The ultimate hot cross buns

There’s something inherently comforting about the smell of freshly baked hot cross buns. Perhaps it’s the nostalgic scent of rising dough, the festive aroma of warm spices, or even the sweet perfume of orange and sugar bubbling away atop a kitchen stove for the glaze. Straight from the oven or lightly toasted, these fruit-studded buns are a Good Friday breakfast ritual, one dating back more than 700 years. But which ingredients and methods produce the best bun? Does fresh or dried yeast work best? Caster or brown sugar? How sticky should the glaze be? We tested three recipes, then combined them to create our