Eccles cakes

July 13, 2014 (Last Updated: January 11, 2019)

The lovely thing about Eccles cakes is that you can eat them whenever you like. They’re delicious for breakfast or with a bit of cheese and some beer for lunch, but my favourite way to eat them is with a lovely cup of tea in the afternoon.

Eccles cakes

Serves: 8

Ingredients

  • 55g butter, softened
  • 55g fine demerara sugar, plus more for sprinkling
  • 55g currants
  • 55g diced apple
  • 15ml candied peel
  • 7ml stem ginger, chopped
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • a pinch of grated nutmeg
  • 5ml mixed spice
  • flour, for dusting
  • 375g block chilled frozen puff pastry, thawed
  • 1 large free-range or organic egg white

Instructions

1

Preheat your oven to 190°C.

2

Beat your butter and sugar together until light and creamy. Stir in all the rest of the ingredients except the flour for dusting, the puff pastry and the egg white.

3

On a well-floured clean work surface, roll out your puff pastry until it’s just a little thicker than a pound coin. Using a sharp knife, cut the pastry into 8 x 12cm squares. Spoon 2 tablespoons of the fruit mixture into the centre of each square. For each square, flatten the 4 corners then gather them up over the filling. Brush the edges with a little water then press down to seal. Bring the other 4 corners into the centre. Turn the cakes over so they’re sitting on the join and gently press down with a rolling pin so they flatten a little. Make 3 cuts into the top of each cake, then brush the tops with egg white and sprinkle with demerara sugar.

4

Place on a baking tray and bake in the oven for 15 – 20 minutes.

 

 

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