Hot Cross Buns

Signs of spring

With or without this Christian calculation, spring’s arrival with its fleeting warmth and growing light has long been celebrated around the time of the vernal equinox when the sun’s light forms a right angle with the earth’s equator and day and night are equal length. 

In our little Valley, these lengthening days remind chickens to once again lay eggs, welcome violets as they peep up from their underground lairs and signal the fruit trees to paint the orchards pink and white with their blossoms. 

Our earliest ancestors knew to watch for the vernal equinox and creatively interpreted what they observed in nature around that time with stories and myth. Each culture taught its children about the gods that made life so and the rituals they could perform, through feast and celebration, in hope for some influence over the coming year’s events. 

A rose by any other name

Hot Cross Buns were first baked in ancient Greece for festivals celebrating Eos, goddess of the dawn. The Romans borrowed heavily from Greek mythology, combining and renaming gods to align with their own beliefs and social needs. Eos became Aurora, who eventually lent her image to the northern European Eostre, goddess of spring, fertility and light, and for whom it is believed the month of April was also once named. In Anglo Saxon folklore, Eostre was said to appear in the spring as a hare and lay eggs in the grass. Hot Cross Buns continued to be baked in her honour, with the cross representing the four changing seasons and rebirth after winter.

Eventually, these goddesses faded away in the mists of time and were replaced by the Christian holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus on the third day after his crucifixion. Thankfully, in the way of moveable feasts, Hot Cross Buns survived the rebrand with the cross now representing the crucifixion of Jesus.

Light, renewal, birth, and hope have universally been observed and celebrated this time of year. 

Where grandparents and grandchildren are joined

Learning about the rituals and traditional foods that our ancestors once cherished may seem gratuitous, but it shouldn’t be. Baking something special, like Hot Cross Buns at Easter, serves as a mile marker in the path of our year and in our shared history, reminding us of where we came from and where we are going.  These feasts and foods are temples where grandparents and grandchildren are joined.

Sometimes old customs no longer serve us…whether it’s because our faith has ebbed, our palates have changed or life just gets too dang busy. But that doesn’t mean they should be tossed aside and forgotten. We may (and should!) adapt traditions and recipes to our changing values, psychologies and needs, but continue to bake them and enjoy the comfort of tradition, knowing that your great great great grandmother may once have done the same. And her great greats.

As a lover of old recipes I’d long wanted to bake a batch of Hot Cross Buns from scratch for Easter. Unfortunately, my family doesn’t much care for the traditional combination of currants, warming spices and candied peel, so I’ve always let the idea pass over. 

So long, raisins!

Recently, in contemplating the moveable nature of Easter, it occurred to me that no one would mind very much if I respectfully adapted the recipe by baking a bun with a cross that appeals to the palate of my family. So I did. And it was a hit. I even think I heard my great great great Anglican English grandmother applauding me somewhere far off in the distance. 

It is my hope that this recipe for Hot Cross Buns will encourage you to make a traditional dish of your own this Easter. Whether the crosses that adorn your buns symbolise the four changing seasons, the phases of the moon, or Christ’s resurrection, do be sure to celebrate the enduring message of Easter, which is that life does indeed emerge from death.