What would Easter be without hot cross buns? I personally have never gotten into them, but my kiddies love them. Before you give in to your cravings and sink your teeth into the sugar laden store-bought buns, try making one that doesn’t hurt your healthy streak. This recipe makes 10 so you’ve got more than enough to share!
The tradition was said to have originated from an Anglican monk of the 12th century when he began the practice of marking buns with a cross to honour Good Friday. Soon, it became popular in England and versions of it began to spread across countries, even Greece. The classic version is much simpler, a mildly-spicy, sweet bun with either raisins or currants.
The cross used to be simply dough or imprinted with a knife but our recipe is a little more fancy and modern. We’re setting the bar high for nutrition and flavour, adding more beneficial ingredients.
For the buns:
250g wholemeal flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
½ cup buttermilk
2 tbsp raw honey
2½ tbsp avocado oil
2 eggs
1 tsp lemon juice
½ tsp vanilla extract
½ orange zest
For the paste:
1 tbsp avocado oil
1 tbsp cacao powder
Make sure the oven is preheated to 180 degrees Celsius and prepare a baking tray with parchment. Mix all the dry ingredients plus baking soda in a bowl. Do the same with the buttermilk, honey, avocado oil, just one of the eggs, lemon juice, vanilla extract and orange zest in another until a reaches a mildly fluffy consistency.
Pour the blend to the first bowl and and fold them gently together until you get a sticky dough. Place it on a clean surface dusted with flour and cut it into 10 pieces. Cover your hands with flour and form them into buns. Put them on the tray. Whisk the egg and brush it onto the buns.
To make the paste, mix the cacao powder and the oil then place it in a piping bag. If you don’t have one, use a makeshift one with a ziplock bag and cutting a corner, or rolling a sheet of parchment and diagonally cutting the tip. Pipe the paste onto the top of each bun in a cross form. Bake it for 15-20 minutes until it reaches a golden brown colour. Serve fresh from the oven!
You can also get creative and try coconut butter instead of cocoa butter or try to experiment with other fruit/vegetable butters. We’re excited to know how it turns out! You can also opt to replace honey with pure maple syrup, lemon juice with orange, avocado oil with coconut oil. Incorporate currants or roasted sunflower seeds to play up the texture.
If you’re feeling courageous, how about replacing a portion of that wheat flour with spelt flour? Feel free to tell us how it went. Your wellness journey should be one of liberation and discovery, not limiting and straining so explore and enjoy your many healthy gastronomical possibilities.
Would a sweeter life mean a happier one? Actually, too much sugar results in depression, insomnia and
anxiety. But don’t miss out on the celebration either with these healthy and delicious alternatives to your favorite holiday treats.
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