Lancashire Parkin

Andi Healey
Web Manager

Serves
16

Prep time
20 mins

Cooking time
45 mins

Dark as a moonless night, sticky as a witch's brew, and guaranteed to disappear before the fireworks start.

Lancashire Parkin is a proper Northern classic: oatmeal gingerbread made with black treacle and golden syrup, baked low and slow until deeply spiced and wonderfully chewy. The secret is patience. Wrap it up, hide it in a tin for a few days, and it turns darker, stickier and more delicious. Make it now and it will be ready for Halloween, and still going strong for Bonfire Night.

Ingredients

125 grams unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
125 grams black treacle
125 grams golden syrup
75 grams dark muscovado sugar
175 grams medium oatmeal
175 grams plain flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoons mixed spice
1 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
0.3 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 medium egg, beaten
100 milliliters whole milk

Method

Melt the sticky base: Put the butter, black treacle, golden syrup and dark muscovado sugar in a medium saucepan over a low heat. Stir gently until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Do not let it boil. Take off the heat and leave to cool for 5 minutes.
Mix the dry ingredients: In a large bowl, stir together the oatmeal, plain flour, ground ginger, mixed spice, bicarbonate of soda and salt, making sure the bicarbonate is well distributed with no lumps.
Bring it together: Pour the melted mixture into the dry ingredients and stir well. Whisk the egg and milk together, then beat into the batter until smooth. It will be quite loose and pourable, which is exactly right.
Bake low and slow: Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 45 to 45 minutes, until the parkin is firm to the touch, slightly risen and a skewer comes out with just a few moist crumbs. It should still feel soft in the centre and will firm up as it cools.
Cool and mature: Leave the parkin to cool completely in the tin, then lift out using the parchment. Cut into 16 squares. For the best sticky texture, wrap the whole slab in fresh parchment and store in an airtight tin for 3 days before eating.

Cook's notes

Make ahead: parkin is meant to be made in advance. Stored in an airtight tin, it keeps for up to 2 weeks and becomes darker, stickier and more flavourful over the first few days.

Serving: delicious with a hot cup of tea, or warmed and served with custard, clotted cream or vanilla ice cream.

Treacle tip: warm the tin of treacle and golden syrup in a bowl of hot water, or wipe your spoon with a little oil, to make them easier to measure.

Gluten-free: use gluten-free plain flour and certified gluten-free oatmeal.