Eccles cakes

Name: Eccles cakes
Yield: Makes 12–15
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: grated zest of 1 orange; 50 g (2 oz) chopped mixed candied peel; 2 medium egg whites; caster sugar, to sprinkle; 150 g (5 oz) currants; 150 g (5 oz) soft brown sugar; ½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg; 1 tsp ground cinnamon; 90 g (3¼ oz) butter, frozen; 75 g (3 oz) butter; 90 g (3¼ oz) lard, frozen; pinch of salt; 225 g (8 oz) plain flour, plus extra to dust

Preparation info

Makes
12–15

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

British Food

By Mark Hix

Published 2005

About

Named after the small town on the outskirts of Manchester where they were first made, eccles cakes are delicious eaten on their own, or with a hard cheese, like Lancashire. They are traditionally made with flaky pastry, as here, but puff pastry is an alternative.

Ingredients

225 g (8 oz) plain flour, plus extra to dust
pinch of salt

Method

To make the pastry, sift the flour and salt into a bowl, then coarsely grate the frozen butter and lard over the flour. Distribute the fats evenly through the flour, using a metal spoon. Add just enough cold water to form a pliable dough, then wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the filling. Melt the butter in a pan and mix it wit