Matcha Hot Cross Buns
An exotic twist on the classic Easter buns
These Matcha Hot Cross Buns are a twist on the classic Easter buns, eaten on Good Friday, marking the end of Lent. You should know by now that we are in love with Matcha and we would add its earthy flavour everywhere!
These Matcha Hot Cross Buns are a great way to incorporate this superfood into your Easter baking! They're soft sweet rolls flavoured with spices and dried fruit with the iconic cross on top. In this recipe we haven’t added any spice, however you can add some cinnamon powder to the dry ingredients, before proceeding to make the dough.
We can suggest two different ways of making the cross:
flour-based
icing-based
The flour-based topping has no taste to it, but if you prefer a little sweetness, you can choose the icing cross topping. We choose the flour-based one, to make the icing-based cross, substitute the plain flour with icing sugar and use milk to make the paste.
Make sure you use the right matcha for this recipe to obtain a vibrant green colour and an intense matcha flavour. We highly recommend to use The Zen Tea Co. 18 - Intense Green Matcha. Alternatevely you can use also The Zen Tea Co. 15 - Yame Matcha.
INGREDIENTS
- 26g The Zen Tea 18 - Intense Green Matcha
- 500g strong bread flour
- 300ml whole milk
- 1 tsp salt
- 75g sugar
- 55 g butter
- 7g fast-action yeast
- 1 egg
- 75g dried cranberries (or sultana)
- 100g white chocolate chips
- zest 1 orange
- 70g plain flour (or icing sugar + milk for icing-based cross)
- Honey to glaze (or apricot jam)
- sunflower oil to grease the bowl
METHOD
- Heat the milk and once removed from the heat add 55g butter. Mix well until the butter is completely melt.
- In a large bowl sift the strong bread flour and The Zen Tea 18 - Intense Green Matcha. Add salt, sugar and the fast-action yeast. Mix well together.
- Pour in the milk and butter mixture still warm and 1 beaten egg. Mix well with a spatula. Bring everything together (you might need to help with your hands) until you have a sticky dough.
- Transfer the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for until elastic and smooth.
- Oil a bowl and put the dough in it. Cover with oiled cling film and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in size (about 1 hour).
- Take the dough and add in the dried cranberries, white chocolate and the zest of one orange. Mix and incorporate evenly into the dough.
- Oil a bowl and put the dough in it to rise for another hour, covering with oiled cling film.
- Divide the dough into 12 pieces – or 16 for smaller buns. With your hands, make each piece into a smooth ball (you might need to use some flour) and arrange the buns on baking trays previously lined with parchment paper, leaving some space in between each buns. Cover with a clean tea towel and set aside to prove for one hour.
- In the meantime, heat oven to 220° and prepare the mixture for the cross by mixing 70g of plain flour with about 70ml of water. You will probably have to adjust the amount of water, however you will need to obtain a thick paste.
- Transfer the mix into a piping bag with a small nozzle and pipe a cross over each bun and bake in the oven for about 18-20 mins, until golden brown.
- Heat the honey (or apricot jam) until well melted and brush the top of the warm buns.
Best served warm.
Do not forget to take a picture and tag us on Instagram @thezentea
