Lemon Rock Buns

I think it's time I had words with my Nannas of yore regarding their recipe naming conventions. The last couple of recipes — noting there have been a few abject failures not yet seen here — have used the word 'buns' to describe foods I would call 'slightly puffy biscuits'. Let's look at 'Lemon Rock Buns' as the name of a food. Honestly, it's hard to sell something that sounds like should shatter one's teeth. Rock Buns. Actually, sounds like an exercise video from the eighties. "Buns like Rocks! With Zest!" Yes, that's just weird but now you can't unthink it.  

I must confess, I fear I have become a feeder of Really Bad Foods to my work colleagues! An enabler if you will. Going in every week with a plastic container full of sugary, buttery, creamy foods isn't boring or annoying for me...but I did have to apologetically back out of an office today shielding the biscuits (sorry, Rock Buns) from view. In my defence, this recipe in particular made about 50 biscuits. My god, I HAVE to share them. 

We are nearly at the end of biscuits and sweets, cakes will be from next weekend, I just have to give the ghastly scones another go (have sought help with those and hopefully the third time is the charm). The Hot Cross Buns recipe has to be tweaked a little to ensure they do not turn out again to become the Hot Cross Rocks, as I had lovingly prepared for my friends at Easter. My apologies dear friends, I hope the brown rice sushi was an adequate substitute. 

For today though, please enjoy my Lemon Rock Buns, the preparation for which made my house smell utterly divine. 

Lemon Rock Buns

2 cups self-raising flour

Pinch salt

1 cup sugar

Zest of one lemon

60g butter

1 egg

½ cup milk

½ cup sultanas

½ cup currants

Preheat oven to 180°C

Sift flour with salt, rub butter into flour until crumbly. Mix in sugar, lemon zest and fruit mix.

Beat egg and milk together, and add to mixture.

Spoon teaspoon sized portions onto a baking tray (lined with baking paper) and cook for about 8-10 minutes.

I found using a piping bag made for more evenly sized portions. The first few were not elegantly spooned out into neat rows as I had hoped, but rather shaken and scraped from my fingers onto the baking tray, creating a number of unappealing misshapen forms. There was mild cursing.

Note to self: write blog when sober, one could sound a little less rambly perhaps? 


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For those of you who are not in Australia, please find here a selection of Measurement & Temperature Conversion Charts which should help with the accuracy of your own cooking.