This past week I received an instagram message request from a journalist, pointed in my direction by a fellow food writer friend, asking my ‘professional’ opinion on none other than the holy Hot Cross Bun.
A couple of brief questions followed, asking my thoughts on a savoury hot cross bun (cheese & onion HCBs are apparently out there in the wild, watch out!): whether I’m team hot-cross-experimental, or felt that certain companies and creatives have crossed the hot bun line of fruity Friday spice a step too far.
“Let me know your thoughts!” was the journalist’s closing comment.
Little did she know, and little did I know, that I’m actually quite passionate about the subject of Hot Cross Buns. Promptly I found myself in the midst of a miniature instagram message essay (ie barely finished with my first ‘thought’ and already hitting the text word limit), so I checked myself, and managed to reign it in and share a couple of bullet points on my HCB feelings. And I say FEELINGS because opinions of food are inherently based on feeling (as opposed to thought). It’s hard to find any other topic of discussion that get us as emotionally charged as kai. It universally speaks to the heart, and our opinions of it are layered in experience, culture and whānau. And no food more so than food that is steeped in tradition, like the humble HCB is for many a New Zealander.
If you’re interested, you can check out the article here, which has a snippet of my reply to the journalist. But what it made me reflect on is that Hot Cross Buns at Easter shouldn’t just be about their spiced fruit deliciousness. It’s about food as a symbol of togetherness, a mascot that makes us place greater importance on the occasion (it’s often the visual stimulus of hot cross buns or Easter eggs that gets our minds in the Easter spirit), so that we prioritise connection with friends and whānau, regardless of any religious affinity. So this Easter, I deeply encourage you to make your own HCBs, whether you have your own go-to recipe or you branch out to make my winning plant-based recipe below, and really lean into the making of bed as a time for reflection and thought at this juncture of our year. Preferably bake them as a team effort, with someone you care about, and then share them with those you love. Breaking bread as a vessel for bringing community together is what Easter and HCBs should be all about.
Enjoy,
Alby xx
Vegan hot cross buns
Stoked with warming spices and juicy sultanas, these hot cross buns are a serious breadwinner. They’ve been the mainstay of many an Easter season, and one of the most popular recipes I’ve shared with friends and family over the years. This recipe uses a tangzhong starter - a Japanese technique where a thickened roux made with flour and water is used to make bread extra soft and fluffy. The result is a bun that stays soft and fresh for longer. I’ve intentionally kept the flavours fairly classic, but you can easily mix it up as you please - other dried fruits, candied orange peel, chocolate chips etc. Ensure you use almond milk, as I’ve found that alternatives like oat milk do not activate the yeast as effectively. After a few misfires I’ve created a vegan HCB that always hits the mark. A time for family calls for a recipe where no one misses out.
Hands-on Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
makes 12 buns
Cost Estimate: $7.50 (about $0.65 per bun)
**Recipe extracted from Good Vibes: Eat well with feel-good flavours by Alby Hailes, pg 36-37, published by HarperCollinsNZ**
Ingredients
Tangzhong starter
25g high grade flour
85ml cold water
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Eating Who I Want to Be to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.