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Chocolate Easter buns

Chocolate Easter buns, also known as chocolate hot cross buns, are a delicious variation of the traditional hot cross buns typically enjoyed during the Easter season. Here's a simple recipe with chocolate and chocolate chips instead of dried fruit to make your own... I decorated them with Easter eggs instead of the cross but will give the instructions for the cross as well.
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Cuisine English
Servings 12 people

Equipment

  • 1 square baking tin 22 cm x 22 cm

Ingredients
  

  • 10 g dry yeast
  • 120 g castor sugar, divided 10 g / 110 g
  • 375 ml milk, lukewarm, divided 75 ml / 300 ml
  • 630 g cake flour plus extra for dusting the work surface
  • 30 g cacao
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp cardamom
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence or extract
  • 50 g butter, melted
  • 1 egg
  • 150 g dark chocolate chips
  • for the crosses
  • 75 g cake flour
  • 5 Tbsp water
  • for the glaze
  • 1 Tbsp smooth apricot jam
  • 1 tsp water

Instructions
 

  • Place the yeast, 10 g sugar and 75 ml lukewarm milk in the bowl of your stand mixer.
  • Stir with a spoon and let it stand for 5 to 10 min or until the mixture starts to foam.
  • Then add the remaining sugar and milk, and the flour, cacao, cinnamon, cardamom, salt, vanilla essence (extract), butter and egg.
  • Knead the dough with your stand mixer or by hand for at least 5 minutes. Then add the chocolate chips and knead for another 2 to 3 minutes until the dough feels smooth and elastic.
  • Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover tightly with a plastic wrap.
  • Leave it to rise in a warm, draught-free spot for an hour or until doubled in size.
  • Put the dough onto your flour-dusted work surface and form the dough into a log. This will deflate the dough but you don't have to worry about it.
  • Cut the dough into 12 equal pieces and roll each into a smooth ball.
  • You can either grease your baking tin or line it with non-stick parchment paper.
  • Put all the balls into the prepared cake tin (3x4) and cover the tin with a lightly oiled plastic wrap.
  • Let the dough rise for another 30 to 40 minutes.
  • While the dough is rising preheat your oven to 180 degrees C.
  • If you want to make the crosses, mix the flour and water, fill the mixture into a small plastic bag, cut one edge off and pipe the crosses over each bun.
  • Bake the buns for 25 minutes in your preheated oven.
  • Once the buns are baked, mix the apricot jam and water in a small jar.
  • Heat it in the microwave and brush the warm mixture over your buns.
  • If you don't want to make the crosses, you can decorate your buns with chocolate eggs or other Easter treats.
  • The buns are best eaten warm. You can keep them in the fridge for 2 days or freeze any leftovers.
Keyword choco easter bun