Chel­sea Buns

This is a traditional Bristish bun, created on the 18th century in the Chelsea Bun House, a shop located in this famous neighborhood which became very famous between the British high society. Close to the american version cinnamon roll, the process of making these buns is very similar. Tis recipe is usually made of a rich yeast dough flavoured with lemon peel, cinnamon or mixed spice. This is my version of a Jamie Oliver recipe, which is contains orange instead lemon. You can actually fill them with any ingriedient at your taste. They are perfect for breakfast or a tea-time treat with a coffee or a cup of tea, I like to spread some creamy butter.

Chel­sea Buns

Makes 12

500 g flour
1 sachet of dried yeast (7g)
6 tablespoons honey
1 small orange
85 g raisins
50 g soft butter
1 egg
1 tablespoon mix spices
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
65 g pecans, chopped
65 g brown sugar
400 ml warm water
a pinch of salt

Grate the zest of the orange and squeeze the fruit out. Put the raisins, the orange zest, the juice and some mineral water in a bowl and set aside. In a separate bowl mix the brown sugar and the cinnamon, set aside.

Sift the flour into a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Pour about 250 ml of warm water into the well, add the yeast, 1 tablespoon of the honey and a pinch of salt. Stir with a fork from the middle quietly in the flour. Once the mixture is thick and sticky and difficult to stir, slowly go add more flower by stirring more flour in making larger circles in the bowl. Little by little add some more water (maximum of 150 ml) in the middle and mix everything together into a cohesive dough. Add if necessary some water or flour .

Dust the sticky dough with flour and knead the dough by hand on a floured surface for about 10-12 minutes, or until you have a smooth and elastic dough. Put the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with a clean tea towel and leave in a warm place to rise 45 min, or until the dough has doubled in volume.

On a floured surface knead the dough with your hands, add the soft butter, egg yolk and mixed spice gradually into the dough. If the dough is sticky you can dust it with some more flour. Roll the dough into a flat shape,  about 1 cm thick. Dust with flour while rolling.

Brush the dough with the liquid of the raisins, sprinkle with pecans, the cinnamon, the sugar and stir in the raisins on top. Keep the rest of the liquid of the raisins aside. Roll the dough from the long side and when finished rolling, press the outsides a little bit in to close it off.

Cut with a sharp knife into 2 cm slices and put them on a buttered baking tray. Keep some space between them because they will grow in size. Leave them 30 minutes in a warm place to grow, or until they have become double in size.

Preheat the oven to 180º. Brush the rolls with raisins moisture. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until cooked, remove them from the oven. Heat 5 tbsp of honey in a small saucepan. Brush the rolls generously with the honey and put them another 2-3 minutes in the oven, or until golden brown and delicious sticky along the edges. Let them cool on a rack 30 minutes and serve. .

Enjoy your week ♥