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Yorkshire fat rascals

Rich fruited scone-cakes with a cherry and almond face

Fat rascals are big, rough, fruit-studded cakes from the North York Moors, halfway between a scone and a rock cake, and the famous Harrogate tea rooms made them a visitor's treat. Each one gets a face of glacé cherries and blanched almonds before baking. Eat them warm, split and buttered, with a pot of tea. Chef's tip: work the dough as little as possible, just until it holds; overmixed rascals bake up tough.
Total time
40 min
Difficulty
easy
Serves
8
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Ingredients

Serves8

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What you'll need

Fresh ingredients (6)

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Method

0/6 done
  1. Step 1: Heat the oven to 400°F (350°F fan) and line a baking tray.

    2 min
  2. Step 2: Rub the 5 ½ oz cold butter into the 12 ½ oz self-raising flour and 1 tsp baking powder until it looks like breadcrumbs. Stir in the 3 ½ oz caster sugar, 1 orange zest, 1 lemon zest, ½ tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp grated nutmeg and 5 ½ oz mixed currants, raisins and peel.

    6 min
  3. Step 3: Beat the 1 egg with the ½ cup single cream and stir in with a knife until the dough just comes together.

    2 min
  4. Step 4: Divide into 8 rough balls, set them on the tray and flatten slightly to 2 cm. Brush with 1 egg yolk.

    5 min
  5. Step 5: Press two 8 glacé cherries halves in for eyes and three 24 blanched almonds for teeth on each.

    3 min
  6. Step 6: Bake for 18–20 minutes, until golden brown and firm underneath. A common mistake is pulling them pale, which leaves the centre doughy. Eat warm.

    20 min

Nutrition per serving

Calories
330 kcal
Protein
5 g
Carbs
45 g
Fat
15 g
Fibre
2 g

Nutrition values are estimates.

K
Recipe by

KrazyBadal

All recipes by this chef →

Good to know

How long does yorkshire fat rascals take?
About 40 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
How many people does it serve?
8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
Is it vegetarian?
Yes. It has no meat or fish.
What can I use instead of self-raising flour?
Plain flour + 2 tsp baking powder per 150g (1 cup).
What can I use instead of baking powder?
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda + ½ tsp cream of tartar per 1 tsp.

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Perfect for:Tea-time