Welsh cakes

This delightful little nibble is eaten all over Wales - and is considered a delicacy. It is however impossible to resist one once you have tried one -these are wonderful at any time, although arguably best at elevenses or with afternoon tea.

Welshcakes purchased from Cardiff Market

During the trip to Cardiff, I came across "fabulous welshcakes", a quaint shop in Mermaid Quay in Cardiff Bay selling a variety of welshcakes, including my favourite "Sour cherry and dark chocolate" which was positively divine. Others included "traditional" (see following recipe), and cinnamon. All of which I will bet were beautiful. The shop also sells a cornucopia of patisserie and teatime oddments, many of which i was tempted to buy. Congratulations on a wonderful shop.

The following recipe comes genuinely from a Welsh source, and having tried various welsh cakes during my birthday trip to Cardiff, I can vouch that both this recipe and welsh cakes are a beautiful thing.

Ingredients:


8oz SR Flour
4oz Sugar
4oz Butter (Preferably welsh). You can use margarine if required though.
2 Eggs
4oz Sultanas

Preparation:

Rub the fat into the sieved flour to make breadcrumbs. Add the sugar, dried fruit and then the egg. Mix to combine, then form a ball of dough, using a splash of milk if needed.

Roll out the pastry until it is a 5mm/¼in thick and cut into rounds with a 7.5-10cm/3-4in fluted cutter.

You now need a bakestone or a heavy iron griddle, although a heavy bottomed frying pan will do the job. Rub it with butter and wipe the excess away. Put it on to a direct heat and wait until it heats up, place the Welsh cakes on the griddle, turning once. They need about 2-3 minutes each side. Each side needs to be caramel brown before turning.

Remove from the pan and dust with caster sugar while still warm. Some people leave out the dried fruit, and split them when cool, and then sandwich them together with jam.