Sift the flour, mixed spice powder and salt into a bow. Add the sugar, instant yeast & zest. Mix everything together and make a well in the centre. Then add the lukewarm milk, the lightly beaten egg & the melted butter. Bring everything together to form a sticky mixture

Dust flour on a clean working surface and transfer the sticky mixture on it. Knead into a smooth, pliable dough, for about 5-7 minutes. Dust flour as required to help knead it.

When the dough is smooth, flatten it into a round shape and sprinkle the dried fruit all over the surface. Fold into thirds and form it into a log. Then fold again into thirds to form a square after which you can shape it roughly into a ball

Grease a bowl with butter or oil and place this dough ball into it. Cover with cling film and keep it in a warm place of your kitchen for about 1 hour or till the dough doubles in volume.

When the dough has doubled, punch out the excess air gently and turn it out on a clean surface dusted with some flour. Knead it gently and then shape it into a log again

Divide the log into 4 equal parts and further divide each part into 3 portions. You should have a total of 12 portions. You may use a weighing scale to get portions that weight the same too. Just weigh the whole dough ball first & divide the weight by 12 and then portion them weight wise accordingly

Line a baking tray with parchment and keep it ready. Take each portion of the dough and tuck the ends underneath so that the surface is neat and smooth. Place each of these balls on the baking tray spaced well apart.

Grease a piece of cling film with butter or oil and cover the dough balls and let them prove for another 30-40 minutes or till doubled in size. When done, preheat oven to 200 degrees C.

While the dough is proving, prepare the piping for the crosses. Mix the flour & water together in a bowl and whisk until you get a smooth, lump free paste. The consistency should neither be too stiff nor too runny, so adjust the water accordingly. Transfer the flour paste into a piping bag or into the corner of a ziplock bag. Secure the mouth of the bag and snip the tip of the bag. Pipe the paste in the centre of the buns to form crosses.

When the oven is ready, pop the tray inside and bake the buns for 15-20 minutes or till golden brown. Mine were ready in 18 minutes but do keep an eye out after 15 mins or so

When the buns are baking prepare the glaze. Place the sugar & the water in a small saucepan and bring it to a boil on a medium high heat. Simmer gently for a minute or two till the syrup turns slightly sticky, then remove it from heat. Cover the pan to keep the syrup warm

When the buns are baked, remove from the oven and place the tray on a wire rack. Let them cool for about 5 minutes. Then brush them all over with the glaze.

When the glaze has cooled down enjoy them nice & warm with some butter or jam or just as they are.