Welsh Cakes & Other Hobbit Foods

Greetings and salutations my darling internet friends! I am thrilled to announce that this week I will be sharing Hobbit/Middle Earth themed recipes with you all! I was planning on hosting this event during the premiere week of the last movie. But alas, finals and Christmas got in the way. The stinkers. So although it's a little belated I felt I should still go ahead with the series! I mean the movie is still out in theatres after all and who really needs an excuse to eat Middle Earth themed food? I certainly don't! My fascination with this genre of food began a few years ago. One of my friends from  high school would host a Hobbit themed feast at his parents house at the end of every summer. It was a wonderful experience to gather with friends and a kind and generous family. The food was inspired by Tokien's books of course and traditional European and English Peasant food. One of the signature dishes my friend would make were Welsh Cakes. They were the perfect combination of a cookie and a biscuit. Sprinkled with powdered sugar and jam, these treats were quickly devoured by all in attendance. Unfortunately the original recipe contained eggs and milk, so after I became vegan I had to pass up the scrumptious cakes. However, even the most un-vegan foods can be veganized! So I set out to create a recipe that had all of the flavor and texture of the original but with a compassionate twist.



For this recipe I created three different flavors of cakes: plain, chocolate chip, and raisin. Traditional Welsh cakes are usually filled with currants. I didn't have any on hand the day I made these. Cue the chocolate! If you would like to stay as true to the traditional recipe by all means use currants or raisins, but I can assure you the plain and chocolate flavors are equally divine!

Food is tied so much to tradition and family life. When you make a lifestyle change that affects your diet you may fear losing that connection with your past and relatives. However, as I said before, any recipe can be veganized! It may involve new twists and some experimentation but with time and dedication I am sure you can find/create a recipe which allows you to continue on the traditions of your family while saving animal lives at the same time.

Adapted from the Zahlicious 

Ingredients

2 cups of unbleached bread flour

3/4 cup of vegan sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 cup of whatever add in you would like (currants, raisins, chocolate chips) for plain Welsh Cakes add nothing

1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp of solid coconut oil - it must be completely solid for the recipe to work

1-2 tbsp of coconut oil for frying the cakes 

2 Ener G Eggs (1 egg = 1 1/2 tsp Ener G egg mix + 2 tbsp water. Whisk together until combined)

3 - 4 tbsp of vanilla almond milk or enough to bring the dough together

Powder sugar for dusting

Instructions

1. In a large bowl whisk together all of the dry ingredients

2. Knead in solid coconut oil into the dry ingredients until all large clumps are gone and the mix feels like sand between your fingers

3. Stir in your add-ins if you chose. If you would like to make two different flavors divide your mix in half at this time and place each half in a separate bowl

4. Pour in the Ener G eggs and stir or knead together until a dough begins to form

5. Add in 1 tbsp of almond milk at a time kneading well before you add the next tbsp. Only add enough almond milk to form a dough the consistency of pie crust dough. It should not be stinky or very tacky

5. Heat your griddle to low or medium-low heat and grease it with 1 tbsp of coconut oil. If you don't have a griddle you can use a flat skillet. If you are using a skillet be sure to re-grease your pan between batches of cakes

6. Cook your cakes on one side for 5-8 minutes or until the bottom is a golden brown

7. Flip cakes and continue cooking on the other side for 5-8 minutes until golden brown and the cakes  have been cooked all the way through. 

Enjoy with powdered sugar, agave, jam or just plain!

Want more Hobbit-y foods? Check out my older posts for soups that I think will fill your endless Hobbit-y tummy up! Keep an eye open later on this week for new Hobbit-y recipes!