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Home » Recipes » Baking & Desserts

Gluten-Free Vegan Hot Cross Bun Loaf

Last updated - July 10, 2021; Published - March 29, 2021 By Rhian Williams 44 Comments

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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!
3.88 from 56 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 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 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 (â…” 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 (â…” 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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    Recipe Rating




  1. Angela

    April 05, 2023 at 10:20 pm

    5 stars
    Made The vegan GF Hot cross bun loaf.. Really like it, very moist and not too dry, hit with family. thank you..😋

    Reply
    • Rhian Williams

      April 06, 2023 at 2:53 am

      Thank you so much, so happy to hear that!

  2. Millie

    September 24, 2023 at 7:46 am

    This is sooooo sooooo sooooo good. I'm no baker and this is literally the one thing I make and everyone loves it!

    Reply
    • Rhian Williams

      September 26, 2023 at 2:59 am

      Thank you so much, so so happy to hear that!!

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A collage of two Gluten-Free Vegan Hot Cross Bun Loaf photos
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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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