A batch of chelsea buns on a wire cooling rack with icing drizzled over on a marble countertop

Chelsea buns

Name: Chelsea buns
Total time: 30 min
Yield: Makes 8
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: 500g strong white bread flour; 7g fast-action dried yeast; 75g golden caster sugar; 1½ tsp mixed spice; 250ml milk warmed; 1 egg beaten; 100g unsalted butter softened; 125g sultanas and currants; 250g icing sugar

Anna Glover

Published: May 10, 2022 at 2:56 PM

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Makes 8

Easy

Total time: 30 mins

+ rising

A star rating of 5 out of 5.16 ratingsRate

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This classic bun, flavoured with mixed spice and studded with currants, is sweet and squishy, and makes a perfect partner to a cup of tea

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Make these squishy chelsea buns for an afternoon treat, then try our citrussy chelsea buns, cinnamon buns, laminated milk bread, brioche recipe and more afternoon tea recipes.

Ingredients

Nutrition

500g strong white bread flour
7g fast-action dried yeast
75g golden caster sugar
1½ tsp mixed spice
250ml milk

warmed
1 egg

beaten
100g unsalted butter

softened
125g sultanas and currants
250g icing sugar

Nutrition: per serving

kcal556
fat13g
saturates7.6g
carbs98g
sugars53g
fibre2.7g
protein10g
salt0.4g

Method

step 1

Tip the flour into the bowl of a stand mixer, and add the yeast, 50g of sugar, ½ tsp of fine salt and ½ tsp of mixed spice. Make a well in the middle and pour in the warm milk. Mix for a few minutes with the dough hook until the dough comes together, then add the egg and knead for 3-4 minutes or until smooth. With the motor still running, feed in 50g of the butter, in small pieces, and keep mixing until well combined and the dough turns slightly glossy. Cover and leave in a warm place to rise for 1-2 hours or until doubled in size.
step 2

Mash together the remaining 50g of butter, 25g of sugar and 1 tsp of mixed spice in a small bowl until uniform in colour.
step 3

Knock back the dough, then roll out on a lightly floured worksurface to about 30cm x 30cm square, and about 1½cm thick. Spread the spiced butter over the dough and smooth over using a spatula. Scatter over the sultanas and currants evenly. Roll up the dough like a swiss roll from one side, tightly packing in the filling as you roll. Cut into 8 pieces, and transfer to a buttered 24-25cm round baking dish or cake tin, leaving a little space between each one to allow for them to rise. Cover with a clean tea towel and leave to rise for 30-45 minutes.
step 4

Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Bake the buns for 25-30 minutes or until golden and well risen. Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Mix the icing sugar with 3-4 tsp of water to make a smooth drizzling consistency, then drizzle over the buns to serve.

Make these classic buns, then try our citrussy chelsea buns

Citrussy chelsea buns on a board next to a small plate with a single bun and fork

Authors

Anna Glover profile

Anna GloverSenior food editor

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A star rating of 5 out of 5.16 ratings

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