Which is the tastiest Protestant traybake?

[FiddleFaddleDingDong]

NI Protestants are famed for their tray bakes but which is the best traybake of all?

I’m thinking something crunchy and chocolatey, a tiffin like thing. But are there unchocolatey traybakes that I just haven’t been exposed to? Are they keeping all the best recipes to themselves, strictly to be eaten behind closed doors?

And does it get a bit competitive? Does Annie cast aspersions on Doris’ traybaking abilities?

Possibly the best thread title ever! I love a good Protestant traybake. Near where I grew up Ballygilbert Presbyterian church was a hotbed of traybake rivalry!

Loved Chinese Chews and Fifteens. And fake Bountys made with coconut, icing sugar, condensed milk and chocolate (or grim Scotbloc fake stuff).

we’ll do the cake bigotry on here if there’s any to be done, thanks very much.

My friend's teenage brother used to ply me with Shloer in the hope of a snog. We had simple tastes.

Tablet is too sweet and too hard, IMHO.

It's hard to believe you could get any sweeter than an NI traybake, but tablet is literally pure sugar.

I have to say I'm still having difficulty processing the concept of apple and mars bar between two slices of buttered white bread. I'm reading the words but my brain won't allow me to believe it's a real thing.

Fiddle the luxury version is Mars bar and apple between two slices of Veda.

My great aunt used to make us After Eight sandwiches, if you think apple and mars bar is weird!

I can confirm that apple and Mars bar sandwiches are still a staple in Protestant church halls.

Alongside the Presbyterian salad sandwiches, egg and onion sandwiches and ham sandwiches.

Omg the bakeries in England are shit!
Round here you could use the millionaire shortbread for fecking paving slabs. Nay class.

I actually don't like 15s at all. Yuk. Found this out surrounded by naice proddy NI family rellie ladies. Had to bloody eat it didn't it. Couldn't spit it into the bin

But why oh why are there called tray BAKES if they are not baked? Just to confuse ignorant English folk??

And yes DH is now called WEF ie wee English fellah

And guess who has a copy of the NI WI baking recipes book? Meeeeeee!

Amazingly it has a great gluten free section. But then it sugues (sp?) into proper diabetes and heart attack preparation recipes.

Many of the ingredients of course I cannot buy in 'the mainland'

It's cultural innit?! (I'm trying to assimilate you see )

Ok there really were paragraphs in my post. Honest. Many. Soz

And a wee fact for you- NI is the heart attack capital of Europe. Only rivalled by Glasgow.
So there is a dangerous undertone to too many delicious tray bakes sadly

Sorry, typo there (been in England too long clearly)

A wee fact for yous

Aye, but sure the Royal is meant to be one of the best hospitals in the world for treating heart attacks so we're all good!

But no, mars bar and apple sandwiches are on brown bread - healthy you see.

“Do you know what else N Ireland Protestants can't get enough of? Shloer”

Yes! Husband has told me all about the Christmas Schloer. All the children drank it and parents pretended to drink it to avoid the opprobrium of granny (“alcohol is the devil’s vomit”) while actually drinking wine.

@SparkiePolastri I was just thinking that lolly cake must have its origins in Fifteens, but with Eskimos instead of cherries! Amazing.

I'm Catholic (although my parents keep their toaster in a cupboard so now I'm confused) and married to a NZer who loves a good slice aka traybake, so I'm massively enjoying this thread.

We've just been over in NZ where I was mostly marvelling at their amazing cafes, as usual. Gooey lemon slice is the dogs, but I fear the base may involve actual baking...

Great thread, and now I have 8 tabs open all with traybake recipes...

@PierreBezukov I’m married to a Scot, so have had to get on board with the Tablet for the sake of family relations. I wouldn’t tell my dentist I ever eat it tho...

“alcohol is the devil’s vomit”

And also the divil’s buttermilk

proper diabetes and heart attack preparation recipes.

Maybe all the nice ladies bringing their traybakes to church halls were actually playing a very long game. Slowly killing off those they didn't like through the medium of condensed milk.

And a wee fact for you- NI is the heart attack capital of Europe

Unsurprising really. There’s a few very angry folk about the place

I was coming back to mention cheesecakes! I always got the left over pastry to make jam tarts with.
I'm going to need to take up baking 🤔

The best Protestant traybakes are to be found at our local meeting hall (they are deeply religious. The women don’t cut their hair and always wear skirts). They have a weekly mother and baby morning where all heathens (like myself) are welcome to gorge on traybakes. They force them down you! ‘No thanks’ is not a phrase that’s understood. They even do traybake requests!

Every summer they have a kids’ club (free childcare). I happily send my kids to be brainwashed because at the end of the week there’s a prize giving with a buffet table laden with traybakes. Lemon slices and jelly pieces are my absolute favs, accompanied by a cup of tea and a meaningful arm squeeze/nod.

Fiddle that's funny! Could well be

Does it specifically have to be NI Protestant or will Irish Protestant do?

And how many generations do you have to have pure Irish Protestant heritage?

I have an awesome tiffin recipe but I'm not sure it qualifies........

OK, I have to ask... What's the difference between a caramel square and millionaires shortbread?