10:00 PM – Sweet Stiff Starter Build: Dissolve your 10g of sugar directly into the 30g of water, then whisk in your 8g of sourdough starter culture. Mix in the 65g of bread flour thoroughly and gather it together with your hands to form a stiff dough ball. Place it into a clean glass jar, cover loosely, and let it sit at room temperature 74–78°F (23–26°C) overnight for 8 to 10 hours until it expands significantly (at least doubling or tripling in volume).

8:00 AM – The Enriched Autolyse: In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine 140g of lukewarm milk, 1 whole egg plus 1 extra egg yolk, 60g of brown sugar, 90g of your prepared sweet stiff starter, and the optional 0.5g of dry yeast. Whisk together briefly, then dump in 300g of bread flour, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp allspice, 0.5 tsp nutmeg, and your fresh orange zest. Mix with a spoon just until a rough dough forms and no dry spots remain. Cover and let it autolyse for 1 full hour to fully hydrate the flour particles and activate gluten structures.

9:00 AM – Developing Gluten & Fat Integration: Attach the dough hook and mix the autolysed dough on low speed for 2 to 3 minutes (or on a KitchenAid using speed 3 for 3 to 4 minutes) until the base elements are fully incorporated. Add the 6g of salt and continue mixing for a couple of minutes until a cohesive ball forms.

Butter & Fruit Addition: With the mixer still running, gradually add the 45g of soft butter or flavorless oil. Increase the speed to medium-high and mix for a full 10 minutes until the fat is completely absorbed, the dough smoothly cleans the sides of the bowl, and it passes a clear windowpane test. Turn the mixer to low, add the 1/2 cup of raisins, and mix just until they are evenly distributed.

Bulk Fermentation & Stretch-and-Folds: Cover the mixing bowl tightly and let it proof for 3 to 4 hours in a warm environment kept at 76–80°F (24–28°C). During this window, perform 2 gentle rounds of stretches and folds (spaced roughly 1 hour apart) to build vertical structure. The dough should look visibly puffy and aerated by the end.

1:00 PM – Cold Fermentation Retard: Transfer the entire covered proofing container directly into the refrigerator for a slow cold fermentation lasting between 6 to 9 hours.

10:00 PM – Dividing & Rounding: Remove the chilled dough from your refrigerator. Tip it onto a lightly dusted surface and divide it cleanly into 12 equal pieces (aiming for roughly 55g per portion).

Pan Setup & Overnight Rise: Take each individual piece, pinch all the loose outer edges cleanly down into the bottom center, and roll it firmly on your counter using a cupped hand to create a taut, smooth sphere. Place the 12 shaped rolls side-by-side into a square baking pan. Cover the pan loosely with a damp towel or plastic wrap and leave them out to proof overnight on your counter for 8 to 10 hours at room temperature 70–74°F (20–23°C) until they double in size.

7:00 AM – Preheating & Paste Setup: Preheat your home oven to 375°F (190°C). Prepare your flour cross paste by whisking together 50g of flour, 50g of water, 10g of vegetable oil, 5g of salt, and 5g of sugar until smooth. Transfer the wet paste into a Ziploc bag, close it tightly, and snip off a tiny corner.

Baking: Pipe continuous lines of the flour paste across the rows of the fully risen buns to form their signature crosses. Slide the pan into the preheated oven and bake for 30 minutes until the buns are deep golden brown.

Glazing & Cooling: While the buns are baking, combine 1 tbsp of apricot jam with 2 tbsp of water in a small bowl to form your glaze. The moment the buns come out of the oven, use a pastry brush to spread the apricot glaze evenly across their hot tops. Let them cool slightly in the pan before separating and serving!