Recipe: Welsh Cakes

So… Friday’s are recipe days. Just in time for a weekend in the kitchen 🙂

And firmly on my list of top ten treats are…WELSH CAKES!!!

There is an amazing little shop down Cardiff Bay called Fabulous Welshcakes (no need to explain what they sell) which is a must-visit for anyone in the area.

But… if you want to be able to make these whenever you want, read on…

Now, this recipe has resulted from a few years of trial & (edible) error – so feel free to adjust as necessary. Use less flour, add more spice, roll them thinner – experiment!

• 250g (8oz) self-raising flour
• 150g (5oz) butter, diced
• 115g (4½oz) currants
• ½ tsp mixed spice
• 75g (3oz) caster sugar
• 1 large egg

1. Pre-heat a griddle over a medium heat.
2. Sift the flour, spice & a pinch of salt into a bowl.
3. Use your fingertips to rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs
4. Stir in the sugar & currants
5. Add the egg & mix to make a stiff dough
6. Roll out on a lightly floured surface until around ¾cm (¼ inch) thick.
7. Cut into 6cm rounds
8. Gently cook in batches for around 4 minutes on each side – until the welsh cakes are a nice golden colour & cooked through.
9. Cool slightly on a wire rack, then sprinkle with caster sugar on both sides – if you do this while they’re warm, the sugar will stick better.

These little beauties are delicious fresh off the griddle – the scent of fresh welsh cakes has an almost magnetic pull for anyone wandering the local farmers markets – but, if they survive long enough to cool completely, they’re still my go-to treat.

The recipe above works for me for traditional welsh cakes, but there is a brilliant stall-holder on the Taff Embankment farmers market that makes ‘welsh cakes’ in 30+ different flavours – chocolate orange, lime-coconut, chilli chocolate…

Let me know how yours work out.

Enjoy xx