First of all, I have to tell you that I’m having extreme déjà vu on this topic. Did I write about it back when this was a newsletter? Am I thinking of soulcakes? I… don’t know…?
Anyway, it all comes back to Lent.
I know I’ve mentioned Lent a lot assuming that you guys are hip to the jive, but I also realize that I didn’t really learn much about that topic until I was in college (I was raised in a non-denominational Christian church). So let me summarize: Lent commemorates the time Jesus spent fasting in the desert before beginning his real job of… being Jesus. It begins on Ash Wednesday and runs for 40 days… ish. Various Christian churches end it on different days, but many people carry it all the way through Easter.
What people abstain from during Lent has changed over the years. Most of you are familiar with the tradition of choosing something to abstain from something in particular for the period (called the Lenten sacrifice) and of giving up meat (except fish on Fridays). But historically, the Lenten fast has included meat, alcohol, dairy products and eggs… among other things… (sex. I mean sex.)
The prohibition on dairy and eggs made baking a little tricky during Lent. Hot cross buns were made with a yeasted dough and given lots of flavor as a technically-approved Lenten fast treat (even if you ended your fast before Good Friday, when they’re traditionally eaten).
The symbology of the cross is obvious for Christians (though some suggest Pagans made similar-looking buns to represent the wheel of the year), but the supposed meaning of the spices and orange peel is perhaps a bit more cloudy. They say that the spices were meant to represent those used to embalm Jesus (holy morbs, Batman) and the orange peel would reflect the bitterness of his time on the cross (wuuuuut).
I always tend to roll my eyes at those lofty explanations. I think it’s more likely that people wanted some flavor at the end of Lent, and the Easter Triduum was important enough a celebration to warrant breaking out dried fruits and spices, not unlike Christmas. The association was more of a backdated excuse.
There’s a bit of folklore that says hanging a hot cross bun in a kitchen would prevent fires and ensure bread turns out perfectly at every bake. Ever seen those fake foam hot cross buns hanging in a restaurant and wondered why? There you go.
Sally’s Baking Addiction: Hot Cross Buns