Easter hot cross buns

Every year in our family, we have hot cross buns around Easter but I'm ashamed to say that up until now we've always bought them. This year I decided to make my own and I'm so glad I did. They are richly fruited and these particular buns have a unique twist.... when I was making them I there wasn't any strong white bread flour in the cupboard so I used wholemeal instead! At the time it was just a substitute but I plan to repeat it when I make them again as the wholemeal flour makes the buns just that bit more dense and delicious!

For the buns:

300ml full fat milk

50g butter

500g wholemeal bread flour

1 tsp salt

75g caster sugar

1 tbsp sunflower oil

7g sachet fast action yeast

1 beaten egg

80g sultanas

50g mixed peel

zest of 1 orange

1 apple, peeled, cored and chopped into small pieces

1 tsp ground cinnamon

For the cross

75g plain flour

Water

Method

1. Bring the milk to the boil, remove from heat and add the butter.

2. Leave to cool slightly.

3. Put the flour, salt, sugar and yeast into a large bowl, make a well in the centre and then pour in the warm milk and butter mixture.

4. Then add the egg and mix well until you have a sticky dough.

5. Tip it onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 10 mins.

6. Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with oiled cling film, then leave to rise in a warm place for 1 hr.

7. Leaving the dough in the bowl, tip in the sultanas, mixed peel, orange zest, apple and cinnamon. Knead into the dough, until all the fruit is combined.

8. Leave to rise for 1 hr, again covered by some well-oiled cling film.

9. Split the dough into 15 even pieces.

10. Roll each piece into a ball, then arrange the buns baking trays lined with baking paper,

(make sure to leave enough space for the dough to expand).

11. Cover with a clean tea towel, then set aside to prove for 1 hr more.

12. Heat oven to 220C fan.

13. Mix the flour with a tbsp of water at a time to make a thick paste for the cross.

14. Spoon into a piping bag with a small nozzle, then pipe a cross on top of each bun.

15. Bake for 20 mins until golden brown.