Hot cross buns! One a penny, two a penny!

It's Good Friday and I made hot cross buns today. What's more, they actually turned out very good! I am so proud of myself since this was my first attempt at making yeast bread.

The recipe was easy to follow and didn't require anything fancy. I did run into trouble at the dough kneading stage because the dough turned out to be uber super sticky. The majority of the dough stuck to my hands and I simply could not get the dough to firm up into any shape or form, despite my efforts to add flour to the dough. Kneading it was totally hopeless. So, I just gave up and proceeded on to the covering the glob up and letting the dough rise, which it did!

Amazingly, the buns came out of the oven great! The bottom of the buns were stuck to the baking sheets because I didn't have any non-stick cooking spray (I did grease it with butter) and the cross didn't really show because I had a hard time cutting the crosses onto the sticky dough. But other than that, they were perfect!

So, what did I do wrong? I *think* these were the reasons:

1) I didn't have a cooking thermometer. The recipe calls for a specific temperature of the milk at the yeast-dissolving stage, but I just warmed the milk up in the microwave with no idea how hot it was. I think in baking (just about anything, really), precision in measurements and temperature is a must. Do not overlook this!

Get this all-in-one timer/themometer for your baking needs!



2) I used plastic wrap to cover up the dough when letting the dough rise. It is recommended that you use a towel.

Great set of tea towels


3) As I said, the bottom of the buns were stuck to the baking sheet. I'm not sure if my baking sheet was bad or because I didn't use cooking spray, but it's probably wise to try the cooking spray next time.

All in all, I immensely enjoyed the baking process. I hope to be baking bread, cake, etc. lots more! It's especially highly satisfying when it comes out right and your daughter eats it all up! :)

Books about baking bread