Hot Cross Buns

Hot cross buns have been associated with the Christian holiday of Good Friday for hundreds of years, although some people believe they have been baked since long before that and were simply adopted by Christians. Christian or not, the lore surrounding this simple confection is fascinating, and the buns themselves are delicious.  Traditionally containing currants or other dried fruit, Cinnamon and spices, topped with icing, these buns are supposed to ensure friendship throughout the year with anyone you share them with, and once you try one you will see why.

The oldest Christian lore surrounding hot cross buns states that sometime in the 12th century an Anglican monk placed the cross on the buns to celebrate Good Friday, which at that time was called "The Day of the Cross".   The actual recipe is said to pre-date this however, it is believed that the Saxons ate buns marked with a cross to honor the goddess Eostre.  It's thought that worship of the pagan goddess was so firmly rooted that early Christian missionaries adopted "Easter", hot cross buns and many other pagan traditions into their own yearly celebrations.   Hot cross buns came to be made of the same dough used to make communion bread.   Because of this, they were believed to have special healing powers and to bring good luck.   Some traditions say that a hot cross bun baked on Good Friday and hung from the kitchen ceiling can bring luck to your household, ensure all your bread rises, and ward off fires.   There is a popular saying, "Half for you and half for me, Between us two shall goodwill be".  If you share a hot cross bun with a friend it will ensure good relations between you for the rest of the year.   In the 16th century, early Protestant monarchs saw the buns as a hold-over from Catholic rule in England and attempted to ban them.  Their overwhelming popularity made this impossible, and Queen Elizabeth I passed a law allowing them to be baked only at Easter and Christmas. 

Recipe from Pioneer Woman

Ingredients (makes approx 18):

Buns:

• 2 cups Whole Milk
• 1/2 cup Canola Oil
• 1/2 cup Sugar
• 1 package (2 1/4 Teaspoons) Active Dry Yeast
• 4 cups All-purpose Flour
• 1/2 cup (additional) Flour
• 1/2 teaspoon (heaping) Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon (scant) Baking Soda
• 2 teaspoons Salt

Filling:

• 1/4 cup Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
• Spices: Cardamom, Nutmeg, Allspice (optional)
• 1/2 cup Raisins

Glaze:

• 1 whole Egg White
• Splash Of Milk

Icing:

• 1 whole Egg White
• Powdered Sugar
• Splash Of Milk

Preparation: 

BUNS

Combine 2 cups milk, canola oil, and 1/2 cup sugar in a saucepan. Stir and heat until very warm but not boiling. Turn off the heat and allow to cool until mixture is still warm, but not hot--about 30 minutes.

Sprinkle yeast over mixture. Add 4 cups of flour and stir to combine. Mixture will be very sticky. Cover with a towel and set aside for 1 hour.

Add 1/2 cup flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir till combined.

Combine 1/4 cup sugar with cinnamon and whatever other spices you want to use.

Lightly flour surface. Press to slightly flatten dough. Sprinkle a couple tablespoons of the sugar/cinnamon mixture. Sprinkle on about a third of the raisins. Then fold the dough over on itself and flatten again so the dough is "plain" again. Repeat the sugar/raisin process, then fold the dough again. Repeat a third time until all the raisins are used. (You won't use all the sugar/cinnamon mixture.)

Pinch off ping pong or golf ball-size bunches of dough. With floured hands, quickly roll it into a ball, then turn the edges under themselves slightly. Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Cover and allow to rise in a warm place for at least 30 minutes...an hour-plus is better.

PREHEAT OVEN TO 400F degrees

GLAZE

Mix 1 egg white with a splash of milk. Brush onto each roll.

Bake for 20 minutes, give or take, or until tops of buns have turned nice and golden brown.

Remove from pan and allow to cool on a cooling rack.

ICING

Mix 1 egg white with enough powdered sugar for icing to be very thick. Splash in milk as needed for consistency.

Add icing to a small Ziploc bag and snip the corner. Make icing crosses on each roll, making sure they're completely cooled first.

No-Knead Pizza Dough

If you had asked me 24 hours ago if it was worth waiting 18 hours for pizza dough to rise I probably would have told you no, and I would have been horribly wrong.   This pizza dough recipe developed by Jim Lahey, owner of New York's Sullivan Street Bakery, and published in Bon Appetit magazine, has everything you want out of a traditional pizza dough and all you have to do is wait....

Many homemade pizza dough recipes end up being to "biscuity", often failing to achieve the right texture or consistency.   However, if you are willing to do some planning and some waiting, you can make perfect crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside, bubbly, delicious pizza dough.   This dough has great elasticity for making thin crust pizzas if that's your game.   The long hours of fermentation give it a yummy yeasty taste.   Resist the urge to overwork the dough in this no-knead recipe!

Ingredients:  (makes six 10"-12" pizzas.  I halfed this recipe)

• 7.5 cups all-purpose flour (1000 grams) plus more for shaping
• 4 tsp fine sea salt (or kosher)
• 1/2 tsp. active dry yeast
• 3 cups water

Preparation:

• Whisk together the flour, salt and yeast in a medium bowl.  While stirring, slowly add 3 cups of water.  Stir together until well mixed.   Mix dough gently with your hands to bring it together into a ball.  Dough will be sticky. 
• Transfer the dough to a clean bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let it rise at room temperature (72F) in a draft free area until dough has doubled in size and is covered with tiny bubbles.  This will take approximately 18 hours (less time in warmer rooms, more time in cooler rooms). 
• Once risen, transfer the dough to a well floured surface and divide into six portions.   Form each portion into a ball by gathering the edges into the center to create a fold, turn seam side down and mold into a ball. Dust dough with flour and set aside. 
• Cover the dough with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen cloth and allow to rest for 1 hour.   (Alternatively, you could wrap the dough in plastic wrap and save in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.  Let the dough rest at room temperature for 2-3 hours after taking out of the fridge.)

Making the Pizzas

• While the dough is resting pre-heat your oven to the highest setting (500-550 degrees on most ovens).  This is also a good time to prep your toppings. 
• Proceed with well floured hands  With your hands spaced a few inches apart, begin stretching the dough starting at the edges, while moving in a circle.  Resist the urge to flatten the dough (retain as many bubbles as you can).  Continue rotating and stretching until the dough is about 8" across. 
• Pick up the flattened disc and transfer it to your knuckles (get in your pizza making stance).  Slowly rotate the dough while gently stretching the edges, letting gravity do the work until the dough is 10"-12" inches across. 
• Flop the dough down onto a floured surface and pull the edges outward.  The dough is elastic and will want to shrink back up.  Don't worry about getting in a perfect circle, it's overrated.  I made mine intentionally oblong so they would fit on my baking sheet. 
• IF USING A BAKING SHEET:  Arrange the dough on your baking sheet and put the desired toppings on. Bake until the bottom of the crust is crisp and top is blistered, about 10-12 minutes on the middle rack. 
• IF USING A PIZZA STONE: When ready to bake turn the oven to broil.  Sprinkle your pizza peel or rimless baking sheet with flour.  Prepare pizza on the peel, and with small, quick back and forth movements, slide the pizza onto the hot pizza stone.  Broil, rotating halfway until bottom is crisp and top is blistered, about 5-7 minutes.