Eccles Cakes
HB-0834 · Hand-built original · British
Main ingredient: butter
Pairs well with: coffee, vanilla ice cream, fresh berries, whipped cream
Serving count not stated for this recipe, so quantities are shown as written.
Ingredients
- 8¾ oz cold butter, for the pastry
- 12¼ oz plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- 1/2 tsp salt
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 10 Tbsp ice-cold water
- 1 oz butter, for the filling
- 7 oz currants
- 1¾ oz mixed peel, finely chopped
- 3½ oz light muscovado sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground allspice
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1 egg, beaten
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar, for sprinkling
Method
- Make a rough puff pastry: rub 1¾ oz of the cold butter into the flour and salt until breadcrumb-like. Mix in the lemon juice and enough ice water to form a dough. Wrap and chill for 20 minutes.
- Roll the dough into a rectangle. Dot the top two-thirds with slices of the remaining butter, fold the bottom third up and the top third down, turn 90 degrees, roll out again and fold in thirds. Chill for 30 minutes, then repeat the rolling and folding twice more, chilling between turns.
- For the filling, melt the 1 oz butter in a pan, then remove from the heat and stir in the currants, mixed peel, sugar, spices and lemon zest. Leave to cool.
- Heat the oven to 400°F. Roll the pastry to about ¼ in thick and cut out 12 rounds about 4 in across.
- Place a heaped teaspoon of filling in the centre of each round. Dampen the edges, draw the pastry up and pinch together to seal, then turn over and gently flatten with a rolling pin until the currants just show through.
- Cut two small slits in the top of each cake. Brush with beaten egg, sprinkle with granulated sugar and place on a lined baking tray.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes until golden and crisp. Cool on a wire rack and serve warm or at room temperature.
Nutrition not computed — no serving count in the source recipe (per-serving values cannot be derived without one).