Traditional Welsh Recipes.

Cawl Lafwr (Laver Soup).

Laver, an edible seaweed collected from the rocks around the Welsh coast, is used to make this nourishing, thick vegetable soup.

Melt the butter in a saucepan and cook the vegetables until lightly brown. Stir in the laver and the stock, bring to the boil and simmer, covered for 20-30 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Allow to cool a little, then sieve or liquidise. Return to a clean saucepan, add the seasoning and sugar and reheat thoroughly. Pour into bowls and garnish with parsley.

Metric Conversion Tables.

Pastai Afal (Apple Pastry).

Although traditionally cooked on a griddle or bakestone, this apple pie can be cooked in the oven.

Set oven to 425°F or Gas Mark 7. Divide the pastry in half and roll out on a lightly floured surface to form two equal sized rounds. Spread the stewed apple (which should not be too wet) onto one round, leaving a clean edge. Moisten the edge with milk and place the other round on top, sealing very well. Brush lightly with milk and carefully place on a lightly buttered baking sheet. Bake for 20 - 25 mins. until golden brown. Sprinkle thickly with granulated sugar and serve at once, either plain or with custard.

Metric Conversion Tables.

Pwdin Caws Pob Cymreig (Welsh Cheese Pudding).

Served at high tea or as a light luncheon dish, Welsh Cheese Pudding can be eaten on its own or accompanied by a salad..

Toast the bread on one side only.  Set the oven to 350°F or Gas Mark 4. Butter the bread on the untoasted side, trim off the crusts and cut into fingers. Butter a deep ovenproof dish and cover the base with a layer of bread, toasted side down and cover with a layer of cheese. Mix the seasonings together, sprinkle a little evenly over the cheese and top with a layer of bread, toasted side down. Continue in this way, finishing with a layer of cheese. Warm the milk slightly, then lightly whisk in the eggs and pour over the cheese in the dish. Cook for 35 - 45 mins. until golden brown. Serve immediately.

Metric Conversion Tables.

Roast Monkfish in Laverbread Sauce.

A traditional fish dish from West Wales, where Monkfish (Angel Sharks) and seaweed were very common..

Lightly flour and season the monkfish, scallops and prawns. Heat enough oil to cover the base of an oven-proof frying pan large enough to take all the fish. Add a knob of butter and when it foams add the monkfish, scallops and prawns. The scallops and prawns will cook quickly, so remove when done and keep warm. Fry the monkfish till golden brown on both sides.
Transfer the pan to a preheated hot oven, 220°C/425°F/Gas 7, for four to five minutes. Cooking time depends on thickness of fish, so be careful not to overcook. Leave the fish to rest while you prepare the plates.
Wash the laver seaweed thoroughly. You will have to wash it many times to remove the sand that adheres to it. Leave it to drain in a colander and then dry thoroughly. Tear the laver into strips, dip it in flour and shake off the excess. Deep fry the laver until crisp, about two to three minutes. Sprinkle with a little roughly ground fresh coriander seeds.
Put three tablespoons of laverbread sauce (see below) on each plate, slice the monkfish pieces into two, cutting diagonally. Place the pieces slightly overlapping, adding the scallop and prawn. Surround with deep- fried laver and a few julienne strips of orange. Serve immediately.

Metric Conversion Tables.

Laverbread Sauce

 A traditional seaweed sauce for use with the above recipe and others..

Make a strong stock using the first nine ingredients above.
Strain the stock, return half the potato to it, add the laverbread (which you may be able to find outside Wales in packet-form in specialised food shops), the cream and the butter. Liquidise and add the Seville orange juice. When adding the juice, keep tasting. More or less may be needed; the sauce must be balanced.
Return the sauce to the heat and bring to just below boiling. Check the seasoning.

Swper Mam (Mother's Supper).

A traditional supper or high tea dish that incorporates cooked cheese, a favourite Welsh ingredient.

Set oven to 375°F or Mark 5. Butter a shallow, ovenproof dish and beginning and ending with the bacon, layer the ingredients, seasoning lightly. Bake for 30 minutes until the bacon topping is crisp. Serve accompanied by crusty bread.

Metric Conversion Tables.

Wyau Ynys Môn (Anglesey Eggs).

A supper of cheese and hard boiled eggs on a bed of leeks and mashed potato.

Set oven to 350°F or Mark 4. In a bowl, combine the leeks, mashed potatoes and half the butter; season and beat well together. Place in a buttered, ovenproof dish. Make a cheese sauce by melting 1 oz. of the butter in a small pan, add the flour, stir and cook for 2 minutes over a low heat. Stir in the milk, add the cheese and simmer, stirring until it thickens (reserve half an ounce of butter and a little cheese for sprinkling over the finished dish). Arrange the halved hard-boiled eggs over the potato and leek mixture. Pour the cheese sauce over. Mix the reserved cheese with the breadcrumbs and sprinkle over the sauce; dot with the remaining butter and grate a little nutmeg over. Bake for 15-20 minutes until nicely browned. Serve with broccoli or peas.

Metric Conversion Tables.

Cwningen â Chorbys (Rabbit with Lentils).

A leg of Welsh lamb, coated with honey, roasted and served with a cider and honey gravy.

Soak the lentils over night in water. Next morning, drain and rinse. Place in a pan with the quartered onion and bacon and bring to the boil. Cover and simmer until the lentils are tender (about 1½ hours). Allow to cool, then sieve or liquidise. Set oven to 325°F or Mark 3. Dust the rabbit joints with seasoned flour. Melt the fat in a pan and fry the joints until lightly browned, then place in a casserole. Fry the chopped onion in the remaining fat until soft, then add the stock and bouquet garni and bring to the boil, stirring. Pour over the rabbit, season and cover. Cook for 1-1½ hours or until the joints are tender, drain off the liquid and add it to the lentil purée, mixing well. Pour back over the rabbit, return to the oven and cook for 15-20 minutes. Serve garnished with the parsley.

Metric Conversion Tables.

Oen Cymreig â Mêl (Honeyed Welsh Lamb).

A leg of Welsh lamb, coated with honey, roasted and served with a cider and honey gravy.

Set oven to 400°F or Mark 6 . Place the leg of lamb on kitchen foil in a roasting tin. Brush with 4 tablespoons of warm honey and season with salt and pepper. Place the sprig of rosemary on top of the joint. Draw up the foil to form a tent and roast for 15 minutes. Lower the heat to 350°F or Mark 4 and continue roasting for 1½ hours until the juice just runs pink or longer if preferred well-done. Open up the foil to crisp and brown the skin for the last 20 minutes of cooking time. Remove the lamb from the oven and keep warm. Pour off the fat from the pan and make the gravy from the meat residue, adding ½ pint of cider and 2 tablespoons of honey. Reduce to two-thirds volume by boiling. Serve with roast potatoes and green vegetables.

Metric Conversion Tables.

Teisennau Cocos (Cockle Cakes).

Cockle-wives, with their pony or donkey carts, have always been part of the Welsh coastal scene, particularly at Penclawdd in the Gower. At low tide they would 'scrap' the sand for cockles and boil them over open fires on the beach.

The evening before they are required, place the cockles in a bowl of cold, salted water, sprinkle over the oatmeal and leave overnight. Next day, drain the cockles and scrub them thoroughly. Place in a saucepan of salted water, bring to the boil and boil for 3-4 minutes, until the shells open. Allow the cockles to cool and, discarding any that have NOT opened, remove the remainder from their shells. Sift the flour and the salt together in a bowl, then rub in the butter. Stir in the egg yolk, then add sufficient water or milk to make a thick smooth batter. Heat the fat in a deep pan and, using a spoon, dip the cockles, one or two at a time, into the batter and fry in the hot fat until crisp and golden. Drain on kitchen paper and keep warm. Serve accompanied by lemon wedges and crusty bread.

Metric Conversion Tables.

Crempog Las (Welsh Omelette).

As with Welsh omelettes or Crempog, there are two traditional serving methods; either one large pancake was prepared, spread with butter and served hot, cut into slices, or, a number of smaller pancakes were made, spread with butter, piled one on top of the other and served cut into wedges.

Sift the flour, salt and nutmeg together into a bowl, then stir in the egg yolks. Add the milk and beat until smooth. Whisk the egg whites until they stand up in soft peaks and fold into the mixture, with the parsley. Melt a little butter in a thick frying pan and fry spoonfuls of the mixture in the same way as pancakes. Keep warm, then spread with butter, pile one on top of another and serve, cut into wedges, either alone or with Mother's Supper.

For Welsh Pancakes, butter is rubbed into the flour, bicarbonate of soda and cream of tartar and formed into batter with an egg and milk or buttermilk, a little sugar and a few drops of vinegar. The pancakes are then fried and served as above.

Metric Conversion Tables.