What Is A Welsh Cake and Why Should I Bake One?
Welsh cakes are a traditional British Christmas food. They’re usually small round cakes flavoured with aniseed, and they’re served at Christmas dinner.
A welsh cake is a traditional Welsh cake, which is made with fruit, flour, butter, eggs, and ground almonds. It can also be made in large trays similarly to a Victoria sponge cake.
A traditional Welsh cake is a small, round, flat cake made of flour, leavened with yeast, and usually covered with sugar for garnish. They’re popular in the United Kingdom, especially during the winter months.
They’re also a lot easier to make than you might think. All you need is flour, eggs, milk, and baking powder. If you want to add flavour, you can use dried fruit, nuts, and mixed spice.
In some independent bakeries that sell them all year round. The name “welsh cake” comes from Wales’ location on the border of England and Scotland.
But these days, people bake them for any occasion – including birthdays or weddings! So if you have friends who celebrate their special day by eating lots of sweets, then this recipe will be perfect for them.
Let’s make our own Welsh Cakes today, shall we?
Ingredients for making welsh cake
- 1 cup plain flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup caster sugar
- 3 large egg yolks
- ½ cup whole milk
Instructions:
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius/fan 160 degrees Celsius/gas Mark 4.
- Grease two 12cm diameter sandwich tins with butter.
- You could also line each tin with nonstick cooking spray instead of using butter. This makes it much easier to remove the cooked cake flavours later.
Step 2: Sift together the dry ingredients into one bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the egg yolk and half of the granulated sugar until light and foamy.
- Add the remaining powdered sugar gradually while continuing to beat well.
- Then drizzle in the milk and continue beating until smooth and thickened.
- Pour the mixture evenly between both prepared tins. It should fill about three quarters full.
Step 3: Bake for 15 minutes, or until risen and golden brown around the edges.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before carefully turning out onto wire racks to finish cooling completely.
- Once cooled, store in airtight containers so they stay fresh longer.
What do Welsh cakes taste like?
These little treats aren’t too sweet and they don’t contain many calories either. But when baked properly, they’ll give you a real sense of accomplishment. You’ve done something really nice and delicious.
The secret ingredient here is baking soda, but not just any old baking soda. It has been activated and mixed up with other things such as cream cheese and breadcrumbs.
So how does activated baking soda work? Baking soda contains sodium bicarbonate. When water gets added to this chemical compound, carbon dioxide gas forms.
This reaction helps create bubbles inside the dough. And because there are plenty of bubbles, the surface area grows bigger and larger, giving rise to more volume.
So if you ever wondered why bread rises so quickly after being kneaded, this is probably the reason behind its rapid growth.
How to eat a welsh cake?
Welsh cake recipe are best eaten straight away once they come out of the oven. They won’t last long at room temperature.
If you’d prefer to keep them for a few hours, wrap them tightly in cling film and place them back in the fridge.
When ready to serve, unwrap the cakes and cut them into slices. Then toast them under the grill for 5 minutes.
Alternatively, heat some oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Once hot enough, add the sliced cakes and fry on each side for 6–8 minutes.
Serve warm with lashings of butter and jam.
Tips in making a welsh cake
- Make sure you grease your pans properly when putting the batter inside. Use only as little oil as necessary to prevent sticking.
- Be careful not to overdo it though, because too much oil would cause greasy cakes.
- If you don’t like the taste of yeast, just omit the yeast from your recipe. But remember, without the yeast, there won’t be any rise in the dough.
- Don’t worry if your cakes look messy – that means they’re done. Just give them time to cook through thoroughly.
- Try adding different flavours to your Welsh cakes. Try sprinkling cinnamon on top, drizzling honey or maple syrup on the sides, or even spreading jam or chocolate spread on the bottom layer.
- Whatever you choose, keep experimenting until you get exactly the Welsh cake you love best!
Conclusion
Welsh cakes are a traditional Welsh treat, a cross between a cookie and a candy bar. The main ingredients in a Welsh cake are butter, sugar, flour, and golden syrup.
Some people add things like raisins or chocolate chips. Welsh cakes differ from other cakes in that they are not usually frosted. They are also not very sweet.