Huish Cake: A traditional Welsh Cake

I do love frosted cakes BUT i have to admit i love Traditional (no-nonsense, non-fancy) cakes much more. I somehow enjoy my cake even better knowing the interesting stories behind its origin. Like other history, the history behind certain cakes and cookies make for very interesting read. 

This Huish cake is from Wales and the cake is believed to be a traditional baby-christening cake :)...cool ain't it!!! The ingredients used and the ultimate taste of the cake is as interesting as the story of it's origin.


I'm kick-starting my holiday baking with this cake...December truly is one eventful month for this family. Toddler's birthday, our Anniversary and of course Christmas one week after the other...my head is brimming with too many ideas that 'am left dizzy and unproductive (is that the reason why scientists are paid 100 times more than the farmers?????), am a lil' delirious so pay no attention to the ( ) ;D.

I adapted this recipe from Julie-Duff''s and tweaked it a wee bit here and there to get the taste to my liking. If you're considering gifting yourself another cook book for x'mas, i would recommend picking this one, i got mine as a B'day gift from hubby dearest and we have been expanding horizontally faster than the speed of light ever since (does the statement make for a good book review??) :);). Back to the cake, here's the recipe.


Ingredients:
1 Cup - Self-Rising Flour*
1/2 Cup - Rice Flour
1/2 Cup - Veg' Oil
1/2 Cup - Sugar
4 - Eggs
1 Tbsp - Lemon Zest, grated


The original recipe used butter, only egg yolks and the zest of one big lemon. The primary reason for using veg' oil inmost, almost all of my cakes is just for my mental peace ;); and as for using whole eggs as oppose to just yolks, i found the the batter too crumbly like a cookie batter and so i dump in the egg whites as well. As for the lemon zest, i wasn't too sure about a strong citrus flavor on my cake since i have those small lime commonly available with the vegetable vendors here in Hyderabad.


Method:

1. Preheat oven at 180 degree C and grease a round baking tray. Keep aside
2. Mix both the flour in a bowl and keep aside
3. Beat oil and sugar till creamy and then add the eggs and whip it up till well combined
4. Stir in the lemon zest and transfer the batter into the prepared baking pan
5. Bake it for 25-30 minutes or till toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean
6. Let rest for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack for another minute or so and serve.

My toddler could not wait for the cake to cool and he finished two slices immediately..this cake is definitely for both the young and the old older people alike:).The cake looks like a pound cake and taste like a pound cake but with an interesting citrus twist. Next time i make it i'll increase the lemon zest to 2 Tbsp for a better citrus kick. I also have to mention that it taste even better the next morning (if it's still there) :). Please enjoy!!

Note: To make your own self-rising flour (i made my own for this recipe) mix 11/2 Tsp Baking Powder + 1/4 Tsp Salt to 1 Cup of All Purpose Flour and sieve twice to ensure the mixture is well combined.