Stotty

Ingredients 1 1/2 lbs strong white bread flour (680g) 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon sugar 1/2 ounce (15g) fresh yeast (quick action dried yeast can be used, 1 x 7g sachet) White pepper, about 1/4 of a teaspoon 3/4 pint (450mls) tepid water

Note

My Grandmother's recipe for authentic "Stotty Cakes"; my grandmother's recipe remained a secret for many years after her death, and then one day my mum found an old hand-written recipe in the back of a Be-Ro cookbook, where she had written down the principals of how to make a Stotty, and so the secret family recipe was released!

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Butter or grease some large baking sheets.

If using fresh yeast crumble it into a jug and then add the white pepper, sugar and a little tepid water to mix. Place somewhere warm for 10 to 15 minutes so it can start to "work" it is ready to use when it becomes frothy.

Put the bread flour and salt into a large mixing bowl and make a well in the centre, pour in the yeast mixture and the remaining water. If using dried yeast, just sprinkle the yeast in to the flour at this stage, with the sugar and white pepper and add the water as before.

Mix and then knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. (The word stotty is believed to be derived from the local word of "stotting" which means to bounce, and I remember my grandmother "bouncing" her bread on the kitchen table for ages! So, don't be shy when kneading.) This bread needs to be well kneaded for at least ten minutes.

Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and set to one side, somewhere warm, to allow the dough to rise. This will take about an hour, and the dough should have doubled in size before you can use it.

Put the dough onto a floured board and divide it into two equal pieces; roll the dough out to make two large flat discs, about 1" (2/5cm) thick and then stick the end of a rolling pin in the middle of the dough to make an indentation. You can also prick the top of the bread with a fork too.

Place the Stotty Cakes onto the prepared baking sheets and bake in the pre-heated oven for 15 minutes, before turning the oven off and leaving them in there for up to half an hour to continue to bake.

Serve warm with butter, jam, treacle, honey or cheese, ham and Pease pudding.