Jam Rock Buns are my favourite version of rock buns. I can remember making them with my mother as a child and the very sticky face and fingers that resulted from their consumption – I really like to call them Jammie Rock Buns! They need plenty of jam, preferably homemade, but a good quality commercially produced jam will be fine.
These Jam Rock Buns are part of my Rock Buns Recipe series, which includes seven varieties plus the traditional Rock Buns Recipe. I decided to create this series of recipes after experimenting with a number of variations based on the original recipe – see all of my rock buns recipes below:
Jam Rock Buns
8
servings20
minutes20
minutesIngredients
8 ounces / 225 grams / 1 cup self-raising flour
4 ounces / 110 grams / ½ caster sugar
4 ounces / 110 grams / ½ cup butter
1 large egg
1-2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Jam of your choice
Directions
- Pre-heat the oven to 200°C / 180°C Fan / 390°F / Gas Mark 6.
- Line a baking tray with baking parchment or lightly grease with a little butter.
- Sieve the flour into a mixing bowl and stir in the sugar.
- Add the butter cut into small pieces and rub in the flour/sugar mixture until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Beat the egg with 1 tablespoon of milk and stir in the vanilla extract.
- Add to the dry ingredients and mix to a stiff dough, adding a little more milk if necessary.
- Place little rock like heaps of the mixture onto the prepared baking tray. You should have around 8. Leave room between them as they will spread.
- Hollow out a depression in the centre of each heap. I use a wet teaspoon to do this. Instead of 8 rock like heaps you should now have 8 mini craters.
- Fill each crater with a teaspoon of jam.
- Bake in the pre-heated oven for approximately 20 minutes until well risen and golden brown.
- I like plenty of jam, so when they come out of the oven I top the jam up. This of course is a matter of taste.
- Remove carefully from the baking tray and cool on a wire rack.
Traditional Rock Buns
Traditionally, rock buns are flavoured with mixed spice and include dried fruit and candied peel. In recipes, the ratio of fat and sugar to flour usually ranges from one-third to one-half, but never exceeds that.
Older recipes often call for lard, or a combination of lard with butter or margarine. Personally, I find the best rock buns are made with butter, using the higher ratio of fat and sugar — one-half of the flour quantity.
Most recipes suggest using about the same weight of dried fruit as flour, but I like to be more generous, adding at least 6 ounces of fruit to a mixture based on 8 ounces of flour.
What type of flour and sugar should I use?
You can use either self-raising flour or plain flour with baking powder. I’ve tried both and noticed no real difference. The choice between white and brown sugar is also up to personal taste. I prefer caster sugar for my traditional Rock Buns Recipe, Coconut Cherry and Chocolate, Apricot & Almond, these Jam Rock Buns, and my Raspberry and Lemon recipe. For my Apple, Sultana and Cinnamon Rock Buns, Date & Walnut and Ginger Rock Buns I like to use a brown sugar.
Serving Jam Rock Buns
As with all of my rock buns these Jammie Rock Buns are nicest served warm from the oven, but should anyway be eaten on the day they are made. Any leftovers can be frozen. Defrost wrapped in foil in a hot oven.
Happy baking!
Tanya
