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"Parkin" Ginger Cake
Eliza
Parkin is an oats & treacle gingerbread cake from northern England, traditionally served on Guy Fawkes Night. Eliza made this version based on a recipe in The Joy of Cooking. She says, "This is my kind of cake, very moist and not too sweet. I have made it gluten free using buckwheat flour, but prefer the whole wheat. Enjoy!"
Grease an 8 x 8 pan. Set oven to 350 F.
Melt in a glass measuring cup:
120 ml1/2 cup margarine (or 1/4 each margarine and oil, or half unsweetened applesauce and half oil, or all oil)
add to measuring cup:
59 ml1/4 cup molasses
59 ml1/4 cup maple syrup (or use all molasses)
In a bowl mix:
160 ml2/3 cup rolled oats
240 ml1 cup whole wheat flour
(2 T. flax meal)
2 ml1/2 tsp ginger
1 ml1/4 tsp cloves
2 ml1/2 tsp. salt
2 ml1/2 tsp. soda
(1 tsp. lemon rind)
Add alternately with oil/molasses mixture:
160 ml2/3 c. soy or almond milk.
Stir in:
one chopped apple, and/or raisins and/or nuts to taste (c. 1/4 cup each)
Pour into prepared pan and bake 35-40 minutes.
Comments
Eve's variation
I looked up "treacle" and learned it is a British term for molasses. My husband dislikes molasses so my version is far from traditional. Also, I am trying to minimize both oil and sugar so I cut both in half, using applesauce as a replacement (1/2 c. applesauce, 1/4 c. oil, 1/4 c. maple syrup). I added a handful of raisins for sweetness and used Bob's Red Mill GF All-purpose Flour since that's what I had on hand. It was delicious! If you use molasses, your cake will be darker than shown.