Welsh rarebit hot cross bun & pickled pears

FREE TO READ: On the nonsense of 'Top 5 Hacks for Leftover Hot Cross Buns' clickbait. Plus, a quick pickle for the last stored pears and a savoury hot cross bun to accompany.

Mar 27, 2024

‘Leftover’ hot cross buns? As if.

Next week, in the aftermath of Easter feasting, there will be article upon article about What To Do With Leftover Hot Cross Buns. Or, worse, Top 5 Hacks for Leftover Hot Cross Buns. Clearly, this is just tactical, clickbait nonsense because, I mean, leftover? Surplus hot cross buns? The very idea is inconceivable to me. They barely make it out of the shopping bag in my house. If we get as far as slicing, toasting and buttering them I consider it a superhuman act of restraint. That any hot cross bun (HXB henceforth) within a mile radius of me wouldn’t be devoured before the Bank Holiday is out, is, frankly, absurd.

That said, I am not averse to using them in ways besides the toast and butter obvious. And so I suppose those dreadful articles do provide inspiration.

Here are some ideas:

Croutons: tear slightly stale (as if!) HXBs into rough pieces. Toss in a little neutral oil, arrange in a single layer on a tray then bake at 190C for 5-8 minutes, turning half way, until golden. Serve with poached fruit (perhaps the poached pears in my cookbook?) for a quick pud.

Bun and butter pudding: swap the panettone in my bread and butter pudding recipe for HXBs and omit the quince (or use those poached pears again)

Trifle: replace the simnel cake in my trifle pudding pot recipe with HXBs.

Bacon bap: as mentioned by

Nicola Lamb

here (along with some other delicious Easter ideas), salty bacon loves a little sweetness, so stuffing a buttery HXB with fried bacon will always lead to good things.

Finally, if you fancy making HXBs, then get geeky with

Edd Kimber

and his wonderfully detailed recipe here.

Sticking with the savoury theme, and embracing my current preoccupation with pears (there’s so little to eat fresh from the land at the moment I must turn to produce that stores well, like pears), this week’s recipe features those hypothetical leftover HXBs in a sweet-meets-savoury treat that’s a deliciously indulgent lunch for one.

I don’t pretend to store pears over winter.

I don’t even pretend I can grow pears. Pear growing is an art, and storing them involves space, daily attention, and an ability to control humidity and ventilation that would impress even an artisanal cheesemaker. It is a skill shrouded in nuance and complexity, not to mention a degree in mould development and an ability to negotiate with mice, and far beyond my homesteading abilities. (See here for a comically oversimplified how to.)

Fortunately, professional growers have it cracked, with some even managing to keep supply going until around now, when the next harvest is just coming into blossom.

Welsh rarebit hot cross bun & pickled pears

Use a really strong cheddar and don’t be shy with the mustard powder. This rarebit needs to be deeply savoury to offset the sweet bun. The vinegar will add just enough zingy oomph to level it all out – a perfect balance of sweet, sour and savoury. The rarebit mix will keep in the fridge overnight happily, but the pears are best eaten swiftly. The knack is to tuck in as soon as the vinegar has done its job – within an hour – but the pears haven’t gone mushy, which will happen if you leave it too long.

Serves 1, greedily

½ pear, cored but not peeled
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar with honey (I like Willy’s)
15g salted butter
1 tbsp plain flour
100ml whole milk
50g cheddar, finely grated
Pinch Colman’s mustard powder
1 egg yolk
1 hot cross bun

Slice the pear very thinly and pour over the apple cider vinegar. Set aside to soften while you make the rarebit.

Melt the butter in a saucepan set over a medium heat. Add the flour and cook for a couple of minutes. Gradually whisk in the milk, beating well before adding the next glug to create a smooth roux. Bubble for a couple of minutes so it doesn’t taste floury. Turn the heat down low and stir in the cheddar, mustard powder and a big pinch of salt. Once smooth and well combined, remove from the heat and beat in the egg yolk.

Pre-heat the grill, but keep it set quite low. Slice the hot cross bun in half and spoon the rarebit mixture on top. Go thick. Pop the bun halves under the grill for 2-5 minutes, but keep an eagle eye on it because the rarebit is so rich it catches easily.

Once golden, transfer to a plate, drain the pears and bundle them alongside the bun. Tuck in and feel indulgent.