I've been experimenting a bit in the kitchen over the past few weeks trying to come up with the ultimate quick and easy but still tasty easter recipe. I love hot cross buns and I have been experimenting with the flavour combination of the hot cross bun in other ways such as biscuits, muffins and now these super tasty scrolls.

I have to say out of all the experiments these scrolls take the ~~cake~~ ...~~bun~~... er ... scroll for me.

I love hot cross buns and I love making them but you do need a free afternoon to make them fresh unless you cheat and buy them from the supermarket. If you are time poor and have a hankering for a hot cross bun these can be made in under an hour and a bit from start to bite. These scrolls would be a great project for the kids to have a go at making with a little bit of adult supervision. I am sure they would have a ball getting their hands in the dough and giving it a good mix and stir. So if during the easter break the kids are driving you a bit crazy send them into the kitchen to make these. Hopefully you will still have your sanity when these come out of the oven.

These scrolls mimic the flavour of a hot cross bun beautifully. The dough is dotted with plump juicy sultanas, currants, goji berries and a zing of peel. The baked scroll has a tender and moist crumb which is spicy and fragrant. Each bite sending wonderful flavours of cinnamon, mixed spice and cloves up your nose. Spreading the warmth and cosiness through your body with each mouthful. The good thing about these scrolls is they are not overly sweet, which is a nice change to the over abundance of tooth decaying chocolate bunnies and easter eggs spilling out of the kitchen pantry at this time of year.

I do have fond memories of this time of year and it generally involved kilograms of chocolate and a few migraines to boot. My mum would always buy us a Cadbury chocolate Easter bunny. Cloaked in its regal purple foil wrapper. Its delicious chocolate ears sticking up as if listening and waiting for something (probably the sound of salivating humans reading to crack its ears off. It looked so innocent and cute until it's head was gone into my mouth after a few days. I was a chocolate hoarder not a gorger. I would slowly chip away at my bunny eating little pieces here and there over a period of a few days to a week. Starting at my favourite spot the ears. Generally by the time school went back I may of finished my bunny and most of the little chocolate eggs we were also given. I realise now I have to make the hard decision of if and when we will give our little boy chocolate for Easter. I don't want to be mean mum but I am really quite hesitant to want to expose him to this feasting. Is it inevitable that he will eat this one day? Probably but I guess it will be up to me how much.

Anyway back to these scrolls .... got a little off topic reminiscing about chocolate bunnies. When making these scrolls it is important to roll out your dough into a rectangle onto a piece of lightly floured baking paper. This helps with rolling up the dough later on. The middle of the dough is lightly spread with a combination of butter, brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkled with some more mixed fruit and goji berries. I decided to add the goji berries in there for the tartness that they bring. Cranberries would work equally as well here too. When rolling the dough up you roll from the long side up not from the short side.

After a quick chill down in the fridge or freezer you cut off 1 inch pieces of dough and place it onto a lined cookie tray placing the scrolls close together but not touching so there is room to let them expand. Bake them off in a hot oven until golden brown. Let them cool before icing them as the icing will not set and just melt off the scrolls.

They go down quite nicely along side a nice cup of black tea (or coffee) on a beautiful autumn afternoon.

Hot Cross Scrolls

by The Whimsical Wife

Prep Time: 20 min + 15 min chilling

Cook Time: 25 min

Keywords: bake Easter fall spring winter

Ingredients (12-15 scrolls)

For the scrolls

2 cups self raising flour
pinch salt
90g butter
1/8 cup castor sugar
2/3 cup milk
3 tablespoon goji berries
1/4 cup dried mixed fruit
1 teaspoon mixed spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

For the filling

60g butter
2 tablespon brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp mixed spice
1 tablespoon goji berries
2 tablespoon dried mixed fruit

For the icing

1/2 cup icing sugar
1 - 2 tablespoon boiling water

Instructions

Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

In a large bowl sift the flour and salt. Add the butter in and using your fingertips rub the butter in until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the dried fruit, sugar and spices and mix to combine.

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour most of the milk into the center.

Mix the dough together with a flat edged knife, adding the rest of the milk if necessary. The dough should be quite sticky and soft.

Remove the dough from the bowl onto the floured piece of baking paper. Flatten the dough with your hands to form a rectangle. Lightly flour the top of the dough and roll out to rectangle about 1cm thick.

For the filling

In a small bowl add the butter. spices and sugar together and beat together with a spoon. Using a spatula or knife spread the butter mixture on the top of the dough leaving a 1 cm border around the edge. Sprinkle the extra dried fruit evenly onto the top of the dough.

Roll the dough up start on the long edge of the rectangle to form a long sausage shape.

Wrap the dough in the baking paper and place in the fridge for 15 minutes to chill.

Once chilled remove and cut 2cm widths of dough with a sharp knife. Place the cut dough flat on the baking tray and repeat with the remaining dough. Leaving room between each scroll for expansion.

Place into the oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and let cool.

For the icing

In a small bowl place the icing sugar and boiling water. Mix together to form a firm but soft icing.

Place into the corner of a freezer bag and snip the corner off to form a piping bag. Pipe crosses onto the top of the cooled scrolls and let it set for 15 minutes. (If you can wait that long)