Named after the Lancashire town of ‘Eccles’, the origins of Eccles cake stretch way back before its first commercial sale in 1793. The renowned pastry gets its name from festivals called ‘Eccles wakes’ which was celebrated the feast of St. Mary and the town church.
Since then this pastry has been popular for its unique aroma of currants and spices. Last week we started preparing Eccles cake in our store using the finest quality ingredients and they are being sold like hotcakes. Hence, we decided to share our magic with our dear readers. We created a special recipe for our special customers and we are thrilled to share it with you.
Ingredients for Eccles cake:
- 1 pack of puff pastry
- 150gm demerara sugar
- 150gm golden raisins
- 150gm currants
- 100gm mixed peel
- 150gm butter
- 2 oranges zested
- 10gm ground cinnamon
- 10gm ground nutmeg
Here are the simple steps to bake the Eccles cake:
- Preheat and prep:
Preheat your oven to 200°C (180°C fan) or gas mark 6. Lightly flour the work surface and roll out the puff pastry to about 5mm thick. - Cut and fill:
Carefully cut out rounds of pastry, about 10-12cm in diameter. In a bowl, mix the butter, golden raisins, currants, mixed peel, orange zest, ground cinnamon, and ground nutmeg. Place a spoonful of the aromatic mixture on the centre of each pastry round. - Seal and sprinkle:
With a few droplets of water wet the edges of the pastry rounds and fold them to enclose the filling, pressing the edges together to seal. Transfer the cakes onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle generous amounts of demerara sugar on top of each cake. - Bake to perfection:
Make three slits on the top of each cake with a sharp knife for steam to escape. Bake the cakes in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and puffed up. - Serve and enjoy:
Once baked, allow the Eccles cakes to cool down to room temperature before serving them. Enjoy these homemade Eccles cakes on the side or as desserts!
With flaky pastry and delicious spiced filling, Eccles cakes are true British classics that can be baked using simple steps and aromatic ingredients. Follow our recipe and create your own batch of these impossible-to-resist treats. These pastries are known to be best accompanied by some cheese and what better place to look for the finest cheese selection than our store in Hither Green? Kirkham’s Lancashire is our chosen accompaniment for this sweet treat. The crumbly texture of the cheese paired with Eccles cakes makes them best buddies. Feel free to tag us on social media for our recipe and happy baking!
