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You may have heard of rock cakes from the Harry Potter books when Hagrid makes his signature version again and again for unenthusiastic recipients. In the stories his rock cakes are baked rock hard for comedic effect, but this isn’t actually how they were made in England. Rock Cakes are delightful and not too sweet, with a soft texture somewhere between a cookie and scone- such a treat!
Rock Cakes got their name from their craggy surface and uneven shapes- like rocks. But, these scone-like treats are quite tender inside and perfect for spreading with butter for tea or breakfast.
These cakes are spiced with “mixed spice”- a blend we don’t have ready-made here in the US. But, you can easily make it yourself by combining pumpkin pie spice with a few other ingredients.
They are sweetened with just a bit of sugar, but the main sweetness in these cakes comes from raisins. This made them a good wartime treat (with some recipe adaptations), so during World War II the British government published recipes for Rock Cakes that called for fewer rationed ingredients like butter, eggs, and sugar.
Thankfully this modern version does have all those yummy things and you can taste it in every bite.
If raisins aren’t your thing then you can use other dried fruits like dried cranberries, chopped dates, or dried cherries. Or for a really special treat like at the holidays you could add some candied orange peel.
The best way to have these Rock Cakes in my opinion is with some generous lashings of Irish butter and good cuppa tea. They’re an old fashioned treat that, despite the funky name, have a wonderful texture that had me reaching for seconds!
Rock Cakes
Yield(s): Makes 9-12 cakes
20m prep time
18m cook time
296 calories
Diet: Vegetarian
you're making mealtime meaningful.
Ingredients
- 2 cups self-rising flour, sifted
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- Pinch salt
- 1 egg, beaten
- 2 tablespoons whole milk, plus more if needed
- 1/2 cup raisins
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Combine flour and butter in food processor and pulse until butter is evenly dispersed. Or add both to large bowl and use a pastry knife to cut in the butter. Cut or mix in sugar.
- Mix in spices, salt, egg, and milk. If mixture seems dry add ½ teaspoon milk until sticky dough forms.
- Place dough by heaping serving spoonfuls or ice cream scoops onto lined baking sheet spaced 2" apart. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown on top. Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before serving. Spread with butter or jam like scones or eat them plain as an on-the-go snack.
Recipe adapted from Penny’s Recipes.