If you fancy trying out the theory of whether they will go mouldy or not if you bake your Hot Cross Buns on Good Friday, here’s easy to follow a recipe from Darina Allen at Ballymaloe Cookery School! Add the orange juice and sugar to a small pan and cook together just until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture has come to a simmer. Pour the milk, cream, vanilla extract and sticky toffee sauce into a small saucepan set over a medium heat. I made these today, used 500g flour and had soaked the fruit overnight in cold tea and Cointreau, one and half 5ml teaspoon. Cover (but don’t wrap) with more oiled cling film, or a clean tea towel, then set aside to prove for 1 hr more.

Fill the bun with sliced avocado, griddled halloumi, an oozy fried egg, coriander leaves and a little sriracha for a spicy kick. Once the dough is smooth, place it in a bowl, cover with cling wrap* then leave it in a warm place until it doubles in size. You can make this recipe with any type of yeast – rapid rise, instant, active dry or even fresh yeast. Beat up the egg white and sugar together just so that it is frothy then brush over the risen buns very gently and carefully.The mixer is a bread makers dream, being able to handle 5kg of dough (but also working great with smaller batches like this recipe too) and never struggling no matter what you throw at it. Yeast test if you’re concerned: in tiny bowl, mix 2 tbsp very warm tap water with pinch of sugar and 1/4 tsp yeast. I forgot to baste the buns in egg wash :-( I also made a few changes that I think were worthwhile : 1. Leave to rise for 1 hr more, or until doubled in size, again covered by some well-oiled cling film to stop the dough getting a crust.

You may want to run a fire safety talk or show people how to use the equipment safely, such as for cooking or chopping ingredients, or you may need to remind everyone about ways to be safe around a campfire. Another tradition states that a hot cross bun was always kept from the batch baked on Good Friday, in case anyone in the family became ill during the next year. Sweet and sticky dough buns, risen with yeast, speckled with dried fruit and mixed peel, and heady with spices. It’s OK if some people take different roles in this activity – some people will need to collect materials, watch the fire, and start preparing the food.The easiest method of all, this will make buns that are ever so slightly less fluffy and do not keep quite as well.