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    Recipes » Recipes » Baking & Desserts

    Gluten-Free Vegan Hot Cross Bun Loaf

    Last updated - July 10, 2021; Published - March 29, 2021 By Rhian Williams 34 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Jump to Video Print Recipe
    A collage of two Gluten-Free Vegan Hot Cross Bun Loaf photos

    This Gluten-Free Vegan Hot Cross Bun Loaf is moist, fragrant, fruity and subtly spiced. It's easy to make as it's made in one bowl, yeast-free and no-knead. It's also refined sugar free, great for breakfast, brunch, dessert or a snack and perfect for Easter! It's a flexible recipe that can be adapted based on your taste preferences: for example, you can replace the raisins with chocolate chips or any other type of dried fruit!

    A sliced gluten-free vegan hot cross bun loaf with raisins and orange peel

    How to make this recipe

    Scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe.

    • Mix together all the ingredients in a glass mixing bowl.
    Raw gluten-free vegan hot cross bun loaf batter in a bowl
    • Transfer the mixture to a one-pound loaf tin.

    Tip: Line the tin with greased baking paper to make the loaf easier to remove afterwards.

    Raw gluten-free vegan hot cross bun loaf batter in a loaf tin lined with baking paper

    How to make the cross

    • Mix together the flour and the water in a small bowl until you get a smooth, fairly thick paste.

    Tip: Add the water a tiny bit at a time so you don’t add too much.

    Flour and water paste in a pink bowl against a marble background
    • Transfer the mixture into a piping bag with a round nozzle.
    • Pipe the flour paste in one vertical line down the middle of the length of the loaf and then do two horizontal lines at even intervals.
    Raw gluten-free vegan hot cross bun loaf batter in a loaf tin with raw flour crosses piped on top
    • Bake in oven for around 45 minutes.
    A gluten-free vegan hot cross bun loaf in a loaf tin lined with baking paper
    • Once out the oven, transfer to a cooling rack.
    • Mix together the apricot jam and hot water.

    Tip: The water is just to thin out the jam, so don’t use too much!

    • Use a pastry brush or the back of a spoon to evenly brush the jam mixture all over the top surface of the loaf.
    A gluten-free vegan hot cross bun loaf spread with apricot jam on a wire rack
    • Leave to cool and dry completely before slicing.
    A gluten-free vegan hot cross bun loaf with two slices next to it

    How long does this keep for?

    It keeps covered in the fridge for up to a few days - best reheated in the toaster!

    Substitutions you can make

    • You can use any type of oil: coconut oil, olive oil or vegetable oil.
    • You can use any type of plant-based milk: almond milk, rice milk, soy milk, cashew milk, oat milk etc.
    • You can use any type of liquid sweetener: maple syrup, agave syrup, brown rice syrup etc.
    • You can replace the ground almonds (almond meal) with ground walnuts.
    • For a nut-free version: replace the ground almonds (almond meal/almond flour) with ground sunflower seeds. 
    • You can use plain flour, wholemeal (whole wheat) flour or spelt flour instead of the gluten-free flour if you’re not gluten-free.
    • You can either use freshly squeezed orange juice, or orange juice from a carton.
    • You can replace the orange zest with candied orange peel or 1 teaspoon orange extract.

    Flavour substitutions

    • You can replace the cinnamon with mixed spice (or a mixture of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves).
    • You can replace the raisins/sultanas with any other dried fruit (dried cranberries, chopped dates, chopped prunes, dried mango, dried pineapple, dried papaya etc).
    • You can replace the dried fruit with chocolate chips!

    More gluten-free vegan bread recipes

    • Gluten-Free Vegan Chickpea Bread
    • Gluten-Free Vegan Blueberry Banana Bread
    • Gluten-Free Vegan Irish Soda Bread
    • Gluten-Free Vegan Almond Bread
    • Gluten-Free Vegan Oat Bread
    • Gluten-Free Vegan Dinner Rolls
    • Gluten-Free Vegan Seeded Buckwheat Bread
    • Gluten-Free Vegan Cornbread
    • Gluten-Free Vegan Coconut Flour Bread
    • Gluten-Free Vegan Walnut Bread

    If you try out this recipe or anything else from my blog, I’d really love to hear any feedback! Please give it a rating, leave a comment, or tag a photo @rhiansrecipes #rhiansrecipes on Instagram! Thank you.

    Watch how to make it

    A sliced gluten-free vegan hot cross bun loaf with raisins and orange peel

    Gluten-Free Vegan Hot Cross Bun Loaf

    This Gluten-Free Vegan Hot Cross Bun Loaf is moist, fruity and subtly spiced. It's easy to make and perfect for Easter! Plus it's yeast-free and no-knead!
    3.69 from 38 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Breakfast, Dessert
    Cuisine: British
    Keyword: gluten-free hot cross bun, vegan easter recipe, vegan hot cross bun
    Prep Time: 15 minutes
    Cook Time: 45 minutes
    Total Time: 1 hour
    Servings: 12 slices
    Calories: 207kcal
    Author: Rhian Williams

    Ingredients

    • 60 g (¼ cup) coconut oil (or sub olive or vegetable oil)
    • 60 ml (¼ cup) orange juice  (freshly squeezed or from a carton)
    • 150 ml (⅔ cup) unsweetened almond milk (or any other plant-based milk)
    • 6 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)
    • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    • 1 tablespoon orange zest (or sub candied orange peel or 1 teaspoon orange extract)
    • 100 g (⅔ cup) raisins or sultanas (or sub any other dried fruit)
    • 150 g (1 ¼ cup) ground almonds (almond meal) *
    • 150 g (1 ¼ cup) gluten-free flour blend (or sub plain flour if not gluten-free)
    • 2 heaped teaspoons baking powder (ensure gluten-free if necessary)
    • ¼ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

    For the cross (optional):

    • 3 tablespoons gluten-free flour blend (or sub plain flour if not gluten-free)
    • 2 tablespoons water (add it a bit at a time so you don’t add too much!)

    To decorate (optional):

    • 1 teaspoon apricot jam
    • ½ teaspoon hot water (to thin out the jam)

    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit).
    • Place the coconut oil in a separate large bowl and melt over a saucepan of boiling water or in the microwave (skip this step if using any other oil).
    • Once melted, add the orange juice to the same bowl along with the almond milk, maple syrup, cinnamon, orange zest, raisins and ground almonds.
    • Sift in the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda and mix well.
    • Transfer the mixture into a loaf tin lined with greased baking paper (I used a one-pound loaf tin).

    For the cross:

    • Mix together the flour and the water in a small bowl until you get a smooth, fairly thick paste (add the water a tiny bit at a time so you don’t add too much).
    • Transfer the mixture into a piping bag with a round nozzle.
    • Pipe the flour paste in one vertical line down the middle of the length of the loaf and then do two horizontal lines at even intervals.
    • Bake in oven for around 45 minutes until risen and golden brown and an inserted skewer comes out clean.
    • Once out the oven, transfer to a wire rack to cool.

    To decorate:

    • As soon as you’ve transferred the loaf to a wire rack, mix together the apricot jam and hot water - the water is just to thin out the jam, so don’t use too much!
    • Use a pastry brush or the back of a spoon to evenly brush the jam mixture all over the top surface of the loaf.
    • Leave to cool and dry completely before slicing.
    • Keeps covered in the fridge for up to a few days - best reheated in the toaster!

    Video

    Notes

    *You can alternatively use almond flour.
    Leave to cool and dry completely before slicing.
    Keeps covered in the fridge for up to a few days - best reheated in the toaster!
    Nutrition Facts
    Gluten-Free Vegan Hot Cross Bun Loaf
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 207 Calories from Fat 108
    % Daily Value*
    Fat 12g18%
    Saturated Fat 5g25%
    Sodium 43mg2%
    Potassium 120mg3%
    Carbohydrates 25g8%
    Fiber 3g12%
    Sugar 7g8%
    Protein 4g8%
    Vitamin A 13IU0%
    Vitamin C 4mg5%
    Calcium 72mg7%
    Iron 1mg6%
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
    Made the recipe?Tag @rhiansrecipes on instagram and use the hashtag #rhiansrecipes!

    Disclosure: This posts contains affiliate links to Amazon. If you purchase any of these products, a small percentage will come to me with no extra cost to you! This income will go towards the running of this blog – thank you.

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    Comments

    1. Linda Rosie

      May 24, 2021 at 4:46 am

      Hello Rhian, this is a beautiful tasting loaf but I'm unable to make it stick together. I use macadamia oil instead of coconut and this time soaked 2tbs of ground flaxseed with the orange juice and added 1 tbls psyllium. None of which helped to stabalise the loaf when cutting. The flour I use is equal parts sorghum, buckwheat and tapioca. Any ideas would be useful, the recipe is too flavoursome to miss. Thank you

      Reply
      • Rhian Williams

        May 24, 2021 at 2:40 pm

        I'm sorry to hear that. You don't need to add the ground flaxseed or the psyllium. I think the issue is with the gluten-free flour you are using. If you don't want to buy a pre-made shop-bought mix (I recommend Dove's Farm if you are ok with this), I recommend using 140g white rice flour and 10g tapioca flour. Thank you so much for your feedback!

    2. Aileen

      February 28, 2022 at 12:43 am

      Beautiful recipe. Very tasty and moreish. Thank you for sharing it!!

      Reply
      • Rhian Williams

        February 28, 2022 at 12:59 pm

        Thank you so much, so happy to hear that!

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    Photo of Rhian Williams from Rhian's Recipes

    Hi, I'm Rhian! I make easy, undetectably vegan + gluten-free recipes, including healthy comfort food and naturally sweetened desserts using plant-based ingredients.

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