These chai spiced hot cross buns are a lightly spiced, fruit-free version of classic hot cross buns. This version produces super soft buns that are perfect served warm or toasted after the chocolate has disappeared on Easter Sunday. With step-by-step photos in this post, let me show you how easy they are to make!
If you love HCBs, then also try these chocolate hot cross buns, or for something savoury try these vegemite and cheese hot cross buns, or for an egg-free version try my vegan hot cross buns.
Hot cross buns are one of my favourite food traditions. I love the smell of the spiced buns that fill the house as they bake, and I while I love the convenience of buying them from the supermarket, there is something so much more satisfying and enjoyable about making them from scratch.
Homemade hot cross buns has become a yearly tradition on Eight Forest Lane, and I love spending those weeks before Easter each year therapeutically kneading dough, watching it rise and baking it into soft, delicious buns.
I love the process of making these, and if you find yourself at home this Easter and looking for a new tradition, might I suggest baking a batch of hot cross buns.
This version is for the people who love a delicately spiced, warm bun with lot’s of dairy free butter and absolutely no fruit. It’s a plain hot cross bun but it’s definitely not boring!
Key Ingredients
Just like any sweet bread recipe, we’ll need a couple of key pantry staple ingredients to create these delicious soft and fluffy buns, and a well stocked spice rack to add that delicious chai spice flavour.
Note all ingredients and their quantities are laid out in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Yeast – dry yeast will make your dough light and fluffy, give it rise and give it that bready taste and texture.
- White sugar – feeds the yeast which makes it be able give the bread rise keeping it soft and light without being overly sweet.
- Dairy free milk – I use oat milk or almond milk in this recipe, but any dairy free milk will work. It’s main purpose is to active the yeast and bind everything together.
- Plain flour – also known as all purpose flour in the US.
- Chai spice mix – I am using my homemade chai spice mix which is the same that I use in this chai spiced tea cake. It’s made with a combination of ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, and cloves. The exact amounts needed for the blend are listed in the notes of the recipe card below.
- Dairy free butter – adds richness and flavour. I recommend using a quality dairy-free butter substitute here for the best flavour. I love and always use Nuttelex Buttery which is an Australian product. In the US, the closest alternative is Earth Balance which I understand to be very similar.
- Eggs – for even more richness and softness to your end result.
🤓 Hot cross buns are made with a sweet, rich dough. A rich dough is characterised by the amount of fat present. In this case it is the addition of milk, butter and eggs to create a super soft end product which is different to a lean dough that is used to make my sandwich bread and focaccia which tends to not be as soft and has a crusty exterior.
Step-By-Step Instructions
Like many yeast based recipes, baking hot cross buns at home can be intimidating. But let me guide you through the process step-by-step. Make sure to read through everything carefully before beginning to make sure you know what to expect with each step.
Start by ‘blooming’ the yeast by whisking it together with the sugar and warm milk in the bowl of your stand mixer. Let this mixture sit for 10 minutes until it becomes frothy.
Make the dough by mixing all the ingredients into the yeast mixture using a dough hook attachment on a stand mixer. If you don’t have a stand mixer, then you are going to need a wooden spoon and some strong arms, motivation and persistence.
Once the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl it is ready for it’s first rise. The dough will be quite soft and sticky, so use a spatula to scrape the dough from the bowl and turn onto a floured surface to shape into a ball carefully with floured hands.
Place back into the bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel, and sit aside in a warm place for 1 hour.
Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down to deflate and turn onto a floured surface. Lightly knead and shape the dough into a ball and divide it into 12 pieces.
Shape each piece onto a ball and place into a baking pan that has been lined with baking paper and oil spray. Cover and set aside again for 30 minutes for the second rise.
While the buns are rising, make the paste for the crosses and preheat the oven. When the second rise is complete, add the paste to a piping bag or ziplock bag and pipe over the uncooked buns. Place into the oven and bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown.
While the buns are baking, make the glaze in a small saucepan on the stove and brush over the freshly baked buns.
👉Tips for making hot cross buns
- The dairy free milk needs to be warm but not hot otherwise this will kill the yeast. If you can hold your finger in the liquid without it feeling uncomfortable, then that’s about perfect.
- The dough will be quite sticky but you want to avoid adding in too much extra flour as this will alter the texture of the buns. Gently shape the dough using floured hands on a floured surface and sprinkle the dough with a little extra flour when handling it gets a bit too sticky.
- The dough needs to rise in a warm, dry spot in order to rise correctly. During the warmer months here in Brisbane, I usually just put my bowl outside under the veranda in the shade as the air temp is warm enough (or just on the counter if my air con is not on). In winter when this isn’t an option I like to preheat the oven to 100°C (200°F) and then when ready for the rise turn it off and sit the bowl on the bottom shelf with the door open.
- You know the buns are done when you tap the top of them and they sound hollow. This trick works for all bread recipes.
- Use leftover or stale buns to make this hot cross bun bread and butter pudding!
Recipe FAQs
Yes! You can mix and knead the dough by hand if you don’t have a stand mixer. It may take a little longer and require some muscle and patience, but you can still achieve the same results. Be sure to knead for around 10 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.
You can! After the first rise, you can cover the dough tightly and place it in the fridge overnight. Let it come to room temperature for about 30 minutes before shaping and continuing with the second rise.
These are best enjoyed fresh on the day of baking but will keep well for 2–3 days in an airtight container at room temperature. As they get a little stale, you can refresh them in the microwave or just toast them in a sandwich press.
You sure can! While this recipe was written for those who want plain HCBs, you can certainly mix in about 1 cup of sultanas, raisins, or dairy free chocolate chips.
If you do make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating below! And tag any of your creations on Instagram with @eightforestlane as I would love to see.
More Easter Recipes:
Easter Sugar Cookies
Easy Rocky Road
Carrot Cake Pancakes
Vegan Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Chai Spiced Hot Cross Buns (Fruit-Free)
Ingredients
- 1 x 7 gram packet yeast
- ¼ cup white sugar/granulated sugar
- 1 ½ cups dairy free milk warmed
- 4 ¼ cups plain flour/all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon chai spice mix see notes
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup (60 grams) dairy free butter
- 1 egg room temperature
For the crosses:
- 4 tablespoons plain flour/all purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon chai spice mix see notes
- 4 tablespoons water
For the glaze:
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup sugar
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer whisk together the yeast, sugar and warmed milk. Cover with a clean, damp kitchen towel and let sit for 10 minutes until the mixture is frothy.
- Add in 2 cups of the flour and begin to mix on low using the dough hook attachment of your stand mixer. Add another cup of flour, the chai spice mix, salt, dairy -free butter and the egg, and mix on medium speed until the dough starts to form. Add in the final cup + ¼ cup of flour and mix until the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl.
- Use a rubber spatula to remove the dough from the bowl onto a floured surface and using floured hands, shape the dough into a ball. Place the dough back into the bowl and cover with a clean, damp towel and set aside in a warm area for 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size.
- Punch down the dough to release the air and turn the dough out onto a floured surface and shape the dough into a ball.
- Line a 9 x 13 inch (20cm x 30cm) tray with baking paper and set aside. Cut the dough ball into 4 even pieces, and then cut each piece into 3 so that you have 12 pieces in total. Roll each piece into a ball and place evenly into the pan. Cover again with the kitchen towel and set aside in a warm place for 30 minutes.
- Before the second rise is complete, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Mix together the additional flour, chai spice mix, and water to make a thick paste. Place the paste into a zip lock bag or piping bag and snip off the end.
- Once the buns have finished rising, pipe crosses onto each and place the buns in the oven for 30 minutes, or until browned on top and they make a hollow sound when you tap the top.
- About 5 minutes before the baking time is up, make the glaze by boiling together the sugar and water in a small pot on the stove until the sugar is completely dissolved.
- Brush the glaze over the cooked buns. Pull apart and serve warm with some extra dairy free butter.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a guide only and is calculated using automated online tools, therefore we cannot guarantee the accuracy. We encourage you to make your own calculations based on the actual ingredients used in your recipe.
This post was originally published in April 2021 but was updated in 2025 with new photos and more helpful information. The recipe remains the same.
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