St David’s Day is almost here…and we’re thinking about wonderful Welsh food!
We all know about cawl, Welsh cakes, and bara brith.
So we’re taking a look at some of the lesser known but equally mouthwatering traditional Welsh recipes from our home county of Monmouthshire.
- Teisen fel – or honey cake. This is a delicious mixture of honey, flour, cinnamon, butter, caster sugar, soft brown sugar, eggs, milk, and a little bicarbonate of soda. Brush your baked cake with warmed honey and stand some broken shards of meringue on top.
- Scallops and bacon – Take cooked scallops and skewer them with chunks of bacon and bay leaves. Brush with oil and grill for ten minutes, basting with a little scallop stock. Serve with a reduction of scallop stock.
- Tarten gennin – or leek tart. This is a winning combination of leeks, ham or bacon, butter, and cream. Take a look at our recipe below for more information.
- Teisen nionod – or onion cake. Take peeled and sliced potatoes and finely chopped onion and layer them in a greased baking dish, dotting each layer with butter and seasoning. Cover with foil and bake for about 90 minutes, the last 30 minutes uncovered.
- Punchnep – or mashed potatoes and turnip. This is a comforting combination of potatoes, young white turnips, butter, cream, and salt and pepper. The mash should be very smooth so puree both vegetables well.
- Welsh braised beef – This is a delicious mixture of Welsh braised beef, bacon, turnips, onion, carrots, cider, potatoes, leeks, marjoram, and thyme. A wonderful one-pot dinner.
- Teisen gocos – or cockle cakes. You need cockles and a batter of flour, egg, oil, and tepid water. Boil the cockles, take them out of their shells, then cover them in batter and deep fry. Serve with lemon wedges.
- Lamb chops – Sear the chops and add them on top of cooked, minted peas and thickened pea stock and put the uncovered casserole in the oven for 20 minutes. Serve with puréed potatoes and a little rowanberry jelly.
- Rowanberry sauce – This tart sauce is made with rowanberries, apple, sugar, and water. Use with lamb or local cheeses.
- Baked stuffed mackerel – Stuff your cleaned and gutted mackerel with a mixture of butter, chopped parsley and chives, and a squeeze of lemon juice and season. Make greased foil parcels and bake at 190C for 20 minutes. Serve with spring vegetables.
Did you know…?
- Wales is now famed across the world for its high quality produce and mouthwatering food.
- Staple crops include barley, oats, wheat, and vegetables including the famous Welsh leek – an enduring national symbol worn by soldiers and schoolchildren alike.
- Wales is also famed for its top quality, grass-fed lamb, which has been given PGI status (Protected Geographical Indication) as a mark of its quality. In 2023, Welsh lamb exports were valued at more than £190 million. The biggest overseas market for Welsh lamb is France.
- Our award-winning cheeses grace gourmet restaurants across the UK. They include Perl Las, Y Fenni, Caerphilly, and Tintern cheeses.
- A traditional Welsh breakfast includes cockles, laverbread, bacon, and eggs. Many people fry the laverbread in bacon fat to give the seaweed extra flavour.
- A traditional Welsh afternoon tea will often include buttered bara brith and Welsh cakes. This is a popular activity in the Gaiman area of Patagonia in Argentina where a Welsh-speaking colony was established in the mid 19th century. There are now 70,000 Welsh Patagonians.
- There are currently more than 20 Welsh vineyards with several producing award-winning wines, dozens of local craft ale makers, and award-winning whisky and gin distilleries.
- Abergavenny is the food capital of Wales thanks to our hugely successful annual food festival held every September. It attracts thousands of visitors and exhibitors from across the world, and has included demonstrations from top chefs including Angela Hartley, Valentine Warner, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Cyrus Todiwala, and our own Simon King.
On St David’s Day, we’ll be following the advice of Wales’s patron saint and “doing the little things”, the little extras that make our gourmet food truly special.
Happy St David’s Day/Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Hapus!
