Triple Chocolate Hot Cross Buns with an Orange Marmalade Glaze
Ingredients:
- 300ml of milk (any)
- 50g butter (melted)
- 500g of strong flour
- 40g soft brown sugar
- 7g dried yeast
- 1tsp ground all spice
- 60g cocoa powder
- 7g salt
- 90g Montezuma's Smooth Operator chocolate
- 90g Montezuma's Great White Chocolate
For the cross:
- 75g plain flour
- 110ml cold milk
Orange glaze:
- ¼ cup of smooth orange juice
- 4 tbsp of marmalade
- 1 tbsp of butter
- 2 tbsp of water
Method:
1) Melt the butter and mix with the milk. Allow this mixture to reach room temperature.
2) Chop the chocolate into small pieces and set aside.
3) Add all the ingredients (apart from the chocolate) into a large bowl and mix well using a wooden spoon or your hands.
4) Turn out the mixture on to a lightly floured surface and knead the mixture for 5 – 8 minutes until the dough is smooth, but with a slight elastic feel.
5) Using your fingers, push the dough out to form a small pizza-sized base and spoon on the chopped chocolate. Fold in the dough so that the chocolate is encased into the dough and roll into a ball and continue to knead for a further 1- 2 minutes.
6) Place the dough into a large bowl, cover with cling film or a damp cloth and place in a warm area to prove for 2 hours.
7) After 2 hours, the dough should have risen. Now, roll the dough on to a surface and using a knife, divide the dough in to 12 equal parts. Around 100g each.
8) Roll the individual parts in to balls.
9) Using a large oven tray, line with a large baking sheet on top and spray with a little oil and arrange the balls in to 4 rows of 3 with 1cm between each ball.
10) Cover loosely with lightly oil sprayed cling film and place in a warm area to prove for a further 2 hours.
11) In the meantime, prepare the paste for the cross. Whisk together the plain flour and milk until a paste is formed. Set aside to be piped later.
12) Prepare the orange glaze by adding the orange juice, marmalade and butter into a small saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil and then reduce the heat to simmer for 8 – 10 minutes until slightly reduced and thickened. Keep an eye on the mixture and mix regularly to ensure it doesn’t stick or burn.
13) After 2 hours, the dough balls will have risen and expanded slightly so that they are touching each other.
14) Spoon the cross mixture into a piping bag with a small opening, or use a 2mm nozzle, and pipe crosses onto each risen bun. Put the buns in the oven for 20-25 mins.
15) Remove the buns from the oven and generously brush the top with the orange glaze.