Place your dried fruit and/or candied citrus in a heatproof bowl. If using orange juice, heat it up to just below boiling and pour it over the dried fruits. If you’re not using orange juice, use boiling water instead. Allow that to soak for 10-15 minutes while you gather the rest of your ingredients.

After soaking, strain the fruit and set aside. Reserve 1 tablespoon of orange juice, if used, or reserve ¼ cup if mixing with the apricot jam and making an orange flavored icing instead of the flour paste.

If you’re using instant yeast (see note 3 otherwise), combine the zest, sugar, yeast, salt, spices, and flour (all your dry ingredients except for the dried fruits) together. If using a stand mixer, add all the dry ingredients to the bowl and mix on low speed until well combined, about 30 seconds, otherwise place in a mixing bowl and whisk together.

Add the warmed milk, eggs, and softened butter to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined and a dough starts to form. Now add in your dried fruits and/or candied citrus. If using a stand mixer, switch to a dough hook and continue mixing at low speed until the dough is slightly sticky but pulls away from the bowl, about 5-7 minutes. If the dough still seems too sticky and not pulling away, add more flour about 1 tablespoon at a time. If not using a stand mixer, mix everything together with a wooden spoon or spatula and knead by hand about 10 minutes.

Lightly grease a large bowl and place the dough inside, turning to coat with the oil. Cover and allow to rise in a warm area for about an hour or longer, until roughly doubled in size.

After the first rise, remove from the bowl and place on a lightly floured surface. Gently knead the dough and form into a log shape. Cut even amounts of dough into 12-15 individual pieces (see note 7). Fold the dough into itself and form rounded balls of dough with your hands. Place the dough balls into a lightly greased 13x9 baking dish, cover, and set aside for a second rise for about 45-60 minutes.

During the second rise, preheat your oven to 350°F / 180°C. After the second rise, if you’re doing a flour cross, add that now. Mix the flour and water until it makes a paste that’s not too thin and runny, but not so thick it can’t be piped easily. Using a pastry bag or a zipper lock bag, snip off the corner about ¼” and add the paste. Pipe across the middle of the buns, then switch direction and pipe across the middle in the opposite direction. If using an egg wash instead of the apricot, apply that now as well.

Place the baking dish in the middle rack of the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until the tops are well browned. Remove from the oven and heat the apricot jam with the reserved orange juice (if used, otherwise replace with water, bar syrup, or corn syrup). While still somewhat hot, apply the jam mixture to the tops of the buns.

If using icing instead of the flour crosses, wait for the buns to cool to barely warm. Mix the powdered sugar with the rest of the reserved orange juice (or milk and vanilla if you skipped the orange juice), add to a piping bag or zipper lock bag, snip off a ¼” from the tip and pipe onto the buns as above.