Hot Cross Molasses Raisin Tea Buns

Hot Cross Molasses Raisin Tea Buns

Here's a great Easter idea that would be welcome at a weekend brunch any time of the year. We already have a great recipe for yeast raised Hot Cross Buns here on Rock Recipes but if you are dough-phobic or just don't have the time to make the traditional version, why not try this molasses version that's as easy as making a quick batch of biscuits.

Molasses tea buns are one of my favorites so I've used that recipe here but if you don't want the molasses version, you could try our regular Raisin Tea Buns recipe and just add the spices to that and then top those with the vanilla glaze. Either way, in about an hour you could be enjoying these at an Easter brunch or on any given weekend.

Molasses Raisin Tea Buns

In a food processor or in a large bowl, combine:

• 3 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 rounded tsp baking powder
• 1 rounded tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp cinnamon (optional)
• 1 tsp freshly ground nutmeg (optional)

Cut in or pulse in in:

• 3/4 cup cold butter, cut in cubes

until the mixture resembles a fine meal. Remove to a large bowl and stir in:

• 1 1/2 cup raisins (light or dark, your preference)

Make a well in the center of this mixture.

Mix together:

• 1/2 cup fancy molasses
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Pour into the well and mix only enough to form a dough ball.

Roll to 1 inch thickness and cut out buns with biscuit cutter and place in a parchment lined 9x13 baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes. Baking time may vary a little depending on the size of your biscuit cutter.

This recipe makes about 12 tea buns.

Vanilla Glaze

• 1/2 cup icing sugar (powdered sugar)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 to 3 tsp milk

Mix together until smooth. You will want this to be quite a stiff glaze so only add enough milk to bring it to a thick consistency. Pipe crosses onto the tops of the warm buns. A Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off works well for this if you do not have a piping bag.

Hot Cross Molasses Raisin Tea Buns

Lemon Sour Cream Tea Biscuits

Lemon Sour Cream Tea Biscuits

These fragrant little lemon morsels remind me of a formal afternoon English tea. I think they would fit right in beside the cucumber sandwiches and Victoria sponge cake. We enjoyed these this morning at brunch with some simple, freshly made Newfoundland wild blueberry jam and they were scrumptious. Some thick cream or clotted cream would also be wonderful on them.

Lemon Sour Cream Tea Biscuits

Recipe by Barry C. Parsons

Light, airy little lemon tea biscuits that would be right at home at an afternoon tea.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Total time: 25-30 minutes
Yield: About 20 small biscuits.
Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp very cold butter
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp water
• 1 egg
• few tbsp turbinado sugar (optional)
• Zest of one lemon, finely minced
• pinch salt

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. In a food processor, blend together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and lemon zest.
3. Pulse in the butter.
4. Do not over incorporate the butter into the flour. Similar to making a flaky pastry, small pieces of butter should be visible in the flour.
5. Transfer this mixture from the food processor into a large mixing bowl and make a well in the center.
6. Mix together the sour cream, milk and vanilla. Pour into the well.
7. Working very quickly with a wooden spoon, fold the dry mixture through the buttermilk, only until the flour disappears, then stop immediately. Drop the sticky dough onto a well floured counter top or bread board. Sprinkle the top of the dough with additional flour as well as flouring your hands to handle the dough. I don't even use a rolling pin for these biscuits, the dough is soft enough to pat it out gently with floured hands to a thickness of about 3/4 inch. Using a small biscuit cutter cut the biscuits out an place them, 1 1/2 inches apart on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. I recommend an aluminum baking sheet because it tolerates the higher oven temperature without burning the bottom of the biscuits.
8. Whisk together the water and egg and brush lightly over the top of the biscuits. You will only need a little of the egg wash mixture.
9. Sprinkle with some turbinado sugar if desired.
10. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

    

    Lemon Sour Cream Tea Biscuits - delicious with homemade blueberry jam.

Coconut Orange Tea Buns

Like so many families in Newfoundland, mine has quite a number of fantastic bakers and they all make terrific traditional raisin tea buns. Two other tea buns famous in our family circle are orange and coconut. When trying to decide which of those two to serve recently, like I am prone to do, I decided not to decide  and combined the two into a new version of a family favorite. We all loved the result and wondered why we had not tried it before. These were exceptionally scrumptious served warm with honey butter as a weekend brunch treat.

I start these in my food processor because it is so fast but they can be made just as easily in a large bowl by cutting the butter in with a pastry blender or just rubbing it into the dry ingredients using your hands.

In a food processor, combine:

3 cups flour
¾ cup sugar
3 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt

Cut in:

¾ cup butter

until mixture resembles a fine meal. Remove to a large bowl and stir in:

1 cup unsweetened fine coconut

Make a well in the center of this mixture.

Mix together:

2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
1 cup undiluted evaporated milk

zest of 1 orange finely chopped

Pour into the well and mix only enough to form a dough ball. Roll to 1 inch thickness and cut out buns with biscuit cutter and place on parchment lined baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees F for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. Baking time will vary depending on the size of your biscuit cutter. This recipe makes 16 large tea buns.

Honey Butter

Honey butter is simply honey beaten into plain butter in a 2 to 1 ratio of butter to honey.

1 cup butter (not margarine or other horrible butter substitutes)

1/2 cup honey

No Sugar Added Raisin Scones

No Sugar Added Raisin Scones

A regular reader of Rock Recipes recently asked for a recipe for sugar free raisin scones. Coincidentally, I make this version of raisin scones for Spouse only because she very much prefers them to those with added sugar. The omission of sugar means they have a very light, airy texture that many may prefer as well. A little additional sweetness can be added by sprinkling a coarse grain sugar over the tops before baking as is noted in the recipe. They made a very nice addition to our Sunday brunch.

I start these in my food processor because it is so fast but they can be made just as easily in a large bowl by cutting the butter in with a pastry blender or even 2 knifes held between the fingers.

In a food processor, combine:
3 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt

Cut in:
¾ cup very cold butter, cubed
Pulse process until this mixture resembles a coarse meal. It is very important that pea sized pieces of butter remain in this mixture. Remove to a large bowl and toss in:

1 cup raisins (light or dark, your preference)

Mix together:

2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup milk

Pour this over the surface of the dry mixture. Toss all together gently with a fork only enough to form a dough ball. It is important that you work this dough as little as possible or the finished scones will be too dense and heavy. Roll to 1 inch thickness and cut out scones with biscuit cutter or in triangles with a sharp knife and place on parchment lined baking sheet.

If desired you can brush the tops of the scones with an egg wash of 1 egg beaten together with 1 tbsp water. You can sprinkle the tops with turbinado sugar if desired but this is, of course, optional.

Bake at 375 degrees F for 25 minutes or until light golden brown. Baking time will vary depending on the size of your biscuit cutter. This recipe makes 8 large scones.