Time for some St. David Day Cookies!

Tomorrow, March 1, is St. David's Day - the feast day of the patron saint of Wales. If I was lucky enough to be in Cardiff, I might go to a parade, take in cultural exhibits, attend a concert and wear a daffodil. However, I am lucky enough to be in New Jersey close by my friend Alice so we can resurrect a tradition and make St. David Day cookies together. They are curious looking discs aren't they?

I never knew anything about St. David prior to teaching at South Plainfield High School in the 1990s when I was hired to replace two Welsh gentlemen upon their retirement. It was their tradition to bring in dozens and dozens of St. David Day cookies on March 1 for the faculty to enjoy. Little did I know until I signed my contract that Alice had conscripted me to help make these cookies. But, hey, I passed home economics and can bake a batch of cookies - right?

St. David Day cookies are not baked, they are cooked on a griddle like a pancake. So, they aren't really a cookie - but a biscuit of sorts. And no matter how hard I've researched to discover all sorts of facts about St. David, the 6th Century Celtic monk who helped evangelize Wales, I've never found a recipe for his cookie. But I have discovered this recipe is a traditional Welsh biscuit/cookie. They are not the most attractive looking cookie, but I must warn you, these cookies are addictive. Seriously. Teachers would literally fill up their pockets with cookies before leaving the faculty room to have them between class periods. Since leaving SPHS eleven years ago, I found that members of church staffs I've worked with have the same penchant for gobbling up the discs as well.
Alice and I have not made the cookies together since we last taught together in 1996, so it was fun today to spend an afternoon together doing something we haven't done in years AND have a great desert when it was all over! They go great with a cup of tea, a glass of milk, or even a bowl of tapioca pudding. Yum. If you are feeling adventurous, I've included the recipe below - I am sure they are just as good on other days of the year - not just March 1! Enjoy!

St. David Day Cookies
(March 1)

1/2 C butter
1 C shortening
2 C sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cinnamon
3 eggs
6 C flour
6 tsp. baking soda
1/2 C milk
1 C golden raisins

Sift together dry ingredients. Mix butter, shortening, and sugar. Add eggs till creamy. Stir in flour mixture. Add in milk and raisins - you may want to mix with your hands at a certain point.

Roll out onto floured board and cut out with round cookie cutter. Bake on griddle (400 degrees on electric griddle) and turn as you would a pancake when it 'puffs' up a bit. Makes about 6 dozen cookies.

I suppose you could cut the recipe in half, but I never have seen the need to bother.