Oliver Radcliffe
A spring table calls for lighter baking
Easter baking in Britain has always been generous: rich simnel cake, spiced buns, buttery pastry. But once the clocks have gone forward and the garden is full of daffodils, those heavy bakes can feel at odds with the season. The answer isn't to abandon tradition, but to trim the sugar, lean on citrus and let the fruit do more of the work. Here are three classics, updated for a modern table, with the practical detail that makes them reliable first time.
Simnel cake: same story, lighter crumb
Simnel cake is essentially a fruit cake with a layer of marzipan baked through the middle and eleven balls on top — one for each disciple, minus Judas. Soak 350g mixed dried fruit in 150ml warm tea or cloudy apple juice for an hour, then drain. Cream 150g soft butter with 100g light muscovado sugar, beat in 3 eggs, then fold in 200g plain flour, 1 tsp baking powder, the zest of a lemon, 1 tsp mixed spice and the fruit.
Use an 18cm round tin, lined and wrapped in a double layer of greaseproof. Roll 200g marzipan to a disc, sit it on half the batter, then cover with the rest. Bake at 150C fan (gas 2) for about 1 hour 45 minutes, covering with foil after an hour. Cool in the tin. Roll another 200g marzipan for the top and flash it under a hot grill for 30 seconds — it turns from pale to burnt very quickly, so stand and watch. A 15cm tin suits a household of two and bakes in about 1 hour 20 minutes.
Hot cross buns with a sharper edge
Good buns need time, not skill. Warm 300ml whole milk with 50g butter until the butter melts, then cool to blood heat. Mix 500g strong white flour, 7g fast-action yeast, 60g caster sugar, 1 tsp mixed spice and 1 tsp fine salt. Add the milk mixture and 1 beaten egg, then knead for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic.
For the twist, swap half the sultanas for chopped dried cherries and add the zest of an orange plus two balls of stem ginger, finely chopped. Prove for 1–2 hours until doubled, or overnight in the fridge for a deeper flavour — cold dough is easier to shape, too. Divide into 12, shape, and prove again for 45 minutes. Pipe crosses with a paste of 75g plain flour and about 75ml water. Bake at 200C fan (gas 6) for 18–20 minutes, then glaze while hot with warm apricot jam or honey.
- Freeze baked buns in bags of six; refresh from frozen at 180C fan for 8 minutes.
- Split and toast the cut sides in butter for a bun that beats anything shop-bought.
- If your dried fruit is very dry, plump it in hot tea for 20 minutes and pat it dry.
Lemon tarts, no gelatine required
Lemon tarts often arrive too sweet and too firmly set. A lighter version uses a thin, crisp shell and a filling that is barely baked. Rub 100g cold butter into 175g plain flour with 25g icing sugar and a pinch of salt, bind with one egg yolk and a splash of cold water, rest for 30 minutes, then line six 10cm tartlet tins. Blind bake at 180C fan (gas 4) for 15 minutes, remove the beans and bake 5 minutes more. Brush the warm shells with beaten egg white and return them for 2 minutes — this seals the pastry against a soggy base.
Whisk 3 eggs with 120g caster sugar, the zest of 2 lemons and 90ml juice, then stir in 150ml double cream. Pour into the shells and bake at 140C fan (gas 1) for 20–25 minutes, until set at the edge with a gentle wobble in the middle. Cool, then chill for 2 hours. Two tablespoons of elderflower cordial in the filling, or a spoonful of crème fraîche folded through before serving, keeps things fresh.
Plan a baking day that actually works
Do the maths before you start. The cake takes nearly two hours in the oven, buns need two proving spells, and pastry needs resting. Run them in this order: mix the cake first and get it in, then make the bun dough and leave it to prove, then rub up the pastry while the buns bake.
- Weigh everything out before you begin — it saves more time than it costs.
- Make double pastry and freeze one batch flat; it defrosts in 20 minutes.
- Keep marzipan, pastry and dough cool. Warm kitchens are the main reason Easter bakes misbehave.
Out of the kitchen and into the sunshine
These bakes travel well, which is half the point of Easter. Pack buns and slices of simnel in a tin with greaseproof between the layers, and carry tarts flat in their tins — a cool box is worth the effort if you're out for the day. A flask of tea, a rug and a walk to see the bluebells, or an Easter trail at a nearby garden, makes a proper afternoon of it. Anything left over is a fine breakfast on Easter Monday.
