Rock Cakes

One of the first things I baked as a child – some people call them “children’s cakes” because they are so easy and quick to make, they are ideal for impatient eager young bakers. Rock cakes are a bit like a fruity sweet scone – excellent with a cup of tea or a glass of milk.

Ingredients

• 1 cup of plain flour
• 1 heaped tsp baking powder
• 50 g butter or olivani
• ¼ cup sugar
• ¼ cup currants
• ¼ cup sultanas – or a tablespoon of candied mixed peel
• 1 egg – lightly beaten
• a pinch of mixed spice
• a splash of milk -1-2 tbsp should be enough

Method

Preheat the oven to 200°

Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles fine breadcrumbs or stir in the sugar, baking powder, spice and dried fruit. Mix in the egg and just enough milk to make the mixture moist enough to clump together. You can make rock cakes in the food processor, pulsing the mixture to as not to over- mix it and pulverize the fruit.

Place mounds of mixture onto a cold greased baking tray – this quantity makes approximately 8 Rock cakes but you can easily double it.

Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes or until turning golden.