Easter Hot Cross Buns - Gluten-Free!

Ingredients:

• 120ml milk
• 230ml water
• 10g easy bake yeast
• 50g caster sugar
• 410g The Deli General Purpose Gluten-Free Flour
• 15g psyllium husk
• 6g salt
• 30g butter, melted
• 1 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 80g mixed peel
• 75g Bakers Mix (Sultanas and Raisins)

• 75g The Deli General Purpose Gluten-Free Flour
• 1-2 tsp oil (veg or sunflower is fine here)
• 4-5 tbsp water, add this gradually – you might need a little less / more

For the egg wash and finishing touches:

• 1 egg beaten (size doesn’t matter)
• 2 tbsp smooth apricot jam, warmed

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place the flour, psyllium husk, salt, sugar, mixed spice and easy-bake yeast into a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) and mix together to combine.
2. Warm the milk and water to around 35ºC and then add both of these alongside the melted butter, vinegar and egg. Mix together, ideally with a stand mixer for 3-5 minutes on a medium/high setting. (You can use an electric hand mixer or even do this by hand, but you will need to mix for longer). The dough will be very sticky and moist.
3. Add in the mixed peel and sultanas and mix them so evenly dispersed, then allow to rest for 10 minutes – this helps the dough to hydrate more evenly.
4. Use a spoon to take dough portions and place them 2 cm apart on a prepared baking tray.
5. Loosely cover the buns with cling wrap and leave to prove somewhere warm for a good 60 (or up to 90) minutes until the buns have significantly increased in size (around doubled).
6. Preheat the oven to 180 ºC fan / 200 ºC, place a roasting dish at the bottom of the oven and boil a kettle!
7. For the cross mix together the flour and oil, then gradually mix in the water – do this until you get a thick yet runny paste. Pop this into a piping bag and cut a tiny bit of the end off – no nozzle needed (if you don't have piping bags you could use a sandwich bag)
8. Once the buns have proven, remove the cling film, brush with a beaten egg all over and then pipe crosses on them. I do this across a whole line of the buns at the same time one way, then go the other.
9. When ready, place the buns on the middle shelf of the oven and pour a mug of boiling water into the bottom roasting tin. Bake the buns in total for 25-30 minutes. BUT remove the boiling water after the first 10 minutes. AND cover with foil (shiny side up) for the final 5-10 minutes if browning too much.
10. Transfer your buns onto a cooling rack and then brush with slightly warmed smooth apricot jam all over. Allow to slightly cool and then enjoy warm or toasted under the grill.