First thing in the morning, mix together 1 cup of room temperature milk, 1 large egg, and 150g of active sourdough starter.
In a large bowl, mix together all dry ingredients including flour sugar, sugar, and spices. .
Combine the wet and dry ingredients together and mix until it comes together in a shaggy dough. Cover with a tea towel and let it sit for 1 hour (autolyse).
Soak the 90g of craisins in warm water while your dough is in the autolyse cycle. Drain after the hour.
Sprinkle salt and hydrated craisins over the dough. With wet hands, stretch and fold (6-8 folds). Cover and let sit for an hour.
Stretch and fold (3-4 rotations) three more times for a total of 4 stretch and fold cycles- being sure to cover in between stretch and fold cycles.
Scoop the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into twelve equal (ish) sized pieces. Form the buns and transfer to a parchment lined 9×13 dish.
Cover the sourdough hot cross buns for the bulk ferment and allow them to rise until they have almost doubled in size and filled your casserole dish. (3-4 hours in a warm spot)
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Beat a large egg and brush it overtop the buns. Mix and pipe the crosses onto the buns.
Bake the sourdough buns for 35-40 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack.
Mix 4 tablespoons of sugar and 3 tablespoons of cranberry juice and brush over the warm buns... Enjoy!