Celebrate the Easter long weekend with homemade vegan chocolate hot cross buns. They taste amazing warmed up with some vegan butter and will leave your house smelling great too. For an extra chocolate hit, add some choc chips to your dough.
Recipe:
4 cups plain flour 1.5 cups almond milk (or soy milk)
1/2 cup melted vegan butter 1/4 cup caster sugar 2 tbsp cocoa powder pinch of salt
for the yeast mix: 1 tbsp brown sugar 1/4 cup warm water (not hot)
1 tsp dry yeast
1. Combine yeast ingredients in a small bowl and let it sit for 5 mins to thicken up.
2. Add the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and make a well in the centre. Add the melted butter and the milk (the milk should be slightly warm or room temperature) then add the yeast mix and stir to form a soft dough. Knead for 5 mins and then cover with a towel or glad wrap and place in a warm area of your home for 1 hour until it doubles in size.
3. Once doubled in size, transfer to a clean surface and knead for a few minutes. Separate into 9 even sections and roll into balls. Place them in a square baking tray with 1 to 2cm space in between each. Cover and let it sit for a further 30 mins.
4. Preheat oven to 190 degrees celsius and prepare the flour mix to make the crosses. Mix flour and water to form a paste and use a piping bag to make crosses on the buns. Do this just before placing them in the oven. Bake for 25 mins until cooked through, then remove from the oven and place aside.
5. Make a glaze by heating 1/4 cup water and 2 tbsp sugar in a saucepan. Bring to the boil and let it boil for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and brush on the hot cross buns. Serve warm and enjoy!