Welsh Cakes

Welsh Cakes (Pice Bach)

Traditional Welsh cakes are small, round griddle-cooked scones studded with currants, lightly spiced and dusted with caster sugar while still warm — a staple of Welsh teatime.

Prep

15 min

Cook

20 min

Total

35 min

Serves

Makes about 12 cakes

Difficulty

Easy

Recipe ingredients

• •225 g (8 oz (about 1½ cups)) plain flour (all-purpose), plus extra for rolling
• •1 tsp baking powder
• •75 g (⅓ cup (about 5 tbsp)) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes; traditional Welsh recipes use lard for extra flakiness — you may substitute half the butter with lard if you like
• •75 g (⅓ cup) caster sugar (superfine sugar), plus extra for dusting
• •75 g (½ cup) dried currants
• •1 whole (1 large) egg, lightly beaten
• •2 tbsp whole milk, plus a little extra if needed
• •ground mixed spice, ½, or a blend of cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice
• •salt, ½

Steps

1. 1 Sift the flour, baking powder, mixed spice and salt into a large bowl.
2. 2 Rub the cold butter into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs. Work quickly so the butter stays cold.
3. 3 Stir in the caster sugar and the currants so they are evenly distributed.
4. 4 Make a well in the centre, add the beaten egg and 2 tablespoons of milk. Mix with a round-bladed knife to bring everything together into a soft dough — add a little extra milk only if it feels dry; the dough should be soft but not sticky.
5. 5 Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and roll out to about 5 mm (¼ inch) thick.
6. 6 Cut into rounds with a 7–8 cm (about 3 inch) cutter and re-roll the trimmings gently to make more cakes — avoid overworking the dough.
7. 7 Heat a heavy cast-iron griddle or sturdy non-stick frying pan over medium-low heat. Lightly grease by rubbing with a little butter on kitchen paper — do not add oil.
8. 8 Cook the cakes in batches, allowing space between them, for about 3 minutes on the first side until golden-brown underneath and small bubbles appear on the surface.
9. 9 Flip with a palette knife and cook for a further 2–3 minutes until the second side is also golden and the cakes feel firm when pressed — there is no egg-internal-temperature cue here; the centre should be just cooked through with no raw dough showing.
10. 10 Transfer to a wire rack and, while still warm, dust generously with caster sugar. Serve warm on their own or with cold salted butter.