Food & Wine
Chelsea buns
This plump, fruit-filled bun has been around since the 18th century, and there’s a reason it remains popular to this day. Try our cranberry version of this English institution.
Ingredients:
- ¾ cup warm milk
- 14g dry yeast
- ¼ cup caster sugar
- 3 ½ cups plain flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 60g butter, chopped
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 ½ cups dried cranberries
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 orange rind, finely grated
- 70g butter, softened
Method:
- Whisk together the milk, yeast, and two teaspoons of the caster sugar. Leave aside in a warm place for about 10 minutes, until frothy.
- Into a large bowl, sift the flour then stir in the salt and remaining caster sugar.
- Use your fingertips to rub the chopped butter into the flour mixture until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Add the milk mixture and eggs and stir until combined. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth (around 10 minutes).
- Place the dough into a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside in a warm place for at least 40 minutes, or until doubled in size.
- Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll it out into a rectangle of about 30cm by 35cm. Set aside two teaspoons of the softened butter and spread the rest over the dough.
- In a bowl, combine the cranberries brown sugar, cinnamon, and orange rind. Spread this mixture evenly over the buttered dough.
- Roll the dough from the longer side. Cut into three-cm-thick slices and place into a greased a 20 to 25cm cake tin or baking dish. Be sure to leave a little room between each bun. Set the buns aside for about 20 minutes to rise.
- Preheat your oven to 200°C and spread the remaining softened butter over the buns.
- Bake buns for two to 25 minutes, or until they’re golden brown and cooked through. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.
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