Walnut and Fig Hot Cross Buns
Every Good Friday, for some years now, I have sent a recipe (often far-removed from the classic sultana-and-raisin affair) to my girlfriend of the hot cross buns I am baking. To be perfectly exact, I send her the recipe on the Wednesday (Northern Hemisphere time) so she can buy the ingredients to bake them on the Friday (Southern Hemisphere time) before I even bake my own batch (she says in matters of food and love she trusts me entirely!) How Ava was able to find walnut flour and walnut liqueur on such short notice in Ngamotū-New Plymouth, I do not know; but she did, and was able to put these Walnut and Fig Hot Cross Buns on the tea table, next to her Nan's fabulous buns (the classic sultana-and-raisin affair) and her family all deemed these buns inspired by my late Summer holiday in Dordogne delicious. So did mine! Happy Good Friday, friends!
Ingredients (makes a dozen):
8 soft dried figs
¼ cup good Liqueur de Noix (walnut liqueur we brought from our holiday in Périgord)
1 ¼ cup milk
28 grams/1 ounce unsalted butter
¾ teaspoon Vanilla Extract
3 1/2 cups strong white flour
1/4 cup Farine de Noix (walnut flour we also bought in Sarlat)
½ cup caster sugar
1 tablespoon yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
55 grams/2 ounces cold unsalted butter, cut into small chunks
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup beautiful walnut halves
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
a bit of water
1 tablespoon good quality Liqueur de Noix
1 heaped tablespoon Miel de Forêt (Forest Honey, also from Dordogne)
The evening before, place dried figs in a clean jar. Pour Liqueur de Noix over the dried fruits, and seal the jar. Shake the jar energetically, and leave to soak overnight.
The following morning, drain the dry fruits thoroughly, saving the soaking Walnut Liqueur (of which you should have at least a tablespoon) for the glaze. Chop soaked figs into small dices. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan, combine milk, butter and Vanilla Extract, and heat over a low flame, until just simmering. Remove from heat and let cool, ever so slightly.
In a large bowl, combine strong white flour, walnut flour, caster sugar, yeast and salt, making sure the last two don’t touch at that stage. Add cinnamon . Give a good stir. Add butter, and rub into the flour mixture, until it resembles coarse meal. Dig a well in the middle, and add the egg. Add half of the warm milk mixture, mixing the ingredients together. Gradually add the rest of the milk as you might not need all of it. You should get a sticky soft dough.
Tip dough out on a lightly floured surface, and add reserved figs. Knead them into the dough, for about 3 to 4 minutes.
Return dough to the bowl, cover with cling film, and prove, 1 hour and a half to two hours, or until doubled in size.
Quickly toast walnuts in a hot frying pan over a medium flame, until fragrant. Remove from the heat, and allow to cool slightly, before chopping roughly.
Tip dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead in chopped walnuts, a good 5 minutes, stretching the dough and folding it on itself before turning it and repeating, before returning to the bowl. Cover with cling film, and let dough rise a second time, about an hour to an hour and a half .
Line a baking tray with baking paper.
Again, tip dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into twelve portions. Roll each portion into a ball, and arrange 12 balls on prepared baking tray, leaving a bit of room between them to allow them to grow and join. Prove one last time, for an hour, until buns are joining.
Preheat oven to 215°C/415°F.
In a small bowl, whisk together flour and water until you have a smooth paste. Spoon mixture in a small piping bag and pipe a regular horizontal line on each row of buns. Repeat process vertically. Place in the oven, and bake at 215°C/415°F, for 25 minutes.
Warm reserved soaking Walnut Liqueur with Forest Honey in a small saucepan over medium heat, until it just becomes syrup-y.
Once baked, remove Walnut and Fig Hot Cross Buns from the oven, and brush immediately with the warm Honey and Walnut Liqueur syrup to give them a nice glaze. Leave hot cross buns to cool as long as you can, before enjoying with heaps of butter and a hot cuppa! Happy Good Friday!
