As we head into Easter, it’s time to put your taste buds to the test to find the most delicious hot cross buns in Canberra.
How does your local bakery stack up against the big supermarkets that have been diligently tempting us with all things chocolate since they took down their Christmas decorations in late December?
The hot cross bun purists may also be getting hot under the collar with some recipes even putting chocolate in their buns.
But now with Easter less than a week away, it is appropriate to wake up to the smell of hot cross buns toasting in the oven.
We have put our noses on the trail and found some of the best hot cross buns in Canberra.
Three Mills Bakery at Majura Business Park has kept to the traditional hot cross bun that is not short on juicy fruit and is topped with traditional choux crosses. They are a delicacy worth every cent of their $17 per six-pack price tag.
Three Mills also does an equally delectable chocolate-cherry version that you can store in the freezer and bake-at-home, although we suspect they may not make it to the freezer. And for the purist, they have the traditional variety to bake at home, just in case you want to get that fresh-bread smell filling your home.
At Danny’s Bakery, in Narrabundah, you’ll find Canberra’s biggest, best-value hot cross buns, and the family who has been baking them since 1988. For sourdough lovers, you’ll enjoy their full sourdough hot cross bun.
The bakery’s namesake, Danny Collins, started as an apprentice baker more than 55 years ago in Batemans Bay, where he learned to make hand-moulded timed sourdoughs, using traditional baking methods. After moving to Canberra, he honed his craft and business skills in various bakeries before opening the city’s first sourdough bakery with his wife.
The Spence Family Bakery is another family-owned bakehouse operated by Dean and Catherine Elliott. They make all products in-store daily, including traditional hot cross buns and a very chocolatey choc-chip hot cross bun.
In Fyshwick, you’ll find gold medal-worthy gluten and grain-free hot cross buns at Deeks Health Foods.
Manager Theresa de Castella says they have kept all the taste intact while producing vegan morsels free of gluten, grains and dairy with no artificial preservatives, colours or flavours.
“We didn’t want people with very restricted diets to miss out on important traditions such as Easter,” she says. “It gives them something to look forward to that they can share and experience with kids and loved ones.”
Made from quinoa, tapioca and soy flour, with the taste and essence of traditional spice, sultanas and currants, Deeks’ hot cross buns are just one of the healthy products available at the world’s first 100 per cent grain and gluten-free bakery.
It is a wonderful feeling waking up to a lightly toasted hot cross bun, straight from the oven and smothered in butter. Buns can come in all shapes, sizes and flavours, including choc chip, double choc, white chocolate with raspberries, apple-cinnamon, spiced chai, and, of course, the good old traditional fruit hot cross bun.
No matter what your favourite flavour is, where do you get your hot cross buns from?