Bath Buns | The Railway Children

Whenever an Editor was sensible there were buns for tea.
One day Peter was going down to the village to get buns to celebrate the sensibleness of the Editor of the Children's Globe, when he met the Station Master.
The Railway Children
E. Nesbit

Whenever I can't sleep I seem to retreat to the kitchen, making the ridiculous choice to bake something that requires almost 3 hours of proofing time before they can be even baked. While it felt ridiculous at one am, waking up to freshly made Bath buns made it all kinds of worthwhile. I've been rereading classic books from my childhood lately, taking the time in lockdown to dive into a river of nostalgia.

I had never heard of Bath buns before and it took an embarrassingly long time before I realised the name was a result from them originating in Bath, England - not that they were some kind of bun eaten in the bath. They are referenced just once within the pages of the Railway Children - as a treat a lady within the pages enjoys. It made sense that they would likely be similar to the buns Peter buys for the family's tea - the result of an Editor being sensible of course.

Since trying this delicious, brioch-y bun I'm full convinced it would be the perfect treat for a celebration at tea time. The flavour of the caraway seeds melds in so lovely with the richness of the dough. Like many classic recipes there are different variations of how these can be made - I chose to fill mine with currants and zest. Some recipes I took a lot at incorporated a sugar cube folded into the unbaked dough of each bun as well, something that I'm definitely interested to try next time.

Bath Buns
Makes 12 buns
Ingredients
2 tsp instant yeast
250ml milk + 2 tbsp for glazing
3/4 cup currants
450g bread flour
225g butter
1 tbsp caraway seeds
30g caster sugar
1 tsp sea salt
Zest of one lemon
Topping
2 tbsp caster sugar
2 tbsp water
1 tbsp caraway seeds
4 - 5 white sugar cubes, roughly crushed

1. Heat the milk until just warm, add in yeast and sugar and leave to sit for a few minutes until it becomes frothy.

2. Combine the flour, caraway seeds and salt in a bowl and work the butter in with your fingers tips until it resembles wet sand.

3. Add in the yeasty milk and mix well until all combined. Leave to rest for about 10 minutes.

4. Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes, or until the soft has become soft and elastic-like. Lightly oil a bowl, place the dough inside and cover with a damp tea towel. Leave in a warm place for 1 - 2 hours or until doubled in size.

5. Once the dough has doubled in size, turn it back out onto a surface and and press the currants and zest into it - you may need to lightly knead it again to work them in.

6. Divide the dough into 12 pieces that are around the same size. Shape into a ball by using your fingers to form a cage against the table, rolling the dough beneath it. Repeat will all the dough, placing the prepared buns onto a baking paper lined tray - leave a decent amount of space between them as they will expand and rise.

7. Cover the prepared buns with a damp tea towel and leave for another 30 minutes to rise again.

8. Pre-heat your oven to 180C when you have about 20 minutes of rising time left. During this time prepare the sugar glaze for the top as well. Combine the sugar and water in a saucepan and cook on a low heat - the sugar should dissolve after a few minutes. The longer you leave it to cook the stickier it will become, so you can really do this part however you like.

9. Once the buns have doubled in size, using the remaining milk to brush the tops of them before baking them for 20 - 25 minutes. You can test when they're down by tapping the bottom and listening for the hollow noise.

10. Use a pastry brush to spread the sugar glaze over baked buns, sprinkling with the caraway seeds and crushed sugar cubes so they stick to the still wet glaze. Enjoy!