Name: Cornish saffron cake
Yield: For 6-10 people
Cuisine: United Kingdom
Ingredients: butter, for greasing; 5 g (⅛ oz) sea salt; ½ tsp saffron threads; 15 g (½ oz) dried yeast; 50 g (1¾ oz) candied citrus peel, finely chopped; 60-100 g (2¼-3½ oz) currants; 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) strong white bread flour; 1 egg yolk + 1 tbsp milk, for egg wash; 30 g (1 oz) lard or butter, at room temperature, cubed; 60 g (2¼ oz) raw (demerara) sugar; 325 ml (11 fl oz) lukewarm milk; 5 g (⅛ oz) caraway seeds

Preparation info

For
6-10
people

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Oats in the North, Wheat from the South

By Regula Ysewijn

Published 2020

About

Saffron cake was once also baked in other parts of England, but it remained popular in Cornwall, where it is still available today. The yeast makes it more like a fruit bread than a cake. In the West Country, it’s eaten with a good layer of butter on it.

Ingredients

325 ml (11 fl oz) lukewarm milk
15 g (½

Method

For a loaf tin (900 g/2 lb)

Divide the lukewarm milk in half. Add the yeast to one half to activate it. Using a mortar and pestle, crush the saffron threads and add them to the remaining milk.

Put the flour and sugar in a large bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. Put the lard or butter on top. Pour in half the yeast mixture and start mixing. When th