British

Welsh Cakes

“Small flat griddle cakes studded with currants and sugar — eaten warm on Saint David's Day with butter, or kept in tins for tea breaks.”

Egg

Easy30 min

Where it comes from

Welsh cakes (picau ar y maen, 'cakes on the stone') are traditionally cooked on a heated bakestone (planc) — a flat iron griddle placed over fire. The recipe predates ovens in Welsh kitchens; bakestones were universal in 18th-19th century Welsh homes. The cakes were practical: portable, energy-dense, kept for days. On Saint David's Day (March 1), Welsh children take them to school and Welsh expatriates send them home as cultural gifts.

On the plate

A welsh cake out of the tin is the size of a digestive biscuit, faintly sweet, currant-studded. Warm from the griddle, butter melts on top instantly. The texture is cake-meets-scone, the spice is faint but present. Tea breaks demand them.

How it works

Welsh cakes cook on a flat heated surface, not in an oven — the conduction-only heat creates a crisp surface and tender interior simultaneously. The currants (small dried grapes) have less moisture than raisins, so they don't make the dough sticky during rolling. Self-raising flour provides the rise; baking soda would taste metallic.

Variations

Traditional version uses currants only; modern bakeries add chocolate chips; American Welsh-diaspora version adds cinnamon and apple — three Welsh cake variations.

On the Palate

Ingredients

Serves 12

225g self-raisingWheat Flour

How it's made

5 steps · Show ↓

20 min active · 10 min waiting

1
5 min
Rub 110g butter into 225g self-raising flour. Add 80g caster sugar, 1 tsp mixed spice, 50g currants. Mix.
2
3 min
Beat 1 egg with 2-3 tbsp milk; add to flour mix to form firm dough.
3
4 min
Roll dough on floured surface to 5mm thick. Cut 12 rounds with 6cm cutter.
4
8 min
Heat dry bakestone or heavy griddle over medium-low heat. Cook welsh cakes 3 min per side until golden brown — heat must be gentle so they cook through without burning.
5
10 min
Dust hot cakes with caster sugar. Eat warm with butter, or cool and store in tin for 3 days.

What you'll need

Cast-Iron Skillet

A heavy, single-piece cast iron pan, 25-30 cm across, weighing 1.5-2.5 kg. Once preheated, the thick mass holds 230°C+ even when a cold steak hits the surface — that's the secret to a deep crust. A well-seasoned skillet (multiple thin layers of polymerized oil baked into the iron) is essentially nonstick, gets better with use, and lasts a century. Lodge skillets from Tennessee have been in continuous production since 1896.

Sauteing