Vegan Hot Cross Buns With Date Caramel
8 | buns
Intermediate | 1 hour 20 minutes
The perfect mix of sticky date caramel and a traditional hot cross bun! So delicious, you won't be able to stop!
Ingredients
🌱 = Get It From The Source
Bun
1 tbs chia seeds 🌱
1 tbs linseeds 🌱
4 tbs water
2 ripe bananas, about 300g when peeled
8 medjool dates 🌱
85g maple syrup 🌱
3 tbs olive oil 🌱
150g brown rice flour 🌱
160g chickpea flour 🌱
1 tsp vanilla bean powder
3 tsp linseed 🌱
½ tsp ground cloves 🌱
2 tsp baking powder 🌱
1 tsp bicarbonate soda 🌱
Pinch salt 🌱
160g sultanas 🌱
Cross
65g icing sugar 🌱
Date Caramel
300g medjool dates, pitted 🌱
60g tahini 🌱
½ cup boiling water
85g maple syrup 🌱
Big pinch salt 🌱
Glaze
85g maple syrup 🌱
40g olive oil 🌱
1 tsp linseed 🌱
To Serve
Coconut Yoghurt
Banana Chips 🌱
1 to 2 tsp lemon juice
Method
- To make buns, pre-heat oven to 180°C. Grease a rectangle slice tin with olive oil.
- Combine the chia, linseed and water in a small bowl and leave to sit for a few minutes. In a large food processor, place the soaked chia and linseed, bananas, dates, maple syrup and olive oil. Process until thoroughly combined and smooth.
- In a large mixing bowl combine the brown rice flour, chickpea flour, vanilla, linseed, cloves, baking powder, bicarb, salt and sultanas. Add the wet banana mix and use your hand to finish bringing the dough together but do not overmix. Be gentle with the dough to keep it as light as possible.
- Weigh your dough and divide that weight by 8, then weigh out your 8 portions and roll into smooth balls. Place in the greased tin. Use the end of a spoon to make a cross indentation, about 2mm deep, into the top of each bun.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until browned and cooked through.
- Meanwhile, make the glaze by combining the maple syrup, olive oil and linseed and mixing well. Brush the warm hot Cross Buns with the glaze, going over them twice. Allow to cool.
- Make the cross icing by combining the icing sugar with a little of the lemon juice at a time until you have a thick paste. Use a piping bag or small spoon to fill the cross indentation on top of each bun. Allow to set.
- To make the date caramel, combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until very smooth, scraping down the sides as you go. Store in a sealed jar in the fridge for up to 10 days.
- Best enjoyed on the day of baking, or otherwise cut in half and toasted under a grill. Serve with date caramel, coconut yoghurt and banana chips.
