Welsh Cakes Recipe - easy to follow recipe | The Worktop (2024)

FAQs

Why do my Welsh Cakes fall apart? ›

If there are loads of crumbly bits its probably too dry. You want to be aiming for a nice soft dough that stays together but isn't sticky and messy!

These are somewhat similar in appearance to Eccles Cakes but Welsh Cakes are a bit flatter than an Eccles Cake and unlike an Eccles Cake, Welsh Cakes are not filled. In order to make Welsh Cakes, these must be made on a griddle or a bake stone. Once you get the hang of cooking these, it's literally a piece of cake!

According to Doug Windsor, the former national chef of Wales, the two cakes are made in a different way. He explained: "A Welsh cake is made from a dough, while a drop scone is made from a batter and is more of a pancake," he said.

Welsh cakes are served hot or cold, sometimes dusted with caster sugar.

After you have flipped them, you want to look for that gooey line in the middle of each Welsh cake. If you don't have this and cook them for too long on either side, they're going to be rock hard the next day.

This Welsh cakes recipe, which follows a classic recipe and is cooked on a griddle, is hard to beat. Whip up a batch for St. David's Day – they are incredibly easy to make and if you don't have a traditional griddle, then a heavy cast iron frying pan can be used instead.

When Oliver Cromwell gained power in 1650 A.D., both the wakes and the eating of Eccles Cakes were banned due to the Puritan belief that they both had pagan connections. On the other hand, maybe the powers that be in London, did not want their Northern subjects to have too much of a good thing!

Pica Bach or Pice Bach

These were general terms used for Welsh cakes, and refer to the food as being 'small cakes'. They can also be called 'pican' or 'picen' and were called these in Carmarthenshire, Aberystwyth and the old West Glamorgan (Swansea and Neath Port Talbot today).

Have you ever had a Welsh cake before? If not, you'll soon see you've been missing out. This traditional treat of Wales, often called bakestones, has been beloved since the late 19th century when sugar, fat, and other sweet ingredients were added to this griddle-cooked cake.

Enjoy them with sugar, butter, plain, jam, cream, or even chocolate spread and marshmallow – the point of a welsh cake is that is makes you feel warm and cosy for a little minute. If you have more tips on how you cook your welsh cakes then we'd love to hear them. Add them to the comments below!

What are British fairy cakes? ›

“Fairy cakes are smaller units, baked in smaller cases and trays,” she told British Baker. ”Traditionally the tops were cut off and set aside, a small amount of jam placed in the centre and a small amount of cream on top.

The most common form of Jaffa cakes are circular, 21⁄8 inches (54 mm) in diameter and have three layers: a Genoise sponge base, a layer of orange flavoured jam and a coating of chocolate. Each cake is 46 calories.

For Welsh Cakes and Scones, we suggest eating within 3.5 weeks if unrefrigerated. 4.5 weeks if refrigerated and 20 weeks or more if frozen.

Delicious served warm with butter and jam, or simply sprinkled with caster sugar. Cakes will stay fresh in a tin for 1 week.

Made from simple pantry items like flour, sugar, milk and butter, Welsh Cakes are considered a special treat since they take a great deal of time and effort to make. Being griddled, they pretty much must be made by hand and this is why there are very few commerical makers of these cakes in the world.

Get an oven thermometer and make sure your temperature falls within the right range. You under-mixed the batter. Leaving pockets of dry ingredients that aren't mixed into the batter well enough can cause weak points inside your cake. Make sure to mix your batter thoroughly and that there are no dry spots.

A cake can crumble for a variety of reasons: overmixed batter, too much flour, not enough sugar or not enough shortening. When you bake your cake, make sure you use the flour your recipes calls for, preheat your oven and bake the cake at the correct temperature.

Too much sugar can also cause cakes to crumble, as too much sugar makes cakes brittle. Think of boiled sweets or sugar lollies; the sugar is really hard! If you use too much in your cake, the crystals will clump together and harden inside your cake instead of staying as small crystals throughout it.