Cutting Recipes from magazines

I've been cutting recipes out of magazines for a very long time and this is the very first. The recipe probably comes from either Woman or Woman's Own Magazine, I'm fairly sure that is who Mary Meridith wrote for and those were the magazines that my mum bought every week. It had been stuck into some kind of book, yes I have been making scrapbooks of a kind since I was a child, but although I must have decided to get rid of the rest of the book, I kept the recipe for the Raspberry Buns because I used to make them for my Dad, they were his favourite.

I was going to make some to show you, then I got on the scales and realised that if I made them I would probably eat some and I had better not! Then I tried to find an image of a Raspberry Bun to show you what they should look like but any that were even close were copyright. So I guess you will just have to make them yourself if you want to see what they are like. The recipe is in 'old money' I'm afraid and a little archaic in the way it is written, although we are probably talking 1972 ish.

Raspberry Buns
Makes 10

8oz self-raising flour
pinch of salt
3oz margarine
3oz caster sugar
1 egg
1 to 2 tablespoonfuls of milk
Raspberry jam
a little milk and caster sugar for the glaze
a little cooking oil or melted fat
2 baking trays

Brush the baking trays with a little oil of melted fat. Light the oven at Gas mark 6 or 400 degrees (that would be Fahrenheit, so 200C), to be ready for the buns.

Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add margarine and cut it into small pieces with a knife. Lift up the flour and margarine in your fingers and rub it as it falls back into the bowl; lifting it above the bowl keeps the mixture cool. When the mixture is of an even texture and all the little pieces of margarine have disappeared, stir in the caster sugar.

Beat the egg in a small bowl. Add it to the mixture with just enough milk to make a stiff dough; this may only be a tablespoonful and it depends on the size of the egg.

Divide the mixture into 10 even sized pieces and , with your hands lightly floured, roll each one into a little ball. Put the buns on to a greased baking tray with rough space between to allow them to spread. With your fingers, form a hollow in the centre of each bun to hold the jam.

Put a small spoonful of jam into the hollowed centre of each bun. Pinch the mixture together over the ham, so that the jam is hidden. Brush the tops of the buns with a little milk and sprinkle them with caster sugar.

Cook the buns just above the centre of the fairly hot oven, about Gas mark 6 or 400 degrees, for about 15 minutes, until they are risen and nicely browned. The jam should burst through the surface. Using a palette knife, slip the buns on to a wire tray to cool. When they are cold the jam will shrunk slightly, so fill them.

You can pretty well date this recipe by what I found on the back...anyone remember David Cassidy? - didn't he look gorgeous.