Scottish Oat Cakes, like Walkers Highland Oat Cakes {gluten-free & vegan options}

It’s been a relaxed, blissful weekend down here in Texas. After spending last weekend on the road, it felt especially satisfying to just “be” this weekend: sleeping in (that’s about 7:15, when Nick pops out of his bed and into ours), an extra pot of coffee, a sunny soccer game, and making a mud castle (made possible by the torrential Saturday night thunder storm) in the back yard.

The coffee wore off by mid-afternoon today, but Nick was still going strong; to keep up, I made a pot of tea and a batch of oat cakes.

If you are familiar with Walker’s Highland Oat Cakes, than these are virtually identical, which thrills me–as I know it will my sister, mother, and father–because we all four love our afternoon tea accompanied by a plate of jam-slathered oat cakes. Moreover, Walker’s oat cakes are hard to find in stores–so cravings must be coordinated with mail-order shipments.

The dough is simple: oats, which you coarsely grind in a food processor, honey, melted butter, leavening and some hot water. You probably have all of the ingredients in your pantry right now. The dough is very easy to work with, too. I like to place of piece of plastic wrap (wax paper works well, too) on top of the dough before rolling;  it makes it very easy to roll the dough to an even thickness without it tearing. Once rolled, carefully lift the plastic wrap away from the dough to avoid tearing.

I used a 2.5-inch biscuit cutter to cut out the circles, but not a worry if you do not have one. Look around your kitchen for anything with a similar-size round shape, such as upturned wine glasses. An emptied 15-ounce can is just the right size, too.

If you have never tried traditional oat cakes, a mild caution: oat cakes are not sweet like cookies, nor crisp like crackers. So what are they, and why on earth would you want to eat them? The answer is that they are the perfect vehicles for jams, honeys, cheeses, butter, Nutella, or any other schmear that comes to mind. Two topped “cakes,’ especially in the company of two cups of tea, is just what every weary and/or famished soul needs to power through the afternoon. Sold? I hope so. Enjoy the last few hours of the weekend!

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Yield: About 2 dozen

Scottish Oat Cakes (like Walkers Highland Oatcakes)

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Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 28 minutes

Total Time 38 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 cups rolled oats (certified gluten-free as needed)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted (or virgin coconut oil for vegan option)
• 2 tablespoons honey (use maple syrup or brown rice syrup for vegan option)
• 1/2 cup hot (not boiling) water, divided
• oat flour for rolling (simply grind more oats)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper
2. In a food processor, process the oats until coarsely ground. Transfer to a large bowl; stir in the baking powder, and salt.
3. Stir the melted butter and honey into oat mixture. Stir with a wooden spoon until just blended. Stir in half of the hot water; add more hot water as needed to form a cohesive dough.
4. Turn dough out onto a floured surface and roll out into a 1/4-inch-thickness.
5. Using a 2-1/2 inch round cookie cutter, cut dough into circles, then transfer to prepared baking sheet. Repeat process with dough scraps.
6. Bake in preheated oven for 23 to 28 minutes until golden and set at edges. Let cool on sheet on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then transfer to the rack. Serve warm or let cool completely.

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