A teatime treat

This nineteenth-century recipe for shortcake biscuits translates well to the modern kitchen.

Rub together the flour and butter, sweeten with soft brown sugar and add currants for flavour. Combine with a beaten egg and milk and then bake in the oven for a simple but tasty teatime treat!

Nineteenth-century recipe for short cakes, from The Cookbook of Unknown Ladies

Short Cakes

Rub in with the hand one pound of butter into two pounds of sifted flour. Put one pound of currants, one pound of moist sugar and one egg. Mix all together with half a pint of milk, roll it out thin and cut into round cakes. Lay them on a clean baking plate and put them in a middling hot oven for about five minutes.