As Good Friday draws near, we pay tribute to a seasonal favourite with a long history. Hot cross buns are sweet, yeasted rolls, often spiced and containing currants. Their top is marked by a cross, whether it be cut into…
Welsh Cakes – Get The Griddle Out!
What is a Welsh cake? It’s cooked on a griddle so it must be like a pancake, right? Except that it’s made from rolled out dough, so does that make it a cookie or a cake? The correct answer is:…
Syllabub – The Simple English Dessert
Creamy frothy syllabub was a firm favourite in English cuisine from the 1500s to the Victorian era, and although it is less commonly found on modern menus, it deserves a comeback. So easy to make, the dessert still seems wonderfully…
The Oat – The Heart of Scottish Food
“Oats: A grain, which in England is generally given to horses, but in Scotland appears to support the people.” – Samuel Johnson, A Dictionary of the English Language The phrase “Scottish food” immediately brings a number of tasty dishes to…
Pan Haggerty
While County Durham has panackelty, neighbours in Northumberland enjoy another regional dish that serves as either a side dish or as a tasty vegetarian supper. It’s a simple combination of potato, onion, and cheese. And it’s called pan haggerty. There’s…
Panackelty
Every region and just about every county in the British Isles has at least one local variation on a basic casserole. These recipes could often be adapted to use whatever vegetables and meat were on hand. Some used leftovers from…
Fit For a Queen: Coronation Chicken
June 2, 1953. Coronation Day for Queen Elizabeth II. It was a day of street parties, of people crowding around a neighbour’s television if they were lucky enough to find one, hoping to catch a glimpse of the new monarch.…
Shortbread
A perfect combination of butter flavour and crumbly texture, shortbread is a traditional Scottish biscuit that is easy to make and adapt. And although its origins may not necessarily be solely north of the border, Scotland has made it truly…
Welsh Rarebit – Not Just Cheese on Toast
Many think it is mere cheese on toast, but Welsh Rarebit is so much more. Now commonly known as Rarebit, the dish was once known as Welsh Rabbit, and indeed some folks still call it that. But although the dish…
Fruit Cake
Few British foods have been as widely maligned as the humble fruit cake. And very unfairly so. Frequently the punchline in jokes, fruit cake is assumed to be heavy, dry, and lacking in any redeeming qualities. Sadly, some cakes, both…