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Perhaps it’s the symptom of the rocking thirties but I’m a sucker for nostalgia and I find myself constantly tripping down memory lane. Everything daggy is suddenly cool again and things considered old-fashioned is all shiny and new. Don’t believe me? Look what I just added to my music catalogue; Streisand. And (I can’t believe I’m admitting this) John Denver. All those years of slagging off my parents for blaring out Denver has come back to bite me in my mature ass. Kids, take note, you might cringe at your parents’ music tastes now but wait till you enter the 30s because ya’ll going to be listening to it and loving it. Oh yes, the horror!
Speaking of old-fashioned, remember rock cakes? Otherwise known as rock buns (hold the jokes), they’re like a thick cookie with a slightly cakey texture but oh baby they were all the rage during my primary school years in Perth in the 80s and early-90s and I loved them to bits. I’m not sure why I suddenly remembered them or had the urge to gorge on them again but I seriously couldn’t get home and into the kitchen fast enough.
The recipe for what I use to have back in the day came from a 70′s Good Housekeeping bible and it tasted awesome but it was a little plain and dry. I tweaked the original recipe by using less flour and adding baking powder to make them less, well, rock-ish. I also added lemon zest and choc chips, because I can and because I really needed it after the day I had.
These baked with a slightly golden crisp on the outside and chewy cakey innards, which is how I love them. They’re so daggy and wholesome (much like Mr Denver bless him) but these babies with a glass of milk, just oozed homely comfort and nostalgia. Definitely made my afternoon.
Choc Chip and Lemon Rock Cakes
(Also known as Rock Buns. Makes approx 21)
Ingredients
230g self-raising flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
80g light brown sugar
20g caster sugar
115g cold unsalted butter, chopped
Zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
100g raisins or sultanas
100g dark choc chips
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Method
Preheat oven to 180°C and line a large baking sheet with baking paper.
In a food processor, dump in the flour, baking powder, salt, sugars and chopped butter. Pulse until the mixtures looks roughly like breadcrumbs.
Tip out this mixture into a large mixing bowl and stir through the lemon zest, raisins and choc chips until combined.
Add the lightly beaten eggs and vanilla extract and mix with a wooden spoon until it just comes together into a sticky dough. Do not overwork the mixture.
Roughly roll out small golf ball sized mounds and place them on your baking sheet, about 5cm apart to allow room for spreading (no need to be perfectly neat about it, just grab, gently pat into a ball and done!).
Bake for around 15 minutes or until the rock cakes are lightly golden. Cool on wire rack.
Adapted from a recipe from Good Housekeeping.
{ 28 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh yes please. These sound delicious…cake like cookies with all that delicious chocolate and lemon?! We’re absolutely giving these a go…
Awesome stuff! Hope you enjoy them! My first batch went so fast :(
Wow – I haven’t had a rock cake in years!! It might have been the first thing I ever felt like I baked (with a little help from my Irish Aunties of course!)
Maggie@BritishBaking recently posted..Mushroom Paté with Red Asparagus
Hi Maggie, awww I love how retro recipes stirs up the memories! Rock cakes were also one of my solo adventures when I was brave enough to be in the kitchen by myself :D
Love your background story–completely agree with the parents’ music comment! These cookies look delicious. :)
Caroline recently posted..just for mom strawberry & blueberry-topped lime mousse tart
Hi Caroline, hehe care to spill the beans on what you’re now listening to from your parents’ era? :)
oh man i really love that pic of your food processor with the chunks of butter… oh but your rock cakes look equally delicious!
chocolatesuze recently posted..Ragu Pasta & Wine Bar- Westfield Sydney 7
mmmmm butter….
Yay rock cakes! There’s something so retro about them, I like how you adapted them to make them less dry! ROFL I totally dropped my lemon into the bowl I was zesting into last night.
Steph recently posted..Raspberry Creme Brulee
Lol mine fell with a resounding thud before I sheepishly dusted off all the flour off the lemon. Oops! Yay for retro!
The rock cakes I remember were dangerous used as ammunition. Hence, I’ve never been a fan… but I like the sounds of your adjustments
Hahahaha I agree Tina! Stone weaponry aren’t very tasty so it’s amazing how a couple of tweaks can transform an ancient recipe :)
you know i’m a lover of everything you bake … seriously, no jokes.
this one, oh my gawd. i’m deeper in love. thank you.
Laura recently posted..Freshen
Nawww *blush* thanks so much Loz!
Personally I’d be a little more embarrassed about listening to Streisand than John Denver. I mean, who doesn’t love a country boy? Awesome photos btw
Lol, gotta love Denver but dude, don’t knock the Babs! (Memoreeeeesss…)
I love your tags! LOL..Funny :) Rockcakes – my dad’s favourite! There was a time (ahem yes..in the 80′s & early 90′s) a trip to the local bread shop in KL would see dad getting 6-8 rockcakes just for himself..those were his breakkie and office snacks..ahhhh..nostalgia..Hey I fished out my parent’s ‘BREAD’ cassette..kekekek
Hi Mei, lol I was in an odd mood :P Hehe I remember how local bakeries use to sell rock cakes in Perth but I never thought they were sold in KL. That’s brilliant! And rofl, guess what? I found one of my mother’s old Chinese music cassettes :P
delicious delicious delicious! look at that butter! oh and the chocolate chips! I love how sinful things make the best things – cookies + cake!
Hi Jas, I simply can’t imagine a world without cakes and cookie. Oh the humanity! :(
Oh man! My mouth is watering for those babies. Only one thing, did the rock cakes of your youth used to be covered in a thick layer of crystalised sugar, so that your teeth would break through that crunchy layer into the soft, scone-y/cake-y inner yumminess?
Oh, I need rock cakes STAT!
(ps agree with you wholeheartedly on the music from your parents thing. Elton John anyone?)
First time visitor. Great post!
Oh yes I remember! Some of the rock cakes I had were liberally sprinkled with raw sugar before baking. Oh YUM! Definitely doing that next time! Hehe thanks for the reminder :D
Nothing beats old skool classics! Cake-like cookies sounds fantastic to me! Sharing is caring Karen! :)
Love a good rock cake and I love the flavour combo in these babies. Looks like I may be taking your formula for my own variations!
Oh, I need rock cakes STAT! First time visitor. Oh yes I remember!
Yesenia Wilkinson recently posted..Cancer Tips
The taste of the rock cake turn out quite nice although I used carnberry instead of raisins and chocolate
However the texture turn out to be more cake like and not crispy unlike traditional rock cake.
So is this suppose to be cake like for this recipes. Can anyone advise ?
Hi Al, here in Australia, rock cakes are more dense and cake-like than crispy. Almost like a cakey scone rather than biscuit. It’s the rock cake that I remember from my childhood :)
You already got me at the title:). This is the first time I’ve ever heard of rock cookies and can’t wait to try em! I totally agree with the music part tell me about it…right now carpenters is on my list! lol:)
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