Sourdough Hot Cross Buns
Course:
Breakfast
Ingredients
Levain
- 8 grams Sourdough Starter
- 64 grams Bread Flour
- 64 grams Water
- 10 grams Sugar
Sourdough Hot Cross Bun Dough
- 120 grams Sourdough Starter (from the levain above)
- 240 grams Milk (whole)
- 90 grams Brown Sugar
- 1 Egg
- 1 Orange Zest (1 orange)
- 535 grams Bread Flour
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1⁄2 teaspoons Allspice
- 1⁄2 teaspoons Ground Cloves
- 72 grams Butter (room temp)
- 100 grams Currants
Egg Wash
- 1 Egg
- Splash Water
Piping Mixture for the Cross
- 40 grams Plain Flour
- 50 grams Water
Orange Glaze
- 90 grams Confectioners' Sugar
- 20 grams Orange Juice
Steps
Day 1:
- Mix together ripe sourdough starter, all-purpose flour, granulated sugar and water. Cover and keep in a warm 78ºF place for about 8-10 hours until bubbly, doubled in size and active. Over night is recommended.
Day 2:
- Warm the milk in the microwave to right around 90ºF.
- To the bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook, add the ripe levain, warmed milk, brown sugar, egg and orange zest. Add the bread flour, salt, cinnamon, allspice and cloves on top.
- Turn on the mixer and knead for about 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and all the ingredients well incorporated.
- Cut the butter into 8-10 chunks. Butter should be firm but soft enough to leave a dent when you press your finger into the butter. Turn the mixer on and add chunks of butter into the dough a little at a time. Continue adding chunks of butter until all the butter is added and incorporates into the dough.
- Continue kneading the dough on medium speed for about 5-10 minutes until the dough is smooth and soft.
- Add the currants and knead for another minute until currants are mixed throughout the dough.
- At this point the dough will be soft and cohesive. Dump the dough into a container and cover. Set the dough in a warm, 78-80ºF place for 4 hours. Take the temperature of the dough as needed to make sure the dough temperature stays right around 78-80ºF. This temperature is the optimal fermentation. If your dough temperature is cooler than 78ºF, it will need to ferment longer than 4 hours.
- Shape and Proof: Dump the dough out onto a (clean) counter top. Cut the dough into 12 equal-sized pieces. Take each piece of dough and pull/pinch up the sides until it forms a ball. Roll the ball on the counter using your hand in a cupping shape (see video here) to seal the balls and create tension for the bun to rise.
- Line a 9 by 13 pan with parchment paper (so the buns stay soft and don't stick on to the bottom) and place dough balls in the pan, 3 across and 4 down. Cover the pan and let the buns rise overnight for about 8-10 hours at 78-80ºF.
Day 3:
- The next morning, the dough should be puffed up and doubled in size. If the rolls are not puffed up and risen, place them in a warmer place to finish rising. Pre-heat the oven to 175ºC.
- While the oven is preheating, prepare a simple egg wash by whisking an egg with a little splash of water. Brush on top of all the buns.
- Mix together 40 grams flour with 50 grams water. Add mixture to a piping bag (or ziplock bag). Snip off the end and pipe a line down the center of each row of buns. Turn the pan 90º and pipe a straight line across the buns in the other direction, resulting in a cross on all the buns.
- Bake buns in the oven for 30 minutes until baked all the way through until the internal temperature is 190ºF.
- Glaze: Mix together powdered sugar with the juice of an orange. A few minutes after the buns come out of the oven, brush the glaze all over the tops of the buns. Let cool a little bit and enjoy!
Source: https://amybakesbread.com/sourdough-hot-cross-buns/#wprm-recipe-container-25236