What are finger buns?

Once a standard in any Australian bakery or school canteen, these long fruit buns with their distinctive light pink icing are fast disappearing from many shelves. Desiccated coconut, pink icing or colourful hundreds-and-thousands are the standard toppings, although you can leave them plain for a simpler touch.

Check out this much-loved recipe by one of our home cooks:

Finger Buns

Classic Finger Bun Recipe

What you’ll need

1 sachet dry yeast (7g)
1/3 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup milk, warm
2 ½ cups plain flour
1½ tsp ground cinnamon
50g unsalted butter, melted
1 egg, lightly whisked
1/4 cup water, warm
3/4 cup sultanas

To decorate

1 ¼ cups icing sugar mixture
1 tsp butter, softened
Pink food colouring
Desiccated coconut to decorate

Step 1
Mix together the yeast, caster sugar and milk in a small jug. Set aside for 10 minutes, or until it becomes foamy.

Step 2
Sift together the flour and cinnamon into a large bowl. Make a well in the centre and add the yeast mixture, butter, egg and water. Use a round-bladed knife to mix together using a cutting motion. Tip the dough onto the bench and use your hands to knead it together. Continue kneading for 5 minutes. Add the sultanas to the dough and knead for an additional 2 minutes or until it is smooth and elastic.

Step 3
Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Place in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.

Step 4
Preheat the oven to 200C. Grease 2 baking trays. Punch down the dough and knead for 2 minutes, or until smooth. Divide dough into 12 portions. Roll each portion into a log, roughly 12cm long. Place 6 dough logs on each prepared tray. Cover each tray with a tea towel and set aside in a warm place for 20 minutes.

Step 5
Brush the tops of the buns with a little milk and pop in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Step 6
To make icing, place icing sugar, butter and 2 tbs warm water in a bowl. Stir until smooth. Add 2 drops food colouring and stir to combine. Carefully add more food colouring until you reach the desired colour. Spread icing over the cooled buns and sprinkle with coconut. Place on a wire rack to set, then serve.

Can I use my bread maker?

Yes, you can easily use your bread maker to make finger buns. Here are a few tips to help you out:

Try using the standard fruit buns recipe that comes in your bread-maker’s manual. Remember to always put your ingredients into the bread pan in the order that your manual instructs to ensure it’s perfectly kneaded.
Set the machine to ‘dough raisin’ mode, or the equivalent. The machine will then let you know the exact moment to add your fruit.
Once the dough has finished, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly. From this point you can continue with step 4 above.

Best finger bun flavours

Now that you have the base recipe, why not try making them your own by trying some of these nifty tweaks:

Choc chip finger buns: Do away with the sultanas and replace it with chocolate chips. Decorate you finished buns with the traditional glaze and coconut, or try topping them with chocolate sprinkles.
Apricot and walnut: Swap the sultanas for a mix of dried apricot and finely chopped toasted walnut. Sprinkle the finished buns with a finely ground walnut praline.
Fruit-free toasted coconut buns: Ditch the dried fruit all together and add ½ teaspoon mixed spice to the mix for an aromatic bun. Try toasting some shredded coconut to add to the top of your buns for extra flavour and texture.