If you go to England, you can buy currant buns in the supermarket; but, as a rule, the buns you get are plain currant buns—that is, although currants have been added to the dough, there is no spicing.   According to my father, though, when he was a boy you could also get spicy currant buns, though these cost a bit more (understandably, since the spices were expensive).
        This recipe is for large, extra spicy buns with a lot of plump, flavoursome currants.   As is traditional, they are given a sticky glaze on top:   “sticky buns” my father called them.   These are my best buns; and I use the same recipe as the base for the hot cross buns I make for Easter.

Ingredients

Directions

Initial Preparations

Put the lukewarm water in a warmed mixing bowl, and add the yeast and one teaspoonful of sugar.   Let the yeast prove.

Put half of the flour in another mixing bowl, and combine it with the sugar, salt, and spices.

Break the egg into a small bowl, and beat it lightly with a fork.

Cut the butter into tiny chunks.

Making the Dough
Add the egg to the proved yeast.   Then add the chunks of butter and the dry ingredients.   Mix well.
        Cover the mixing bowl with a piece of waxed paper or plastic, and tuck a dish towel over to keep it from shifting.   Allow the dough to rise in a warm place for a few hours until the dough is approximately double the bulk.
        When the dough has risen, stir in the currants, using a spurtle or wooden spoon.   Then add the rest of the flour.
        Mix well, kneading the last of the flour in.   Form it into a ball.
        Place the dough on a clean flat surface (such as a kitchen counter) that has been dusted with flour.   Knead the dough well.

Shaping the Buns
Divide the dough into twelve pieces of equal size, gauging them by weight in the palm of your hand rather than by size.   Shape each piece roughly into a ball.
        Cover a large baking sheet with aluminum foil, grease it, and dust it with flour.   Place each of the buns on it.   Space them well apart to allow for the increase in size when they rise.

Overnight
Cover the baking tin with a sheet of waxed paper, putting a dish towel on top so that it won't shift.   Leave the buns to rise overnight.

Baking
Bake at 375°F for twenty minutes, or until golden brown.

Glazing
While the buns are in the oven, mix a half a cup of hot water with two tablespoons of white sugar until the sugar is completely dissolved.
        As soon as the buns have been taken out of the oven, quickly brush them over with the sweetened water, covering the tops and sides.   The heat of the buns will evaporate most of the water, leaving a sticky glaze.         Serve hot.

Makes one dozen buns.