My hometown of Troy, NY was the birthplace of Freihofer's Bakery. If you never had their hot cross buns, you haven't really lived. Sorry! But I can't get them anymore, so the time has come to make my own. In this video, I recreate those coveted Freihofer-Style Hot Cross Buns.
The recipe in the video is for use with a bread machine. If you're using one, all the ingredients are the same as below except USE INSTANT YEAST. The only difference when making the dough in the Bread Machine METHOD is that you can melt the butter, sugar, water and milk together before adding to your machine. When your machine alerts you to add "mix-ins", that's the time to add the raisins. Once the dough is ready, continue on by dividing, rolling and baking, just like in the conventional recipe.
If you don't have a bread machine, follow the recipe below:
INGREDIENTS:
For the dough:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/4 cup plus 2 TBSP granulated sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup milk, warmed
1/4 cup water, warmed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup raisins
1 tsp cinnamon
For the egg wash:
1 egg
1 tsp milk
For the cinnamon sugar coating:
1 TBSP cinnamon
1 TBSP sugar
3 TBSP unsalted butter, melted
METHOD:
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, yeast, and sugar.
Add the melted butter, warmed milk, and warmed water to the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
Add the salt, egg, and raisins to the mixture and stir until a sticky dough forms.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 5-10 minutes, until the dough becomes smooth and elastic.
Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and let it rise in a warm, draft-free place for about 1 hour, or until it doubles in size.
Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
Coat an 8x8 baking dish with non-stick spray.
Punch down the dough and shape it into 9 balls, depending on how large you want the buns to be.
Place the balls of dough in the prepared baking dish.
Cover with a plastic wrap and let them rise again for another 10-20 minutes.
In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and milk to make the egg wash.
Brush the egg wash over the buns.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.
Immediately brush with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
Cool for a few minutes and serve. The buns will pull apart effortlessly.
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