Stotties are flat round buns of slightly dense and chewy bread, very popular in the North East.
I had never even heard of Stottie Cakes until I met my husband. But then again, I hadn't had pease pudding hot or pease pudding cold either. He is a Geordie, though you would scarcely know it these days. His accent only comes out when he gets together with his three brothers.
2lbs Strong Flour
3 teaspoons salt
3 oz fat
1 sachet quick action yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
half a pint tepid milk
half a pint tepid water
Mix the salt into the flour, rub in the fat. Stir in the sachet of yeast and the sugar. Make a hole in the centre of the flour and pour in the liquid. Draw it all together and knead until the mixture is smooth and elastic, approx 10 minutes.
Leave to rise until doubled in size, approximately 1-1.5 hours.
Gently knock back, then divide into the number of cakes you want to make. I made ten out of the dough, but next time I will make them a little smaller. Either roll them out and cut them or shape them into rounds and flatten them. Press a wooden spoon handle in the middle, almost all the way through. Prick the top a few times with a fork and bake for approximately 15 minutes at 220 C.
They don't look anything special, and I haven't eaten enough Stotties to know whether they tasted authentic. I made Max a ham salad sandwich (alas, no pease pudding) and waited for the verdict.
He loved it and said it was just as he remembered them from boyhood.
To me they taste just like the bread rolls which my mother used to make. We were both happy. Some have gone into the freezer for another day, the rest have been enjoyed fresh.
Definitely a dough I will be making again.
So that's a story is cake! I can make some of them. I might even try tomorrow now you've given us the recipe. Bet they are scrumptious hot out of the oven and smotheted in real butter (no darn oil!). Thanks for the mention by the way. I'll post a photo when I make some stotties. Great word.
ReplyDeleteAhhhh. I didn't proof read and the darn tablet changes words at will. I'm sure you realised that 'story' in the first line should have been 'stottie'. Spell check is fighting me every word I write. It shall not succeed.
ReplyDeleteYou set me on the path to them and I am grateful! Fresh bread is my greatest weakness, especially smothered in real butter, real comfort food. I always think homemade bread makes the best toast so I can't wait to try toasting one next time. Something of a theme developing here! "My name is Elaine and I am a carbohydrate addict"...unfortunately, true.
DeleteEnjoy your baking.
Ooooh, we buy stottie cake in our local Asda.
ReplyDeleteIf we had an Asda store I could get some and give my husband a blind tasting session, see which ones he prefers. On second thoughts, that could cause marital disharmony if he were to choose the wrong one!
DeleteThey certainly look very good. With Autumn approaching, and the wood fired cooker desperate to be lit, I've taken note.
ReplyDeleteElectic or gas cookers are very convenient, but wood fired ones are more fun and feel right, somehow. I love changing over to autumnal foods and having our Rayburn back in action.
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