Hot cross buns used to be simple. Reliable. Familiar. A little bit nostalgic. Fruit. Spice. Cross on top. Done.

They were the kind of thing you didn’t question. You just toasted them, added butter, and let that be enough.

But as Vanessa Baxter from the Fearless Kitchen explains, "somewhere along the way, we decided that “enough” needed improving. And so began what I can only describe as the quiet reinvention of the hot cross bun."

Hot cross buns used to be simple.&nbsp;Reliable. Familiar. A little bit nostalgic.&nbsp;Fruit. Spice. Cross on top. Done.
They were the kind of thing you didn&rsquo;t question. You just toasted them, added butter, and let that be enough.
But as Vanessa Baxter from <a href="https://www.vanessabaxter.co.nz/hot-cross-bun-identity-crisis-of-2026">the Fearless Kitchen</a> explains, "somewhere along the way, we decided that &ldquo;enough&rdquo; needed improving.&nbsp;And so began what I can only describe as the quiet reinvention of the hot cross bun."

Forget the mid-morning madness, grab a cuppa and join the conversation. Mornings with Doug, 9am to noon on Sonshine - great conversations, real voices, and music that matters.

Forget the mid-morning madness, grab a cuppa and join the conversation. Mornings with Doug, 9am to noon on Sonshine - great conversations, real voices, and music that matters.