Hot Cross Buns

Instructions

1. The night before soak the fruit in rum in a lidded container in the fridge or sitting on the counter. Microwave hack: If you can not do this the night before, you can combine the fruit and rum in a microwave-safe container, microwave until it's just warm, and set aside to cool to room temperature.
2. Line a 10-inch or 9x13-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Home Chef Tip: Scrunch up the parchment paper under water, squeeze out the water, and press it to the shape of the pan. Doing this will make the parchment paper "hug" the shape of the pan better.
3. Mix the dough: In a large mixing bowl, add all the dough ingredients and mix together (including the egg). Mix the dough until it's soft and stretchy. It should be pretty sticky. Tip: Oil your hands so that the dough doesn't stick to your hands. Cover and let the dough rise for 1 hour in a warm spot. The dough will get puffy when ready but might not double in size.
4. Form the buns: Divide the dough into 12-14 dough balls (about 3.75 ounces each; about 1/3 cup approximately). Again, you can grease your hands with oil to prevent the dough from sticking. Arrange the dough balls evenly in the prepped baking pan. Cover with a clean, damp kitchen towel, or beeswax wrap and let them rise for 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
5. Make the egg wash: Mix the egg white and the milk and using a pastry brush, gently brush it over the top of the buns.
6. Bake: Bake the buns in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, which should be golden brown when done. When they are done, remove the buns from the baking pan and transfer them to a wire cooling rack.
7. Make the icing: In a small mixing bowl, add the icing ingredients: the confectioner's sugar, pure vanilla extract, and fine kosher salt. When the buns are completely cooled, pipe the icing over the top in a cross shape on each bun.