Make it a fire-cracking Bonfire night with our parkin recipe
As we gear up for a Bonfire Night, it’s time to remember,
remember a traditional Yorkshire recipe: parkin! While the exact origins of its
link to Bonfire Night are unclear, for centuries this delicious sticky ginger
cake has been enjoyed at the start of November. It’s thought to have come from
the pagan tradition of eating special cakes to celebrate the first day of
winter. Indeed, this cake’s history is very much rooted in the north of England,
with one of its principal ingredients, black treacle, first arriving through
the ports of Lancashire from the West Indies in the 17th century. Original
recipes of parkin were much plainer and didn’t include eggs. Oats, first used
as an affordable alternative to wheat, are still a staple ingredient of parkin
to this day.
Parkin actually gets better with age! As the treacle absorbs
into the sponge, the longer you leave it, the moister it becomes, so it’s a
good idea to leave it in an airtight tin for hours – or even overnight – before
you tuck into this seasonal treat. In years gone by, people in fact left parkin
for up to two weeks to allow it to become stickier. In Germany, traditional holiday
gingerbreads, Lebkuchen and Pfefferkuchen, were left for even
longer: baked hard in summer, they were moistened in time for consumption at
Christmas. Talk about commitment!
Now you know a little more about the history of parkin,
let’s dive into this comfort recipe.
Ingredients
110g soft butter
110g soft dark brown sugar
55g black treacle
200g golden syrup
225g medium oatmeal
110g self-raising flour
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground mixed spice
2 medium eggs, beaten
1 tbsp milk
Pinch of salt
Method
1) Preheat the oven to 140C/120C fan/Gas Mark 1.
Grease and line a 20cm x 20cm square cake tin.
2) In a pan, over a gentle heat, melt the butter,
sugar, treacle and golden syrup. Don't allow the mixture to get too hot or
bubble. When they have melted together remove from the heat and allow to cool
slightly.
3) In a large mixing bowl sift in the dry ingredients
and make a well in the centre. Gradually add the melted butter mixture and fold
together. Pour in the beaten eggs and milk and combine.
4) Pour into your baking tin. Bake for approximately
1.5 hours.
5) Remove from the oven and leave in the tin for 20
minutes. Tip onto a cake rack and leave to cool completely.
6) Store the parkin in a cake tin and wrap in
greaseproof paper. For the best results, leave in the tin for a minimum of 1
day and up to a week before you cut it.
