Pull apart maple glazed hot cross buns

1. Grease a 22cm springform cake tin. In a large mixing bowl place 1 cup of the measured flour, salt, brown sugar and yeast.
2. Mix the boiling water and milk together and pour over the dry ingredients. Stir to mix.
3. In a separate bowl mix together the melted butter, beaten egg, cinnamon and mixed spice. Add to the yeast mix and stir well to combine along with the currants.
4. Add a further 1½ cups of flour and mix well to form a soft dough. Turn out onto a board and knead the dough, incorporating as much of the remaining ½ cup of flour as necessary. The dough should be soft but not sticky. Knead for approximately 10 minutes, or until the dough is smooth. 
5. Wash and dry the mixing bowl. Return the dough to the bowl. Cover with cling film and leave in a warm place for 20 minutes.
6. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a lightly floured board. Cut the dough into 8 even sized pieces. 
7. Shape into balls and place them in a circle, leaving 1 ball for the centre, into the prepared cake tin, leaving a gap between each ball. 
8. Cover with cling film. Leave in a warm place until the buns have doubled in size.
9. Preheat the oven to 200°C on fan bake. 
10. Cut thin strips from the pastry sheet. Brush the buns with a little milk. Place the crosses on top, cutting the pastry to fit.
11. Place the buns into the oven and cook for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to 180°C, fan bake and continue cooking a further 10-15 minutes until the buns are golden and cooked. Remove from the oven. 
12. Leave to stand in the tin on a cooling rack for 5 minutes. Release the sides of the tin and remove. Slide the buns off the base. Brush the tops liberally with Cottee’s Maple Flavoured Syrup. Pull the buns apart and serve warm with butter.

Tips:

• An alternative to pastry crosses is creating a paste with flour and water and piping a cross onto each of the buns before baking!

FAQs:

• Why are my hot cross buns heavy?
  • There are a few reasons your buns can have a heavy texture. Typically it is due to over kneading, which breaks down the gluten too much. Sometimes under kneading won't allow the dough to rise enough, making it dense. Lastly, if your yeast is dead or your milk is too hot it will kill the yeast causing the dough not to rise, leaving you with a heavy hot cross bun.
• Can hot cross buns be frozen?
  • Yes! After they have cooled you can store them in an airtight container for up to a week. When defrosting, thaw at room temperature for a few hours and reheat in the oven.