While Coles and Woolworths unveil crazy flavours, artisanal bakers stick to making old-school hot cross buns

Bakers seem to delight at getting to work well before the first sparrow passes wind each morning. Big Loaf is no different, with the O’Connor factory bakery a hive of activity from 2am most days to supply fresh goods to 20-odd outlets, including its own very popular North Street Store in Cottesloe. When The Sunday Times dropped into Big Loaf on a very early morning recently, about a dozen bakers — or was it a baker’s dozen? — were hard at work. Adelaide-born baker Dan Rehn and owner Lachlan Bisset were busy making the second batch of hot cross buns for the day as they begin to ramp up production for increased demand closer to Easter. In contrast to the array of cross-brand collaborations at Coles and Woolworths — the major supermarkets have unveiled limited edition Wagon Wheel, Vegemite, Biscoff and fairy-bread flavoured hot cross buns this year — Big Loaf’s recipe is decidedly “old school”. Bisset and his team use wholemeal flour milled in Gingin and all-Australian fruit steeped in Earl Grey tea made by hand at Big Loaf’s sprawling bakery. Rehn added the all-important “crosses” to balls of dough, which were stacked on a shelf and wheeled into the Italian-made Polin oven to be cooked at 200C for 20 minutes. Baking till they had risen and turned brown, the very hot cross buns were then glazed for that trademark shiny appearance. The buns, which cost $16 for six, are also a lot bigger than the ones found at supermarkets and bakery chains. “I hate shrinkflation,” Bisset said. “Everything is getting smaller.” The chef-turned-baker proudly declared that every ingredient in Big Loaf’s handmade hot cross buns is fresh and local. Bisset joked that without the cross, which he admits is only for appearance and adds zero flavour, these would just be fruit buns. “No one buys fruit buns,” he added, “and people only buy hot cross buns in the lead up to Easter”. Big Loaf does two runs of freshly baked goods each morning — the second batch of about 360 buns were destined for Bisset’s stores. That includes the cafe out front of Big Loaf, which had a steady stream of customers from the moment it opened at 6am. Bisset said he has been a baking nerd since he made his first loaf as a six-year-old. “I just love bread, and I’m obsessed with eating, with food.” Zachary Flemming of Hamilton Hill bakery Everyday Bread also makes traditional hot cross buns with an artisanal twist. The dough is fermented “nice and proper” for 24 hours to “make them easier to digest and even more tasty”, he explained. “We glaze them twice to keep them even softer and to create a sticky coating that lasts longer,” Flemming said, before adding that Everyday Bread only uses locally sourced ingredients and “lots of butter and milk”. Candied fruit peel is forbidden at the Hamilton Hill store, which gets glowing word-of-mouth reviews for its hot cross buns featuring a “melange of spices” and blitzed local oranges. As for what the all-important sultanas, raisins and currents are soaked in, Flemming said that was a trade secret. Woolworths bakery merchandise manager Donald Keith said the supermarket chain’s most popular product is the traditional fruit hot cross bun, which had sold more than 4.5 million six-packs nationally two weeks out from Easter. The two best-selling limited edition hot cross buns, so far, are the Cinnabon and Biscoff flavoured releases. Keith said the biggest day of sales was usually Easter Thursday, when Woolies expect to flog about 870,000 packets of hot cross buns. A Coles spokesperson said its Wagon Wheels-inspired and Vegemite buns had almost sold-out nationally. The Wagon Wheels hot cross buns followed last year’s successful sales of buns taking inspiration from another beloved Australian biscuit, the Iced VoVo. FROM TRAD TO RAD This year the major supermarkets are selling hot cross bun mashups to tantalise and test taste buds. WAGON WHEEL Taking inspiration from the classic Aussie biscuit launched back in 1952, Coles unveiled hot cross buns combining a “moreish marshmallow flavour combined with raspberry fudge, raspberry jellies and choc chips”. The supermarket describes this wild ride as a trip down memory lane, with bakery boss Brad Gorman dubbing it “the feel-good nostalgic taste of Australia, now in a hot cross bun”. FAIRY BREAD Unleashed by Woolworths, each four-pack comes with a sachet of hundreds and thousands for customers to sprinkle on the buttered bun, just like the children’s party favourite. CINNABON This recent collaborative release from Woolworths mashes up the signature cinnamon scroll from US baked goods chain Cinnabon and the classic hot cross bun, joining their Biscoff and Cadbury Caramilk flavours from previous Easters. Woolies have also partnered with Cadbury for chocolate and brioche chocolate buns. LUXURIOUSLY RICHLY FRUITED Fancy pants may want to try Woolies’ new hot cross buns filled with “Australian vine fruits, native cinnamon myrtle, cranberries and candied orange peel”. Presumably best enjoyed lightly toasted with some cultured butter. VEGEMITE AND CHEESE Not into sweet treats? This fair dinkum mashup of our national yeast extract spread and bakers’ yeast is a savoury sensation designed to bring back memories of cheesy scrolls at school canteens.