The Hot Cross Buns were a success! They took a lot longer to make than anticipated, but I got to spend Mother's Day baking with moms and that was awesome. (I couldn't find currants so I ended up using dates and golden raisins).
1 cup milk, scalded*
1/2 cup sugar
3 tbsp butter, melted
1/2 tsp salt
1 yeast cake** dissolved in
1/4 cup warm water
3 cups flour
1 egg, well beaten
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup currants
Frosting:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tbsp butter
1 1/2 tbsp warm milk
1/4 tsp vanilla
*Heat milk in microwave for 2 minutes. Combine sugar, salt, butter and milk. When lukewarm, add dissolved yeast cake. **(1 yeast cake = 1 pack of yeast) Add egg and mix well. Sift flour and cinnamon together and stir into the yeast mixture. Add currants and mix thoroughly. Cover and let rise until double in size. Shape into large biscuits and place on well-buttered pan. Let rise. Beat 1 egg brush tops of each biscuit. Make a cross on each biscuit with sharp knife or kitchen scissors. Make at 400˚ for 20 mins.
Blend frosting ingredients thoroughly and fill X's on buns with icing. Tip: Put frosting in a zip lock bag and cut a small hole in the corner to dispense.
In case you were wondering, here are the lyrics for the Hot Cross Buns nursery rhyme:
Hot cross buns! Hot cross buns!
One a penny two a penny - Hot cross buns
If you have no daughters, give them to your sons
One a penny two a penny - Hot cross buns