It seems appropriately cold to be thinking about warming autumnal flavours and for me, that's ginger, mixed spice and treacle. I particularly love the traditional northern cake known as Parkin. I have made a couple of other versions in previous years - click to find my traditional parkin recipe and a recipe I used from Dan Lepard. Both of these are delicious, but as ever, tastes change and my fickle taste buds wanted something new and different. This year I was browsing a little magazine which I think came as part of Waitrose Kitchen - Waitrose's own cookery magazine. This was a little booklet focusing on autumn flavours and contained a recipe for a fruity parkin. I had never really thought to add fruit to a parkin before but then thought 'why not!'.
The recipe didn't quite appeal in the form it was in, so this is more of an 'inspired by' rather than an adaptation - I've changed quite a few bits of it! I can't see it on their website at the moment, but I have changed it quite considerably so give my version below.
Apple and Pear Parkin
Ingredients
65g butter
165g self raising flour
1 heaped tsp ground ginger
scant tsp bicarbonate of soda
65g medium oatmeal
1 small conference pear
1 small apple (I used an Egremont Russet)
100g black treacle
100g golden syrup
3 pieces stem ginger in syrup, chopped
75ml milk
Method
- Preheat the oven to 170C/Gas 3. Grease and line an 8"/20cm square tin.
- Mix together the flour, ginger, oatmeal and bicarbonate of soda in a bowl.
- Heat the butter, treacle, golden syrup and chopped ginger together in a pan until the butter has melted but the mixture isn't boiling.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the milk.
- Add to the flour mixture. I added a little at a time - this allows you to stir it in gradually and prevents lumps and pockets of flour forming.
- Pour into the prepared tin. Slice the apple and pear finely and lay on the top of the mixture, scattering in a random-ish fashion (I placed mine to get a good mixture of the different fruits across the top).
- Bake for about 45 minutes until the centre feels firm to the touch (I can't remember quite how long mine took).
- Serve warm as a dessert with icecream or creme fraiche or cold as a cake.
Normally, parkin benefits from having a few days for the treacle and golden syrup to draw in moisture and make the top sticky and moist - this is certainly the case for my traditional parkin recipe - it just carries on getting better and better. Here, however, the fruit on the top of the parkin means that it needs to be eaten the same day or the next day. You'll be relieved to find (as was I) that the top of the parkin is already delectably sticky and moist after only a day of waiting. In fact, I would venture to say that it is stickier and moister than either of my previous parkins. Just delicious. And this means that if you want to bake a quick batch of this for Bonfire Night this year, there's still ample time to do so!
This is fabulous - sticky, moist and full of gingery flavour. I would possibly add more ground ginger next time, and more chopped ginger, because really, can there ever be such a thing as too-much-ginger. I don't think so! I loved the ginger in the cake and the sticky top but to be honest the fruit didn't really add anything other than aesthetics (which is important, but not as important as flavour) and a good, chewy textural contrast but I think I'd leave them off next time so that the keeping qualities are improved (and I can keep more of it for myself rather than giving it away - selfish ulterior motive ;-)). Definitely a make again.
Since both apples and pears are in season right now and this makes good use of them, and as the season in a broader sense is calling to me for ginger and spice, I am submitting these to Ren at Fabulicious Food for her Simple and in Season linky, hosted this monthhttp://www.renbehan.com/2012/11/simple-and-in-season-november.html by Ren herself.
I am also submitting them to Bookmarked Recipes hosted by Jac of Tinned Tomatoes, as I first saw these when I was in the depths of revision and even though I knew I didn't have time to make them straightaway I knew without a doubt that they would be on my plate this season and recommend you add them to yours too.
14 comments:
This really does look fabulous!
Foodycat - it really, really was!
i tried Parkin cake for the first time. i had never heard of it before tonight. it was so delicious. i'm really pleased to have come across your recipe. B
I love the sound of this..the ingredients definitely make a great treat.
This looks delicious! I do like the idea of fresh fruit on top, but as you say, it doesn't help the keeping qualities.
The temperature has certainly dipped in the last week, this is a perfect bake for it. I too have never thought of adding fruit to Parkin, this looks so comforting and warming.
Looks delicious. I've yet to try making a parkin, but its certainly the right sort of wheather for it! Lovely combo of apple, pair and ginger.
What a great idea to add some lovely seasonal fruit to the Parkin- an absolute classic which I too always associate with these colder days, darker evenings and of course Bonfire Night.
I totally agree - much as I love summer baking with fresh fruit, nothing beats the flavours of Autumn and Winter for me!
A fruity parkin, what a stroke of genius. I love those clever little recipe books with magazines and I always forget about Jac's Bookmarked Recipes but this was a perfect one! Thank you for linking to Simple and in Season, too - it's perfect x
I haven't heard of a parkin before, but going on that it's gingery, fruity, and golden syrupy...I suspect a clear winner here C!
I thought the fruit on top sounded great though the idea of having to eat it quickly is less appealing as cakes usually sit around for a few days here. But love parkin and it is perfect for your season
Becca - glad you like parkin and glad you've found my blog :-)
Brittany - it's a lovely combination of flavours.
Suelle - Thank you. Yes, next time I'll miss off the fruit so it keeps better. It was deliciously sticky anyway though.
Chele - comforting and warming is just the right description.
Katie - yes, apple, pear and ginger are a good combo.
Kate - yes, a bonfire night classic, certainly when I was little.
CC - Autumn and winter baking is so much fun!
Ren - thank you. I do like the little recipe booklets you get with magazines - a source of many a good recipe!
Brydie - I bet you'd all love it!
Johanna - glad to hear there is another parkin fan out there :-)
Oh my goodness this looks amazing. This is my kind of cake. Pass me a spoon!
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