Jamaican Easter Bun

Easter Bun and cheese is a Jamaica tradition. The bun is rich, dense, sweet, aromatic and full of flavor. The dark color comes from the stout and molasses. Stout is a very dark, nearly black beer that is bitter in taste, however, it works beautifully with this recipe.

Mixed Spice is a mixture of ground cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger and coriander, which gives the bun the spicy fragrance.

Photography by Robert Demetrius

You will need:

3 cups flour

¼ teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 ½ cups dark brown sugar

1 cup stout

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon mixed spice

1 large egg, lightly beaten

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1 tablespoon molasses

1 cup raisins

¼ cup candied lemon peel

¼ cup candied orange peel

¼ cup candied cherries

For the glaze, you will need:

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon honey

Pre-heat your oven to 350° Fahrenheit.

Stout with Spices

Pour 1 cup of stout into a bowl, adding 1½ cups dark brown sugar, 1 teaspoon nutmeg, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 tablespoon mixed spice, 1 tablespoon molasses and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Make sure the molasses has dissolved before pouring into the dry ingredients. I like mixing the spices with the stout so that they get a chance to get absorbed into the stout. Set aside while you prepare the dry ingredients.

Mix 3 cups of flour, ¼ teaspoon salt and 3 teaspoons of baking powder in a large bowl.

Lightly beat an egg and melt 2 tablespoons of butter. 

Mixture with Dried Fruits and Stout

Pour these two ingredients into the stout and spice mixture. Once the stout mixture has been blended with the egg and butter, pour into the dry mixture, bit by bit and then toss in the raisins, candied lemon peel, orange peel and cherries, before you have poured in all the stout mixture. 

Batter

Mix well so you don’t have clumps in the mixture.

Pouring Batter into Bread Loaf

Spray some Pam in the bread loaf pan. I used a non stick loaf dish. Then pour the mixture into the loaf pan and place in the oven and bake for 1 ½ hours or until done. You will know when it’s done when you test it by sticking the loaf with a long, thin bamboo stick or toothpick. If it comes out dry, then, it’s done. I suggest that you check the bun after 1 hour and 10 minutes. Depending on the amount of dough that is on the stick, you should be able to gauge how much longer it will need.

Freshly Baked Bun

When the bun is done, remove from the oven and place the baking pan on a rack and let it rest and cool down before removing the bun from the pan.  Once the bun has been cooled, but is still warm, remove from the pan.

Glazing the Bun

Melt 1 tablespoon of butter and dissolve 1 tablespoon of honey in the butter. Brush on the top of the bun.

Bun Slices

Let the bun rest for 24 hours before cutting. It crumbles if you cut into it too soon. I found the bun was best on day two. Voilà. In Jamaica we love to have bun and cheese for Easter. So get some nice cheddar cheese and enjoy.
Check back tomorrow! I have one more recipe!