On 1st March it is St David’s Day in Wales, and these delicious Welsh cakes are the perfect way to celebrate! What better way is there to say Happy St David’s Day (or Hapus Dydd Gwyl Dewi as we say in Wales!) than baking these delicious treats!
This Welsh cake recipe is courtesy of the brilliant Jamie Oliver and he provides a twist on the traditional Welsh cake recipe. Normally they would be served with currants and sultanas and a sprinkling of sugar, but Jamie Oliver has taken the genius step to serve them with a delicious vanilla infused cream and some fresh strawberries!
Ingredients:
For the Welsh Cakes
- 500g of self-raising flour
- 75g of caster sugar
- 1 tsp (heaped) of mixed spice
- 250g unsalted butter (cold)
- Sea Salt
- 150g mixture of raisins and sultanas
- 1 large free range egg
- A few splashes of milk
For the Filling
- 300ml of double cream
- 1 tbsp of caster sugar
- 1 tsp of vanilla bean paste
- 400g of strawberries
- 1 lemon
Instructions:
Step 1-To start, sieve the flour, caster sugar and mixed spice in to a large mixing bowl to start the mixture for the Welsh cakes. Cut up the 250g of unsalted butter and add it to the bowl with a bit of sea salt. Then get stuck in with your hands to mix it all together until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add in the dried fruit and make a well in the centre of the mixture for the egg. Add some milk and then use a fork to beat the mixture together. Once you are happy you have done this, use your hands to bind the mixture to make the dough.
Step 2-Place a large frying pan on a medium heat. While this is heating up, use a rolling pin and flour to roll the dough out to about a 1cm thickness. Use a pastry cutter to get as many rounds of dough as you can for the Welsh cakes. Test the temperature of your pan before cooking all of the Welsh cakes, try one first and if it comes out too dark, turn the heat down, and if it is still very pale, turn the heat up. The aim is to have a perfectly golden Welsh cake and this usually means about 3-4 minutes of cooking on each side.
Step 3-Cook the remaining pastry rounds in batches and repeat the same process of cooking between 3 and 4 minutes on each side.
Step 4-As the Welsh cakes are done, place them on a wire rack to allow them to cool and sprinkle with any remaining caster sugar. Cut each Welsh cake in half so you have an even top and bottom.
Step 5-In another mixing bowl, whip the cream, caster sugar and vanilla paste together until you have soft peaks.
Step 6-Place the strawberries in to a separate bowl with the juice of one lemon and a bit of caster sugar! Add a serving of the cream and strawberries to each Welsh cake, and they are ready to serve!
Step 7- So whether you are Welsh and celebrating St David’s Day or just want to bake some of these delicious treats, these Welsh cakes are perfect and are guaranteed to put a smile on your face!
Source: Jamie Oliver
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