Bath Buns

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of flour
• 2 eggs
• 6 ounces of butter
• 1 ounce yeast
• 5 ounces castor sugar
• 2 ounces sultanas
• 2 ounces peel
• 2 ounces loaf sugar
• ¹/₄ pint of milk
  
   

To Make: Warm the flour, sieve it into a warmed basin.
Rub the butter into flour, put yeast into basin and mix with sprinkling of sugar and a little tepid milk.
Make a well in centre of flour, pour in yeast and warm milk.
Beat up and stir in eggs, leaving enough to brush over buns.
When ingredients are well mixed, beat for a few minutes then cover basin with cloth and put in a warm place to rise until it has doubled its bulk.
Add castor sugar, sultanas, peel, beating in with hands.
Shape into balls (14-16)
Put on greased floured tin in warm place to double their bulk.
Brush with eggs, sprinkle with sugar.
Bake in a quick oven (Regulo 7) until golden brown and hollow sounding when tapped on bottom.

Chelsea Buns

Ingredients:

• 1 pound plain flour
• ¹/₂ level teaspoonful salt
  
   
• 1 ounce yeast
• 3 ounces castor sugar
• 1 egg
• 2¹/₂ ounces margarine
  
   
• 3 ounces currants
• 1 level teaspoonful cinnamon or mixed spice
• ¹/₂ pint warm milk
  
  To glaze:
• 1 tablespoonful milk and 1 dessertspoonful castor sugar, mixed together

To Make: Sieve the flour and salt into a bowl.
Mix the yeast with 2 teaspoonfuls of the sugar and mix the rest of the sugar with the flour.
Melt 2 ounces margarine, add to the warm milk, mix with the yeast and add the egg.
Make a well in the centre of the flour and add liquid.
Mix to a soft dough beating with the hand till smooth.
This will take several minutes.
Cover with damp cloth and put aside to prove for 60-75 minutes, when it will have doubled in size.
Turn on to floured slab and knead well.
Roll into an oblong shape about 16 inches by 12 inches.
Melt the remaining 1 ounce of margarine and brush this over the dough.
Sprinkle with currants and spice, dredge with castor sugar and roll up the dough as for a Swiss Roll.
Cut the dough into 16 slices and place these in a greased, straight-sided tin, approximately 10 inches by 8 inches.
Prove for a further 30 minutes.
Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes.
Brush with glaze, return to oven for 1 minutes.
Turn on to a wire tray and dredge tops lightly with castor sugar.
Separate when cold.

Cornish Saffron Buns

Ingredients:

• ¹/₂ drachm saffron
  
   
• 1 tablespoon hot milk
• 16 ounces plain flour
• 2 ounces lard
• 3 ounces of butter
• 4 ounces of currants
• 4 ounces of sultanas
• 2 ounces candied peel
• 4 ounces sugar
• 1 ounce yeast
• Cold milk

To Make: Steep saffron in hot milk for 30 minutes.
Mix flour and fat until breadcrumbs.
Add fruit and 3¹/₂ ounces sugar.


Dissolve yeast and ¹/₂ ounce sugar, add saffron liquid.


Stir yeast and saffron mixture adding cold milk to make a smooth soft dough.
Prove for 1 hour, turn out and knead well.
Shape into buns.
Put on greased baking sheet and prove again.
Bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees.

Fig Buns

Ingredients:

• 2 teacups of flour
• 2 ounces of margarine
• 1¹/₂ ounces sugar
  
   
• 1 egg
• pinch of salt
• 1¹/₂ teaspoons baking powder
  
   
• 3 or 4 figs
• Milk

To Make: Use three or four figs according to size. Wash, cut up small.
Sieve flour, rub in margarine until fine. Mix in sugar, salt, baking powder, then figs.
Beat egg and use with milk to make a stiff dough.
Make into small balls, space well on greased tray.
Bake in hot oven for 10 minutes. This makes 18-20 buns.
Ice if desired.

Lemon Buns

Ingredients:

• 3 ounces margarine
• 8 ounces self raising flour
• Pinch of salt
• 4 ounces of cater sugar
• 4 tablespoons milk
• Lemon curd

To Make: Rub the margarine into the sieved flour and salt.
Add sugar and mix to a stiff dough with the milk.
Form the mixture into small balls and place on a greased baking tray.
Allow space for them to spread slightly.
With your thumb make a small hollow in the centre of each ball.
Fill with a little lemon curd.
Bake in a hot oven (gas mark 8, electricity 450 degrees) for about 15 minutes.
Cool on a cake wire, then put a little more lemon curd in the centre of each bun.

Hot X Buns

Ingredients:

• 1 pound flour
• ³/₄ ounce yeast
  
   
• 1 egg
• 2 ounces sugar
• 1 ounce chopped peel
• 3 ounces currants or sultanas
• ¹/₂ teaspoon mixed spice
  
   
• Pinch of salt
• 1¹/₂ gills of milk and water
  
   

To Make: Sieve flour, salt, spice into basin.
Rub the butter into flour with the tips of the fingers until it is very fine.
Work yeast with teaspoon sugar.
Add 1 or 2 tablespoons of tepid water to it.
Pour this mixture into flour.
Put basin in warm place to sponge for 20 minutes, then stir in remainder of dry ingredients, the beaten egg and enough warm milk to make an easy dough. (Slacker than for bread, but firm enough to mould)
Beat dough thoroughly, leave in covered basin in warm place until it has doubled its bulk (about 1³/₄ hour.
Turn onto floured board, cut in equal pieces, shape buns with floured hands.
Put on greased floured tray.
Mark X.
Put to rise.
Bake in hot oven (Regulo 7) for 20 minutes.

The buns provide clues that remind us of the Easter story. For example: yeast makes the buns rise – it can also remind us that Jesus rose again; the cross on top reminds us of Jesus’ death; if you turn the cross at an angle, it looks like a kiss – this reminds us that Jesus loved us enough to die for us; the dried fruits remind us of the good things that come from Jesus’ death – he died to give us the chance to enjoy a fruitful new life.

Surprise Buns

Ingredients:

• 1 cupful flour
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• ¹/₂ ounce of sugar
  
   
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• ¹/₂ cup milk
  
   
• Pinch of salt
• 1 egg
• Jelly, jam or fruit.

To Make: Sift flour, baking powder, sugar, salt.
Add milk, beaten egg and melted margarine.
Beat well.
Put a spoonful of mixture into each lightly greased patty tin.
On top put jam, jelly or fruit.
Put another spoonful of mixture on top.
Bake in hot oven for 20 minutes.