Hot Cross Buns and Easter Eggs
Hot Cross Buns
Last Easter I was busy packing all of our belongings into cardboard boxes as we prepared to make the life changing move out of London. Our new destination was Kent, where I grew up and where my Mum and brother still live. We had only been in one week when we packed more bags and set off up to Cheshire to see my in-laws for the Easter weekend. Something we do most years. At the time it seemed crazy after just moving house, but once we got there it was lovely to relax, have meals made for us and not unpack any boxes. The weather was fantastic and on Easter day we were spoilt with an Easter egg hunt and plenty of chocolate.
This year without having to plan for a house move, I have been able to try making one of my most favourite things ever…hot cross buns. I actually love and hot cross buns and would be thrilled to eat them all year round. The way I like them is toasted, spread with unsalted butter and a cup of tea to wash it all down.
I have to say though that I’m not great at making bread items. I truly believe that it is something that takes a lot of practice, so I continue trying in the hope that my next effort will be better than my last. It’s a good job I think like this as my first attempt at hot cross buns were only just passable, but my second attempt was pretty near to perfect in my eyes, (picture below). I would have liked to know what Paul Hollywood thought of them! I digress. The most delightful thing about homemade hot cross buns are how much better they taste in comparison to shop brought which makes them totally worth the effort, even if they do take a few attempts to get right.
The basic hot cross bun recipe I followed can be found on the Baking Mad’s website. A few things I have done differently that might be worth trying as well include:
- Substituting 50g of plain flour for wholemeal flour
- Adding chopped dates and dark chocolate chips instead of raisins
- Using a 100g strong white flour, 25g butter, 125ml water and a pinch of sugar to make a paste. Then put this in a small freezer bag, snip the end and pipe crosses
The Baking Mad website also have a number of other Easter recipes that are worth having a look at, they include simnel cake, cake pops, Easter cake and Easter cupcakes.
Easter Eggs
Another wonderful thing about Easter is of course Easter Eggs. I love to look around the shops each year to see what temptations have been created. I’m always drawn to eggs that are a bit unique or have something special about them.
Hotel Chocolat, who are fast becoming a firm favorite of mine have a marvelous Easter egg selection and I was lucky enough to be allowed one to review (or scoff which ever way you like to put it). I picked the ‘You Crack Me Up‘ egg with extra thick shell because I loved the look of the chocolates that came inside.
Little happy faces, chicks, fried eggs and soliders all appeal to child in me and I thought it was likely that my own children would be wanting some of this egg too!
I was not disappointed. All (and that is saying something) the chocolates were lovely. If anything there could have been more! The shell was indeed extra thick and gave the egg a real feel of quality. I loved the packaging too. It came in a gorgeous box and the egg itself was wrapped in the most lavish looking light gold foil.
I have had this egg for 3 days now and it’s nearly all gone already. Easter egg reviewing…it’s a hard job but someone’s got to do it 😉
Many thanks to Hotel Chocolate sending me the Easter Egg to review and Baking Mad for sponsoring this post.
Review – ‘Baked By Me’ Easter Cookie in a Jar
Most Saturday’s I’m left on my own with the children for the afternoon whilst hubby goes off to play rugby. Yes, it is quite annoying especially when I have been looking after the kids all week, but I know he really needs to do it. He works hard with long hours and a fair bit of stress so an afternoon of rugby is the perfect tonic for him. He comes back in such a good mood, even if he is injured or they lost the game which, even though I hate to say it, does make being a rugby widow worth it. Now, I know what you are all thinking…what a wonderful wife I am! And I have to agree with you all there 😉
I digress, back to Saturday afternoons! I don’t normally take the kids out because I think after a hectic week, it’s good to have a bit of time at home, plus with three of them to organise, a whole stack of energy is required to get out the door. So I look for something we can do at home and quite often we will get our aprons on and prepare to create a baking masterpiece…well that’s what my girls like to think anyway. This week we had the baking activity already planned because thanks to my new twitter pal Iris from Baked By Me (@bakedbymeuk) I had a Easter cookie jar on the side waiting to be used.
Baked by Me is a new business set up just a month ago. Iris tells me that she loves baking and wanted to share the joy with everyone and so Baked by Me was born. I greatly admire people who have the energy and courage to turn their dreams into reality, and I am thrilled that we got to try out some cookie mix.
The jar arrived in a cute little box and when I opened it up I was impressed with the look and feel. There were some nice touches too, a little hand written note, a fluffy Easter chick and gorgeous ribbon around the jar.
The first job for my four year old was to dig out all the mini eggs, and I could tell that she really enjoyed doing this. It was like a little treasure hunt digging in the sand for gold.
I thought there would maybe be 10 or so eggs hiding but they just kept on coming until we had a whole bowl full!
Then we needed to mix up some egg and butter, which was the only two ingredients I provided. Next, another good job for my four year old, we had to tip the dry ingredients from the jar into the mixing bowl.
After a couple minutes of mixing, we had the most delightfully smelling chocolate cookie dough. In fact I had to pause the proceedings whilst my girls filled their airways with chocolate.
Then it’s just a case of spooning dollops onto a baking tray and baking for 8-10 mins. Whilst waiting ALL the spoons were licked…the best part I’m sure!
As soon as they come out, the mini eggs go on, another enjoyable part for the girls, and then they are ready to eat. And what a lovely treat they were. Especially nice still warm and gooey from the oven.
It was a super activity and great for me not to have to weigh everything out. If you are looking for an alternative Easter gift this would be a fun option to consider. I might order a job lot and have them on standby for birthday presents. My girls seem to go to a party almost every weekend!
Take a look at the IBaked by Me website to see the whole range. The cost for a cookie mix jar from Baked By Me is between £8.80 and £9.80.
I wish Iris all the best with her new venture.
Disclaimer- I do not work for Baked By Me nor did not get paid to write this review.
Homemade By Fleur 