Scottish Oat Cakes
From Nick Nairn’s Island Harvests
These oat cakes are traditionally
cooked on a griddle over an open fire,
but you can get a great result by baking
them in the oven, too. They can be made
well in advance, cooled and stored in
an airtight container. A nice bit of
cheese is all you really need to enjoy
them, but use your imagination and the
sky is the limit — as the following
recipe demonstrates. The lovely, soft,
creamy texture of goat’s cheese is the
perfect foil for the sharp sweetness
of cherry tomatoes and basil.
Serves 4
3 cups oatmeal, plus extra for dusting
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon bacon fat, lard or butter
2/3 cup water
2 tablespoons butter, melted
6 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
14 cherry tomatoes, halved
1-2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
to taste
8 sprigs of fresh basil
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Put the oatmeal, baking soda and salt
into a bowl and mix well. Place the
fat, lard or butter and water into a
small pan and heat until the fat has
melted. Make a well in the center of
the oatmeal, add the liquid and mix
together with a palette knife. The mixture
will initially seem a bit wet but the
oatmeal will gradually absorb all the
liquid to give you a soft dough.
Divide the mixture into 2 and roll
each piece out on a work surface lightly
dusted with oatmeal to a 6 inch circle
about 1/4 inch thick. Don’t worry if the
edges aren’t very neat — they look better
that way. Cut into quarters (farls,
as they say in Scotland), brush off
the excess oatmeal and place on an ungreased
baking sheet. Bake for about 20 minutes,
turning the oat cakes every 5 minutes
or so to stop them from steaming and
going stodgy, until crisp and lightly
golden. Leave to cool on a wire rack.
To serve, brush the oat cakes with
some melted butter and place 2 pieces
on each serving plate. Pile the goat
cheese and cherry tomatoes on top,
drizzle with a little olive oil and
then sprinkle with a little salt and
pepper. Garnish with the sprig of fresh
basil.
Cookbook available in
May 2000.
Call 1-800-267-5277 for more information.
