Chelsea Buns

Nothing beats warm, sticky Chelsea Buns fresh from the oven.  Follow this easy recipe for soft and fluffy buns filled with plump dried fruits and brushed with a sweet apricot jam glaze.

 I have always preferred a Chelsea bun over a gooey cream cake any day of the week. 

I’ve adored the fruit studded sticky buns since I was a little girl, when my Saturday morning usually involved buying one (truth be told we usually ended up buying quite a few goodies) from the Bakers van that went around the town. It was always such a treat.  

how to make chelsea buns

(Scroll to the bottom of the post to find printable recipe and detailed instructions)

• Place strong white flour, sugar, salt and yeast in a large mixing bowl (keep the salt and yeast separate otherwise the salt could kill the yeast.)

• Warm butter and milk together over a low heat in a saucepan. Don’t let the mixture get too hot – you just want it warm. When the butter has melted, remove from the heat.  Again if the milk has become on the hot side, leave it to one side for a few minutes.  Pour the warm milk over the flour mixture.  Add a beaten egg and stir to mix. 

• Knead the dough for at least 5 minutes using a stand mixer or 10 minutes if kneading by hand until you have a smooth, shiny and elastic dough. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover and leave until doubled in size – about 1-2 hours.

• When the dough has doubled in size, roll out the dough into a rough rectangle on a lightly floured work surface.  

• Brush the dough all over with melted butter and sprinkle over ground mixed spice, light brown sugar and raisins and sultanas.

• Starting from one of the long ends, roll up the dough as tightly as possible. Cut the dough into 10 equal sized pieces and place each piece in a greased and lined baking tray or roasting tin, leaving about 1/2 inch of space between each one to allow for spreading.

• Loosely cover the tin with a warm tea towel for 30-45 minutes or until the buns have risen.

• Bake the Chelsea buns for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
• Brush with warmed apricot jam while they are still warm. 

• When the chelsea buns have cooled, drizzle with an icing glaze or simply sprinkle with sugar.

They are irresistible…soft, sticky and so sweet!

more sweet dough recipes 

Pumpkin cinnamon rolls 

Cinnamon rolls

Orange, cranberry and white chocolate hot cross buns

Chocolate Orange hot cross buns

Mocha Swirl Buns

Maple Iced Fruit Loaf

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Chelsea Buns

Yield: Makes 10 chelsea buns

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Additional Time: 2 hours

Total Time: 2 hours 50 minutes

You can't beat a sticky, warm fruit studded chelsea bun and they are even better homemade.

Print

Ingredients

• 500g strong white flour (plus a little extra for dusting)
• 14g (2x7g) sachets fast action yeast
• 1 tsp (5g) fine salt
• 2 tbsp caster (superfine) sugar
• 250ml whole milk
• 50g unsalted butter
• 1 medium egg, beaten

FOR THE FILLING:

• 25g very soft butter
• 75g soft light brown sugar
• 1 tsp ground mixed spice
• 100g raisins
• 100g sultanas

TO FINISH:

• 1 tbsp apricot jam
• 150g icing sugar, sifted 
• 2-3 tablespoons of water

Instructions

1. Place the flour in a large mixing bowl and add the yeast, salt and sugar (keep the yeast separate from the salt.)
2. Warm the milk and butter in a small saucepan on a low heat until the mixture is just warm and the butter has melted. Pour the warm milk/butter mixture into the flour and add the egg. Knead the mixture well for at least 5 minutes or until you have a smooth and shiny dough.
3. Cover the dough and leave it for 1-2 hours or until doubled in size. While you're waiting for the dough to rise, mix together the brown sugar and mixed spice.
4. when the dough has doubled in size, tip it out onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll out the dough into a rectangle meauring about 30x20cm/12x8in.
5. Brush the dough all over with the melted butter and sprinkle over the spiced sugar mixture and dried fruit.
6. Starting from a long end, start to roll the dough up as tightly and neatly as you can. Using a sharp knife, cut the long piece of dough into 10 equal sized pieces.
7. Grease and line a large baking or roasting tin. Place the buns into the tray, leaving about 1/2 inch of space between each one to allow for spreading. Loosely cover the tray with a warm tea towel and leave to rise for 30-45 minutes or until the buns are touching and are risen and puffy. Preheat the oven to 200C/180Fan/400F.
8. Bake the buns for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. If the buns look like they are getting too brown before this, cover the tin with foil.
9. Remove the buns from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack.
10. Warm the apricot jam with a little splash of water and stir until smooth. Brush the jam all over the buns and allow to cool.
11. Mix together the icing sugar and water until you have a smooth glaze. Drizzle all over the cooled buns. Alternatively, sprinkle the buns with a little caster sugar.

Nutrition Information

Yield 10 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 411Total Fat 8gSaturated Fat 5gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 3gCholesterol 35mgSodium 99mgCarbohydrates 79gFiber 2gSugar 36gProtein 7g