The most traditional flavor is served plain with raisins baked inside, but many bakeries offer a variety of flavors such as lemon raspberry, nutella, walnut, etc. While you can pick up a pack of welsh cakes at any local grocery or convenience store, they are best served warm, fresh from the bakery stovetop. The Cardiff Market, a 15 minute walk from my flat, prepares their welsh cakes with clotted cream and jam smothered inside, which is my favorite way to enjoy them.
Trying welsh cakes was a long awaited for moment. It was the first welsh food I tried and the Cardiff Market was one of the first places I visited when I landed in Wales. I remember the moment well. I was excited, nervous, it being one of the first times I travelled somewhere truly alone in a new country. I ordered three types of welsh cakes: traditional, lemon raspberry, and blueberry. I took my goodie bag to the park nearby, the white paper bag slicked with lard, it felt warm in the palm of my hand. It crumbled between my fingers and melted in my mouth, washed down with a cup of English tea. I felt delighted by my new treat and all its deliciousness, and was reassured that my time in Wales would be nothing short of marvelous.
Welsh cakes require very few ingredients, such as flour, sugar, spices, lard, and the optional raisin or currant. While there are many different recipes, such as substituting brown sugar for castor sugar or butter for lard, there are few substitutes for mace. An ancient spice, mace is less popular today than it used to be and it isn't easily available.
