Sugar & Spice (and all things nice)
- Georgina Donatantonio
- Apr 10, 2020
- 3 min read
A love or hate, a tasty treat, or a gluttonous affair, the Hot Cross Bun has marked many a young heart, and wholeheartedly left its impression throughout English History.
Christianity has pronounced the Friday before Easter Sunday as the most sacred and reverential of all days. It was on this day, 1,987 years ago in 33 AD, at the ninth hour, that Jesus breathed his last on the cross, crying out ‘Eli, Eli, lema sabachtani?’; in English tongue ‘My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?’ Good Friday is devoid of luxuries, devoid of celebration, and devoid of good cheer. But, this is the day myself, and many others, will dust off their bread makers, scramble for (ineffective) remnants of yeast from the year before, and divulge in a sticky, sinful and satisfying ball of goodness.
The Hot Cross Bun populates a whole host of legends, some rather more lavish than others. When I saw that these bundles of sugar & spice, and all things nice, might be the result of the actions & excuses of a rebellious monk, I wasn’t going to allow that one to slip behind the rock (no bun intended).
It appears we can thank a 12th century monk who had a soon-to-be-historical case of the munchies. Peckish and pining for a sweet treat, our monk spread out his finest ingredients, and set to work on creating and baking a currant-laden, decadent bun. The day being none other than Good Friday, and not a normal day to be pottering around in the kitchen, it was crucial that a credible and coherent excuse be established. Our monk was a practical man - tossing his left-over flour into a bowl, splashing with a smidgen of water, and twirling his mixture to be pasted on top of the bun. Thus appeared an ‘X’, the perfect embodiment of the Cross of Christ, and an established and excusable tradition in British history.
More metaphors materialised, and the Hot Cross Bun became increasingly entrenched as the symbol of the sacred and Christian holiday before Easter Sunday. Flour, water & yeast make bread. And bread = the body of Christ. Cinnamon and nutmeg are spices. And spice = the embalmment’s used on Jesus’ body prior to his resurrection.
As I type, a minute but disturbing nonetheless, crumb, has appeared on my keyboard. Although my monk, formerly discussed, came top in my league of Legends, there is another one, that if it holds true, is too intriguing and rousing, to let pass. If one bakes Hot Cross Buns on Good Friday (this is imperative), and precedes to hang one from the rafters, then the bun will cease to rot, overcoming nature’s inevitable decay. Not only that, but the maker will be also be blessed with good fortune, in both their friendships and baking ventures for the remainder of the year ahead.
Drat, I smell burning. I love you and leave you.
(Yeast-free) Hot Cross Cakes
My ode to these little temptations, I must admit, went slightly awry. Gone from the supermarkets was the yeast, gone was the bread flour, and the challenge of transforming flour into bread without the aid of yeast, seemed nothing short of a miracle. But, we are in the midst of Holy Week, and what more appropriate time to make a wish.
I share with you the Corona-present, (yeast-free) Hot Cross Cakes.
❌ Makes 6-8 cakes
Ingredients
50g salted butter
50g muscavado sugar
300g self-raising flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
1 ripe banana
90 ml milk
100g currants
For the cross:
flour & water (give a stir)
For the glaze:
sugar & milk (heated up)
Method
Preheat your oven to 180'C (fan).
Slightly soften your butter in microwave.
Combine your dry ingredients.
Crack your eggs.
Add your eggs, milk & butter to your dry ingredients, and give it a good mix.
Break in your ripe & speckled banana.
Add the currants.
Give it another satisfying stir.
Lightly grease and dust with flour your baking tray.
With a tablespoon, dollop a generous ball of mixture onto your baking tray.
Continue until mixture is depleted.
Bake your unleavened buns for 10 minutes.
Whilst baking, make up your cross concoction and your glaze. Lightly simmer your glaze mixture on the hob.
Take out of the oven, paint your cross onto the cakes, and spoon on your glaze mixture.
Transfer to a wire rack to prevent soggy underbellies.
Let rest for a very short moment, and devour whilst still warm.
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