Is a Fruit Scone the same as a Hot Cross Bun?

[Ed Rooney]

 

This is not a baking question. I want to know if I can tag these things either way. 

 

[John Mitchell]

Only if it has a cross on top -- Good Friday and all that.

 

I'd stick with "fruit scone" or "fruit bun" myself. Not sure if there's such a thing as a "hot cross scone," though.

[zxzoomy]

I think they are very different. But does it have a cross on is a starting point. Ingredients of each:

 

Fruit scones    350g self-raising flour, plus more for dusting. ¼ tsp salt. 1 tsp baking powder. 85g butter, cut into cubes. 3 tbsp caster sugar. 
175ml milk. 1 tsp vanilla extract. squeeze of lemon juice. 100g sultanas  beaten egg to glaze.  jam and clotted cream, to serve

 

Hot Cross Buns   300ml full-fat milk , plus 2 tbsp more 50g butter 500g strong bread flour 1 tsp salt 75g caster sugar 1 tbsp sunflower oil
7g sachet fast-action or easy-blend yeast 1 egg , beaten 75g sultanas 50g mixed peel zest 1 orange 1 apple , peeled, cored and finely chopped 1 tsp ground cinnamon
For the cross 75g plain flour , plus extra for dusting For the glaze 3 tbsp apricot jam

 

Hot cross scones:     225g self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting 75g butter, softened 40g light muscovado sugar 75g small sultanas 50g cut mixed peel ½ tsp ground mixed spice 1 large egg, beaten 3 tbsp buttermilk or 4 tbsp milk, plus extra for brushing 50g plain flour 2 tbsp caster sugar

Edited May 20, 2021 by zxzoomy

[Ed Rooney]

Terry, can you tell which the bun in my photo is???

[zxzoomy]

If there is no cross on top it's a fruit scone. But I'm struggling to say which it is from the photo.

Edited May 20, 2021 by zxzoomy

[Ed Rooney]

Okay, thanks -- that's the answer I was looking for. Those are two toasted and buttered hot cross buns which I decided to tag as fruit scones. If I show the top, I'll tag them hot cross buns.

Edited May 20, 2021 by Ed Rooney

[Ed Rooney]

David, can you tell the difference by just looking at the photo? 

[Steve F]

26 minutes ago, Ed Rooney said:

David, can you tell the difference by just looking at the photo? 

 

David  Steve here. Looked like a hot cross bun from the photo, but I've been eating a lot recently 😅

 

In answer to your headline question, no they're quite different.

Edited May 20, 2021 by Steve F

[Ed Rooney]

teehee -- so have I, Steve.

 

I'm not talking about recipes or taste -- do they look different in a photo?

 

[AlbertSnapper]

Those are hot cross buns by the look of them (or as already mentioned, if no cross on the upper side, a toasted teacake).

 

You don't toast scones (but may warm up a cheese scone).

 

Devon and Cornwall counties in south west England are famous for their scones (with jam and cream). A cream tea is a jam and cream scone, with a nice cup of tea. Perfect.

 

This thread is making me peckish 😋

[Mr Standfast]

Toasted tea cake or hot cross bun. Not scone. I shouldn't be thinking of food at this time of night...🤗

[AlbertSnapper]

There are two ways on how to pronounce scones too.

 

Think it depends on how posh you are.

 

[Ed Rooney]

I'm pretty damn posh. After all, I'm from Brooklyn.

 

Soooo, you don't toast scones. I'm gonna run with that and change any tags back to hot cross buns. 

 

Here, Al -- dig in.

 

Scones with cream and jam and tea? Too sweet for me. And I can't drink tea. It makes me cough. 

[Joseph Clemson]

Those slices in the original picture  look very square and too fruity to be a hot cross bun as I would recognise it here in Bolton. Hot cross buns are a cinnamon flavoured bread dough with a scattering of dried fruit - but most significantly they are circular. The ones in the image look almost square and my first thought was they looked like slices of a fruit loaf.

 

Having said that, I can't rule out the possibility that some supermarket baker has produced a perverted version of the hot cross bun. Tesco even produce a salted caramel flavoured hot cross bun. Yeuk. Hark, I can almost hear the sound of the Warburton family spinning in their graves.

 

They certainly look nothing like any scone I've ever encountered.

 

My keywording would be along the lines of buttered toasted fruit loaf and afternoon tea. 

[CAROL SAUNDERS]

Could also be a toasted teacake I think if they haven't got a cross on the top....

 

Carol

[Steve F]

Ed, I'd just be specific. Something like "Toasted hot cross buns on a white plate cut in half and covered in butter.  A hot cross bun is a spiced sweet bun marked with a cross on the top, and traditionally eaten on Good Friday" as a caption (I know that's probably over 150 characters). Someone looking for those other cakes/buns, won't be happy to see a hot cross bun picture coming up in search.

 

In answer to your question, yes, I think they look different. I wouldn't try to pass it off as multiple bun types.

Steve

Edited May 21, 2021 by Steve F

[Steve F]

7 hours ago, Joseph Clemson said:

Those slices in the original picture  look very square and too fruity to be a hot cross bun as I would recognise it here in Bolton. Hot cross buns are a cinnamon flavoured bread dough with a scattering of dried fruit - but most significantly they are circular. The ones in the image look almost square and my first thought was they looked like slices of a fruit loaf.

 

Having said that, I can't rule out the possibility that some supermarket baker has produced a perverted version of the hot cross bun. Tesco even produce a salted caramel flavoured hot cross bun. Yeuk. Hark, I can almost hear the sound of the Warburton family spinning in their graves.

 

Seems they do 'em square down souf

[Joseph Clemson]

12 minutes ago, Steve F said:

 

Seems they do 'em square down souf

 

Sigh. Clearly, the barbarians are at the gate. Where will it end 🙂

[Harry Harrison]

They're Hot Cross Buns to me, but in what kind of dystopian world would you have them with ham and eggs?  I mean it's verging on the sacrilegious isn't it?

 

I don't want to start a Bun Fight on here though.

[Steve F]

9 minutes ago, Harry Harrison said:

I don't want to start a Bun Fight on here though.

Not bad not bad....

Oh dear, Friday morning humour 😅

[Ed Rooney]

Oh oh, I think I've got myself in a room full of bun nuts.

 

Candied peel? Is that from China? My hot cross buns were bought at M&S. The one below the scrambled eggs looks sort of round. And anyway, you Brits put cream in your carbonara. Are you trying to start another war with Italy? 

 

I better make some coffee. 

[Thyrsis]

Ed, your image shows a hot cross bun ( if there was a cross on top) or a fruit bun. It is not a scone! 

A more usual  name we use for a fruit bun is teacake, or toasted teacake when it’s toasted and buttered. (as Carol said)

It’s slightly unusual to eat it with savoury food but then folk do eat fruit cake with a slice of cheese! 

Edited May 21, 2021 by Thyrsis

[Ed Rooney]

I shall be turning my back on baked goods for awhile, be they buns, scones, teacakes, Danish, cannoli, whatever. 

 

I failed QC this morning for the second time in just over a month. The culprit was a food shot. Sea bass. "Soft or lacking definition" QC said. I see it as a disagreement on what is important in selective focus. Anyway, it's their call and I will suffer in (near) silence. From now on, I will do less food and I'll be on a tripod at f8 when doing it. 

 

I hope I don't lose my 5-star QC status over this. And I wonder what will be going wrong next.

[TeeCee]

9 minutes ago, Ed Rooney said:

 

 

I failed QC this morning for the second time in just over a month. The culprit was a food shot. Sea bass. "Soft or lacking definition" QC said. I see it as a disagreement on what is important in selective focus. Anyway, it's their call and I will suffer in (near) silence. From now on, I will do less food and I'll be on a tripod at f8 when doing it. 

 

I hope I don't lose my 5-star QC status over this. And I wonder what will be going wrong next.

Ed, I had a failure last year for the same  "Soft or lacking definition" reason - my pix were of mildew on courgette leaves. They were 100% sharp, plenty of DOF but unfortunately mildew looks soft, and it's general appearance could best be described as "lacking definition". I sent a note back to QC on that basis, but never got a response, however, still have my 5* QC rating. Vowed never again to photograph leaf based fungal infections. Life's too short.

 

And as previously said, teacakes/hot X buns are bread based, scones are cake creations. Down here in the south west, massive Devon v Cornwall arguments erupt about whether in the construction of a "cream tea" the cream goes on top of the jam, or vice versa.

 

Truly, life's too short ...

 

[Ed Rooney]

 

Joking aside, thank you all for all the baking information. 

[Stokie]

My penny's worth - they are definitely not scones! (some say s-cone-s, some say s-con-s - potato potarto etc)

 

As mentioned, either hot cross buns or toasted teacakes.

 

John.