The Bath bun is a sweet roll made from a milk-based

yeast Yeasts are eukaryotic, single-celled microorganisms classified as members of the fungus kingdom. The first yeast originated hundreds of millions of years ago, and at least 1,500 species are currently recognized. They are estimated to constit ...

dough with crushed sugar sprinkled on top after baking. Variations in ingredients include enclosing a lump of sugar in the bun or adding candied fruit peel, currants,

raisins A raisin is a dried grape. Raisins are produced in many regions of the world and may be eaten raw or used in cooking, baking, and brewing. In the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia, the word ''raisin'' is reserved for the dar ...

or sultanas. The change from a light, shaped bun to a heavier, often fruited or highly sugared irregular one may date from the Great Exhibition of 1851 when almost a million were produced and consumed in five and a half months (the "London Bath bun"). References to Bath buns date from 1763, and Jane Austen wrote in a letter of "disordering my stomach with Bath Bunns" in 1801. The original 18th-century recipe used a

brioche Brioche (, also , , ) is a bread of French origin whose high egg and butter content gives it a rich and tender crumb. Chef Joël Robuchon described it as "light and slightly puffy, more or less fine, according to the proportion of butter and e ...

or rich egg and butter dough which was then covered with

caraway Caraway, also known as meridian fennel and Persian cumin (''Carum carvi''), is a biennial plant in the family Apiaceae, native to western Asia, Europe, and North Africa. Etymology The etymology of "caraway" is unclear. Caraway has been ...

seedsDavidson, Alan, "Bun" in ''Oxford Companion to Food'', Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999, p. 114. coated in several layers of sugar, similar to French ''dragée''. The bun's creation is attributed to William Oliver in the 18th century. Oliver also created the

Bath Oliver A Bath Oliver is a hard, dry biscuit or cracker made from flour, butter, yeast and milk; often eaten with cheese. It was invented by physician William Oliver of Bath, Somerset around 1750, giving the biscuit its name. History When Oliver ...

dry biscuit after the bun proved too fattening for his

rheumatic Rheumatology (Greek ''ῥεῦμα'', ''rheûma'', flowing current) is a branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis and management of disorders whose common feature is inflammation in the bones, muscles, joints, and internal organs. Rheumatolog ...

patients. The bun may also have descended from the 18th-century "Bath cake". The buns are still produced in the Bath area of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Although this is disputed, the 18th-century '"Bath cake" may also have been the forerunner of the

Sally Lunn bun A Sally Lunn is a large bun or teacake, a type of batter bread, made with a yeast dough including cream and eggs, similar to the sweet brioche breads of France. Sometimes served warm and sliced, with butter, it was first recorded in 1780 in t ...

, which also originates from Bath.

References

External links

Traditional Bath bun recipeBath bun with fruitBath bun containing sugar cube
Somerset cuisine 1763 introductions British breads Yeast breads Sweet breads Culture in Bath, Somerset History of Bath, Somerset Buns {{UK-dessert-stub

See also

References

External links