Oh yes, many, many times. I love them but they are quite plain if you are used to the sweet, rich cakes I see mentioned here sometimes. I would not mess with the original recipe. Cranberries, cherries and blueberries would be unknown to my Welsh Nana. In fact, I wouldn’t use raisins either. Currants are the traditional fruit. Best eaten warm.

We live within a very few miles of the Welsh border (Chepstow) and Welsh cakes are an enjoyable treat. And, yes, serve them warm, straight off the griddle with just a little sugar sprinkled on.

No, I haven't but SIL is from the UK and I was in a store specializing is all things UK and saw some Spotted Dick cakes, just had to buy them for him kind of as a birthday joke. They looked like they had some dried fruits in them also. Next time I'm there, I'll look for Welsh cakes.

Dukestown is now in Monmouthshire, so not far from Chepstow.

dedtired, many yeas ago I was sent on a course at wild and windswept Trefil, near Dukestown. It was full of outdoor hearty types; I am neither! It included climbing and camping in the Brecon Beacons during a cold and snowy January. The part l was least looking forward to was abseiling, but once 'over-the-edge' I was fine and even offered to have a go for a 'hearty type' who was hiding behind a rock.

Your Great grandfather wouldn't recognise the area today. Then it would have been full of coal pits and quarries. Now much quieter but has probably lost some of its old community spirit.

So interesting to hear about that area! I would love to go to Wales and as a matter of fact, to England. I have been to Scotland and Ireland, including the north, so I nearly made it.

My great grandfather was a coal miner, so that makes perfect sense. He came to Pennsylvania to work in the mines. What an awful way to make a living.

Had to google abseiling. We call it rappelling and I would not do it so I did not inherit the gene for that!

Thanks for the insights. I wonder if my ancestors made Welsh cakes. Most of the rest of my family came from Germany in the 1700s, so the cooking was PA German, known as Deutsch or Dutch. The cakes do sound yummy.

My grandfather was also a coal miner in the same area. Dead in his fifties from lung disease.

I had to go back and look at the video again, she did say currants or raisins, I only watched it twice, once when I first saw it and then again to watch her actually cook them so I could judge better when to flip them. She added a mix of candied fruit too with the currants. She did put sugar on the top, and so did I. I used the dried cranberries, cherries and blueberries because I found a small bag in Aldis. Maybe next time I'll try just the currants if I can find them here.

Her recipe also called for cinnamon and mace, I had cinnamon and nutmeg so that's what I used.

This thread has really spiked my interest! I Googled 'Welsch Cakes' and it brought up a number of recipes. I definitely want to try them! I've never seen currants in the stores here, though, so will probably use raisins.

Thanks, Kathsgrdn!

Rusty

Floral, my grandfather had black lung from the PA mines, but still lived to 80. He simply dropped dead one night after dinner!

Is there any reason to use currants instead of raisins in baking?

Slightly different taste, size and texture. Raisins are bigger and moister and would give a different mouth feel in a Welsh cake. Currants are also cheaper which would have been important to people making them in Wales. Currants are always available here and are found alongside the sultanas and raisins.