These little cakes are cooked on a bakestone or maen, that is the stone on which they are griddled. Although bakestones are found in all the Celtic countries, only in Wales do we griddle these sweet cakes. A heavy frying pan works well, but take care not to let the sugar in your Welsh cakes burn.
This recipe comes from Gilli Davies. Gilli is the author of the renowned book of Welsh food, Flavours of Wales, published by Graffeg, which was nominated for a Gourmand World Book Award in 2012
This recipe comes from Gilli Davies. Gilli is the author of the renowned book of Welsh food, Flavours of Wales, published by Graffeg, which was nominated for a Gourmand World Book Award in 2012
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 6 minutes
Total Time: 21 minutes
Ingredients:
- 100g / 4 oz mixed butter and lard
- 225g / 8 oz self raising flour
- Pinch of salt
- 75g / 3 oz caster sugar
- 75g / 3 oz currants
- ½ tsp mixed spice
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 medium egg, beaten
Preparation:
- In a bowl, rub the fats into the flour and salt until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
- Stir in the sugar, currants, mixed spice and honey.
- Add the beaten egg and mix to form a firm dough.
- On a floured board, roll or pat the mixture until about 2cm thick.
- Cut into 6cm discs and griddle over a medium heat until golden brown on both sides.
- Dust the Welsh cakes with caster sugar and eat immediately or store in an airtight tin.
Recipe courtesy of True Taste of Wales.
"I have made this recipe many times. Following these amounts and using the one egg and maybe a dash of milk makes a perfect dough for Welsh cakes. It should be stiff but not hard and will certainly not be too soft. If the dough was as you describe then you had perhaps not weighed the dry ingredients correctly?" - Elaine Lemm, Your Guide to British Food
