hot cross buns

i made hot cross buns for the first time this year. they weren't something i had placed on my "to do" list, but they were made because i had to...
determined that they were to be successful, i perused a number of recipes and even procured recipes from my friends for good measure. this is the recipe i settled on, and having shared the buns with nearly thirty strangers the first time i made them, with many coming up to me declaring how good they were, i feel confident in sharing this recipe with you.

360 grams milk
60 grams butter
2 teaspoons dried yeast
2 teaspoons bread improver
1 teaspoon sea salt
60 grams raw sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons mixed spice
600 grams strong bakers' flour
100 grams sultanas
20 grams mixed peel
80 grams currants

this recipe makes about 40 mini hot cross buns, or about 12 regular sized ones...instructions are for the mini ones because they are so cute!

line the base of two lamington tins with baking paper and set aside.

place the milk, butter, yeast, bread improver, salt, sugar and spices in the thermomix bowl and heat at 37°C for 2 minutes on speed 1.

add the flour to the warm milk mixture. mix for 6 secs on speed 5.

knead on interval speed for 1 minute. add the dried fruit and knead for another minute on interval speed.

tip the dough out onto your a lightly floured surface and give it a light knead to further incorporate the fruit. divide the dough into 40 golf ball sized portions and place them into the prepared lamington tins. cover the tins loosely with a clean tea towel and let rise somewhere warm until doubled in size, approx 40 mins. Preheat oven 200°C.

once the buns have risen, pipe the crosses with the following paste:

1/4 cup plain flour
scant 1/4 cup water

place the flour into a small bowl and mix with enough water to make a thick batter. transfer into a small zip lock bag, snip a tiny corner off the bag and pipe the crosses onto the buns.
bake 10 to 15 minutes or until golden.

once the buns are baked, brush with a glaze made with 1/4 cup raw sugar dissolved in 1/4 cup hot water to achieve a glossy appearance. serve warm if possible - you want everyone to know what real hot cross buns taste like. these aren't half bad served the next day, but there isn't anything like a fresh hot cross bun!

homemade granola

a couple of years ago, miss c went camping with a group of friends and they had to rough it (read: bring their own food and cook it). by chance, i made a batch of this truly delicious concoction and insisted that she bring a couple of snaplock bags of it along. she wasn't keen to bring it, not because it wasn't yum, but because she felt it might have defeated the purpose of the camp, but brought 2 packets along.
on her return to civilisation, she expressed her regret. everyone wanted some of her precious snack, and not only that, they wanted the recipe!!!!
take this recipe as a base and add to and subtract, so you can customise it to your own liking - i like adding my fruits and nuts to the granola just before serving so i can vary it to what i'm feeling like having on the day. if you like your nuts toasted, add them while the granola is being toasted.
no need to say, this also makes a fine snack and a good trail mix substitute.

4 cups rolled oats
2 cups shredded or dessicated coconut
2 cups sliced almonds
3/4 cup light olive oil
1/2 cup honey
6 cups of your favourite dried fruits and nuts - i like cherries, cranberries (craisins), apricots, pears, cashews, pepitas, raw almonds

preheat the oven to 180 degrees celcius.
line a large baking sheet with baking paper.
toss the oats, coconut, and almonds together in a large bowl.
whisk together the oil and honey in a small bowl and pour over the oat mixture and mix it around with a wooden spoon until well combined and all the oats and nuts are coated. pour onto the baking sheet and spread evenly and lightly - you don't want the clumps of granola to be dense because they'll be rock hard after baking. *
bake, stirring every now and then, until the mixture becomes golden and toasty, about 45 minutes. make sure your granola dries completely because any dampness will cause it to go stale quickly.
remove the granola from the oven and allow to cool, stirring occasionally. if you wish, add your dried fruits and nuts of choice at this stage and combine well.
store the cooled granola in an airtight container.

*these days, i use my thermomix to do a lot of the work; i melt the honey and oil together in the thermomix and toss the oats, coconut and almonds into the bowl and let the machine do all the stirring before tipping everything out onto the baking sheets for baking.