Ever seen those cakes that are whipped meringue domes, or peaks, coated with a thin, crisp layer of chocolate? Sometimes with a biscuit base, sometimes not? In Swedish, if they have a biscuit bottom, they are called ‘mums-mums’. Without the biscuit bottoms they can be called ‘chokladbollar’.
If you’re Swedish, I am about to blow your mind! Those little chocolate domes are, in Scotland, called tea cakes!
In Sweden, a tea cake is something quite different. It is a kind of sweetened bread bun made with wheat and milk. It is often used to make ham or cheese sandwiches.
But the disagreement on what a tea cake doesn’t end there. In England, a tea cake is also something else. Although there are regional differences, it is generally a soft yeast-based bun, filled with dried fruits, such as sultanas, and eaten toasted with melted butter.
In USA, a tea cake is, yet again, something else. It is a large, hard cookie made from wheat and sugar. In Russia, it is also a cookie – but containing nuts.
In Ireland, a tea cake is a fluffy butter cake, as it in Australia – although there it is often flavoured with, eg, cinnamon, and apple.
Who knew that the humble tea cake could present so much diversity? One thing they have in common though, is that they are traditionally enjoyed as a sweet accompaniment to a cup of tea. Apart from the Swedish one that is- which is sandwich bread to probably enjoy with a cup of coffee.
Watching the Swedes 