Hot Cross Buns

Cinnamon and citrus buns marked with a cross are an Easter tradition from England, where sell of them was once banned except for religious holidays because they were made with communion water.

If you aren’t experienced in making yeast breads, this is a nice simple, starter recipe.  I have never had them go wrong.  The only key thing that is not complicated but is vital, is to use a thermometer, yeast needs just the right temperature of milk to grow.

Often recipes call for bread flour when using yeast.  High protein flour is needed for many yeast breads.  However for this recipe, I like the softness of these buns using Southern Biscuit All-Purpose Flour.  The protein is not too high and not too low so they come out with a perfect texture.

Makes 12 buns

3/4 cup warm milk (105˚-115˚F)

1 ¼-ounce packages active dry yeast

½ cup sugar

3 ½-4 cups Southern Biscuit All-Purpose Flour

¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

¼ cup unsalted butter, softened

1 large eggs

½ cup yellow raisins

¼ cup currants

Zest of one orange, grated

Zest of one lemon, grated

Egg wash:

1 large egg

1 tablespoon milk

Glaze:

½ cup confectioners sugar

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Heat milk in the microwave and use a thermometer to measure the temperature.  When milk reaches between 105˚ to 115˚F, stir in the yeast and add a pinch of sugar.  Set aside.

In large bowl, combine sugar, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.

When yeast is foamy, about 10 minutes, add it to the flour.  Stir in butter and eggs using electric mixer on low.  Use the dough hook to knead the dough until smooth and the dough starts to slap the side of the bowl.  You will hear it hitting, this takes 5 to 10 minutes.

Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead in the raisins, currents, orange zest and lemon zest.

Place in a oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about an hour and a half.

Shape into 12 balls and place on a baking sheet that has been coated with nonstick cooking spray.  Place at least 3 inches apart.  Spray plastic wrap with nonstick cooking spray and cover the rolls.  Let rise in a warm place until double in size, about an hour.

Preheat oven to 400˚F.  Combine egg and milk to make egg wash. Brush the tops with egg wash. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.  Place on a wire rack to cool.

Combine the confectioners sugar and lemon juice.  Place in a small plastic bag and snip the corner of the bag.  Pipe a cross on the buns.

Sun Drop Pound Cake

I always bake pound cakes in the spring and serve them with fresh berries.  So when I found this recipe in the files at Midstate Mills, I decided to take it to our spring book club meeting.  One friend, old enough to have tried many pound cakes in her day, said this was the best pound cake she had ever eaten – high praise. Everyone else went on and on about how moist it is and how light it is and most went for seconds, but out of courtesy of course I pretended not to notice.  Besides, I was right there with them, I loved it too!

I didn’t tell them the secret ingredient was Sun Drop soda until they begged for the recipe. They were surprised.  That led to a debate of North Carolina favorite soft drinks- Sun Drop or Cheerwine?  (We do finally discuss books at these things- really.) The group was divided and I don’t like either drink, but we all love the flavor of this cake.

A fan of book club debates, I teed up a new topic- Carolina flour brands -Southern Biscuit or Red Band?  There was no disagreement, Southern Biscuit Flour was the clear favorite and even the folks who had family memories of Red Band now prefer Southern Biscuit, except for our New York transplanted member who had no idea about either. She decided to try Southern Biscuit Flour after seeing the texture of this cake.

I am sharing this recipe because I think it will surprise you too.  It is light and delicious. You will be proud to take it to any gathering.  Mine falls just a bit, but that is because this cake is sweeter than most pound cakes, so it falls a bit.  I have to say reducing the sugar would be a big mistake, just bake it as written and turn it upside down to serve.

Serves 12

3 cups Southern Biscuit All-Purpose Flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened

1 cup vegetable shortening

3 cups sugar

5 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup Sun Drop soft drink

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 ½ teaspoons lemon extract

Adjust oven racks so that a shelf is in the lower third of the oven and there is room for the tube pan above that rack.

Heat oven to 325°F.  Coat a tube pan with nonstick spray with flour or coat with shortening and then dust with flour.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl until combined.

Beat the butter and shortening until smooth using an electric mixer set on medium high speed.  Gradually add sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.  Add the eggs one at a time, beat for 1 minute after each addition.

Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix on low speed, just until combined.  Add ½ of the soft drink and mix on low speed, just until combined.  Scrape the sides of the bowl.  Repeat until all ingredients are mixed, ending with flour.

Add the vanilla and lemon flavorings and mix on low speed, just until combined. Turn into the tube pan.  Wrap the pan with foil or place the tube pan on a baking sheet to prevent leaking into the oven.

Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted is clean when removed.  Cool in the pan for 20 minutes.  Remove cake from pan to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Cream Cheese Pound Cake

I have to admit that this is not low fat.  Yet is seems so light and airy, just right for spring.  It is very moist yet dense enough to hold up to a large topping of spring’s fresh fruits.  Pile it high with fresh berries and add whipped cream.  It is totally worth it.

The magic behind the cake is the main ingredient- flour. When you use Southern Biscuit All Purpose Flour, you will love the cake texture – the most vital part of a perfect pound cake.  Southern flour is ideal for everything the south is known for…perfect cakes, biscuits, and pies.  See the difference a flour can make.

Serves 12

3 cups Southern Biscuit All Purpose Flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, softened
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
3 cups sugar
6 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Preheat oven to 325˚F.  Coat a 10-inch tube pan or bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Whisk together flour and salt.  Set aside.

Beat butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer for 1 minute or until smooth.  Gradually add sugar.  Turn mixer to medium high speed and mix for 6 minutes or until mixture is light.

Beat in eggs one at a time, beating for about 1 minute after each addition.  Stir in extracts.

Fold in flour just until combined.

Bake for 75 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool in pan for 20 minutes then move to cooling rack to cool completely.

Cold Oven Pound Cake

When we were considering recipes for the web site, Steve Arndt, the Chief Marketing Officer at Midstate Mills told me that his mother baked “the best cakes” and he would get her recipe for Cold Oven Pound Cake. He shared the recipe and most importantly shared the story that makes the cake so special, his mother for years baked this cake for the extended family and served it every Easter.  He remembers as a boy, pulling up a chair to the counter to help crack the eggs, sneaking a taste of the sugar and butter before the eggs were added, and waiting – the long wait for the cake to cool. It was clear from listening- that this is not just a cake – it is a fond family memory.

We could see why, it is pure moist, tender, dense pound cake, not too sweet, perfection in the world of pound cakes. But it is not just perfect cake, that alone it is never the whole story.  It is that to bake a cake from scratch at home is the real deal – the memory maker. The thing that family will remember for years to come.

Starting with a cold oven adds to the moistness of a pound cake.  Once my mother’s oven was not working well and shut off after 30 minutes with a pound cake in the oven.  When I discovered the problem, I turned the oven back on, but thought my cake was ruined.  I was wrong, it was the best pound cake that I ever baked.  Finding this recipe confirmed what I had learned from the oven problem, slow baking is key to pound cakes being moist.

3 cups sugar

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

8 tablespoons vegetable shortening

5 large eggs, room temperature

3 cups Southern Biscuit® All-Purpose Flour

1 cup whole milk, room temperature

1 ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

½ teaspoon almond extract

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Coat a 10-inch tube or large Bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray with flour or with shortening then dust with flour.

Combine sugar, butter, and shortening in a large bowl and beat for about 7 minutes or until mixture is light.  Add eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition, about 1 minute per egg.

With the mixer on low speed, gradually add about one third of the flour, and mix until smooth, then add one half of the milk and beat until smooth.  Repeat, ending with flour.  Add the extracts and the juice.  Mix until well blended.

Spread the batter in the prepared pan and place in the COLD oven.

Heat the oven to 325° F.

Bake for 1 ½ hours or until a cake tester or toothpick is clean when removed.  Remove from oven, let stand for 20 minutes, then turn onto a rack to cool comp