the ball gently again, then with a rolling pin roll it out to a 8”x 10” rectangular shape. Spread 1/4 of the butter mixture onto the dough and scatter 1/4 of raisins then 1/4 of the walnuts. Starting from the long edge, roll up the dough tightly into a cylinder. You may need to stretch and shape the roll to make it even.

Cut the rolled-up dough into 8 equal slices. Place them, cut sides up, on a lined or greased cookie sheet. Cover with a damp cloth or with lightly greased cling film. Repeat for the rest of balls and let them rise for about 40 minutes.

Brush the dough lightly with the egg mixture and bake for 20 - 25 minutes in a preheated oven at 350F.

When the rolls have been baked, transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool completely.

To make the vanilla icing, mix together the sugar, vanilla oil and 1 tablespoon of milk. Add more milk (1 teaspoon each time) to make it your preferred thickness of icing. Drizzle over the cooled cinnamon rolls.


If you would like to read this recipe in Japanese, please click HERE.

Bon appetit!

Egg Mayo Cornets

I heard that making cream horns with bread dough rather than pastry was a Japanese invention.

We call those sweet rolls “Choco Cornet”, as they are usually filled with chocolate custard cream (occasionally you can see plain custard version, too).

Anyway… I recently found and then bought horn forms from Amazon. When they arrived, I tried to make Japanese style cornet rolls right away!

Choco Cornets are so cute and so sweet, and very popular sweet rolls in Japan. However, neither my husband nor I am a big sweet fan, and so I, instead of filling the horns with chocolate custard cream, filled with one of his favourite sandwich fillings – Egg Mayo.

It worked very well and so so so… delicious that he could not stop eating!

Ingredients for 12 cornets

(Dough)

10 6/10oz all-purpose flour + extra for dusting

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons butter

1 egg

5/8 cup milk

1 1/2 teaspoon bread machine yeast

(Other)

1 egg york + 1 tablespoon milk for glazing

Some egg mayonnaise filling in your style

Instructions

Put the dough ingredients into the pan following the directions for your bread maker. Select the dough course.

When the dough course finishes, remove the pan from the machine and turn the dough out to a lightly floured surface. Push down the dough gently, then divide it into 12 balls. Cover with a damp cloth or with lightly greased cling film and let them rest for 15 minutes.

Push down the ball gently again, then with your palms roll it into 11” sausage shape which should be a little thicker than a pencil. Wrap the dough around a horn form beginning from the pointed end. Place the horn, seam side down, on a greased or lined baking tray. Repeat for the rest of the balls.

Cover the horns with a damp cloth or greased cling film and let them rise for 30 – 40 minutes until almost double the size.

Brush the dough lightly with the egg mixture and bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven at 350F.

When the cornets have been baked, remove the horn forms immediately and then leave them to cool on a wire rack completely before filling with the egg mayonnaise.

NOTE: To fill 6 cornets, I made the egg mayonnaise using 5 boiled eggs, some mayonnaise, 1 teaspoon English mustard and salt & pepper to taste. Those that are garnished with chopped parsley are filled with the standard egg mayo and others sprinkled with paprika are filled with egg bacon mayonnaise.


If you would like to read this recipe in Japanese, please click HERE.

Bon appetit!