Baking & Afternoon Tea · Chelsea, London

Chelsea Buns

Name: Chelsea Buns
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: Makes 9
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: Dough: 300g strong bread flour, 1 tsp salt, 7g yeast, 150ml warm milk, 1 egg, 40g butter, 30g sugar; Filling: 75g soft butter, 75g soft brown sugar, 150g mixed dried fruit, 2 tsp mixed spice; Glaze: 2 tbsp milk and 2 tbsp caster sugar, warmed together

Sticky, glazed spirals of fruit and spice from the old Bun House on Pimlico Road — once so popular that George III queued for them.

Prep: 30 min
Cook: 20 min
Total: 50 min
Yield: Makes 9
Difficulty: Moderate
Era: Georgian

Ingredients

Dough: 300g strong bread flour, 1 tsp salt, 7g yeast, 150ml warm milk, 1 egg, 40g butter, 30g sugar
Filling: 75g soft butter, 75g soft brown sugar, 150g mixed dried fruit, 2 tsp mixed spice
Glaze: 2 tbsp milk and 2 tbsp caster sugar, warmed together

Method

Oven190°C375°FFan 170°CGas 5

Knead the dough ingredients for 8 minutes; prove 1 hour until doubled.
Roll into a 30×23cm rectangle. Spread with butter, sugar, fruit and spice.
Roll up tightly from the long edge; cut into 9 slices.
Pack into a lined 23cm square tin, prove 30 minutes.
Bake at 190°C / 375°F (fan 170°C, gas 5) for 18–20 minutes until golden.
Brush with the glaze while hot. Tear apart and eat warm, sticky fingers mandatory.

Oven temperatures are given in Celsius, Fahrenheit, fan and gas mark throughout. Quantities are metric, as cooked and written in the UK.