Hot Cross Buns – lactose-free

Are you wondering how to make hot cross buns lactose-free? Homemade hot cross buns from scratch my recipe has no butter, no milk and I have used a combination of Spelt flour for added healthiness and strong white bread flour for strength and fluffiness. Adding the right balance of spice and fruit, with no peel but currants, raisins and dried apricots, I am sure you will love baking these quality hot cross buns at home and never want to go back to eating store-bought again.

Tip – if you roll the dough balls 100g each, they'll be slightly larger and flatter than store-bought ones, but perfect for toasting, as everyone knows how frustrating it is having your hot cross buns stuck in the toaster.

To make the hot cross buns vegan friendly – swap out the egg and replace it with a flax egg. Flax Egg recipe = 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds + 3 tablespoons water + chill for 15 minutes before adding to your dough.

Ingredients

• 300g Spelt flour (sifted if wholemeal)
• 200g strong bread flour (plus extra for dusting and if needed later)
• 10g instant yeast
• 50g castor sugar
• 10g salt (optional)
• 300-350ml water – room temp. (tip add a 300ml first then more if needed)
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp of orange zest (approx. 1 orange)
• 50g dairy free butter (or regular)
• 300g dried fruit – I use 100g dried apricots, 100g raisins, 100g currants

Cross Batter

• 25ml vege oil
• 75g plain flour
• 75ml water
• piping bag + small plain nozzle

Glaze

• 2 tbsp of apricot jam or golden syrup (slightly warm for ease of brushing on)

Method

1. Add yeast, sugar & water – rest for 10 mins
2. Add flour, zest, spices, salt, egg and butter and knead for 10-15mins.
3. Once combined now add the dried fruit and combine a little until together.
4. Place the dough into a large greased bowl to prove for 1-2 hours in a warm spot until doubled in size and cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap. Check after an hour and if not doubled you may need to leave for more time. The time can vary depending on the room temperature and the flour used.
5. Once doubled in size remove the dough from the bowl onto a floured bench. You may need to add flour to our hands and the dough ball to make it easy for split into your balls. Use a set of kitchen scales to measure out the dough evenly. Approx. 80-100g. Place onto your baking tray lined with baking paper ensure the dough balls are space 2cm apart to allow for space for spreading.
6. Pluck off any fruit that is poking out to avoid fruit burning.
7. Set aside again in a warm spot loosely covered with plastic wrap for 45-60mins for the second proving.
8. Prepare the batter for the cross. In a small bowl add oil, water and flour and mix with a whisk or wooden spoon until smooth. Spoon this mixture into a piping bag ready to pipe before the buns are baked.
9. Preheat the oven to 190˚C.
10. Once proved, now pipe the cross batter in a thin line through the centre on the buns and back over the other side to create a cross on each bun. (see the video for further instructions if needed).
11. Bake the buns for 20-25mins.
12. Prepare the glaze, melt the jam or golden syrup in the microwave for 30 secs or on the stove-top until warm, ready to glaze the buns once they are cooked.
13. Remove the buns from the oven, then glaze each bun with a pastry brush.
14. Let the buns cool for at least 30 mins before eating.