In was eleven years old when I first read The Country Child by Alison Uttley ~ I chose it as my “book of the week” to read in primary school. I remember I was so captivated and enchanted by the book that I couldn’t put it down ~ it was a “torch under the bedclothes night” with me reading well after my mum thought I had gone to sleep.
I have subsequently met many other people who felt the same magic as I did on first reading it; the simple tale of a country child in late Victorian England and her day to day life on the family farm. It may not sound very interesting, but the prose and descriptions of a rural way of life that is sadly no more is hugely engaging and very poignant. The descriptions of the food they cook, the passing of the seasons and the year through feasts and festivals are intensely vivid, and even today it still remains my favourite book.
One of the key characters in the book is the Oatcake Man ~ he travels around the countryside with his basket of freshly made oatcakes and wins the heart of the serving girl who works on the farm in the book. It is therefore fitting that I mention the book when it comes to my recipe for Oatcakes…….plus the book is set in the Derbyshire Peak district of England where these style oatcakes are popular.
~ Staffordshire Oatcakes ~
Traditional English Hotcakes/Pancakes
(Delicious light pancakes made with oats and yeast – traditionally from the Midlands region in England, in particular the county of Staffordshire.)
Ingredients:
150g fine oatmeal
150g wholemeal flour
300ml milk
300ml water
7g sachet quick-rising yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Method:
Pour the milk and water in a saucepan and heat gently over a low heat.
Add all of the dry ingredients to a bowl and mix together before starting to whisk in all of the warm milk and water. Once the batter is mixed, cover with cling-film and leave in a warm room for about an hour, allowing the yeast to make the batter nice and bubbly.
When it’s ready, give the batter a gentle stir, smear a little butter or oil on a hot, non-stick griddle or heavy frying pan and add enough of the batter to thinly coat the bottom. Cook on one side until golden (about 3 minutes) and gently flip over and cook the other side for another couple of minutes. Continue to cook all the batter until it is used up. (This batter will yield about six large oatcakes.)
Karen
raquel erecipe says
this is a healthy way of making cake…I used to make hotcake but this one is interesting.
Marie says
Your pancakes look great Karen. I Love the British Pancakes. Believe it or not they are the same as the ones my French Grandmaman used to make when I was a girl, so they make me very nostalgic when I eat them. She has been gone a long time now. My youngest daughter loved the Little Grey Rabbit series of books by Alison Uttley. I was able to get a set of them which I am sending over to her daughter, my first granddaughter, for Christmas this year. She is not old enough to enjoy them yet, but I am thinking that they will really touch my daughter's heart and perhaps bring back some nice memories of me reading them to her when she was small. She is somewhat estranged from me as you know. Another great post Karen! xxoo
Karen S Booth says
Thanks Raquel erecipe! Yes it is a healthy way and you get your oats too which lower cholesterol.
Karen
Karen S Booth says
Thanks Marie ~ I LOVE the Little Grey Rabbit books as well as Sam Pig …..she was an amazing author, and some of her other books, adult, are also wonderful reads.
I am sorry to hear that your daughter is estranged to you, I didn't know actually, that is such a shame for her and you….I am sure that this lovely act of sending the books will make her think of what she has to lose, I hope so. And what a lovely gift for your granddaughter too.
Have a great holiday!
Karen
Kentish Keg-Meg says
Great post and photos. Lovely book Karen I have a well thumbed copy on my shelf kept from childhood. It evokes a past time so well. Another book I have alongside it is Lark Rise which I dip into for the same reason.
Annie says
Alison Uttley and oatcakes … two of my favourite things in one post 😀
La Table De Nana says
They look delcioios..and I am enjoying hearing about the Rabbit from you amd marie:)
Inside a British Mum's Kitchen says
Hi Karen!
The book sounds so magical – I can quite understand how you were captivated – and still are. The oatcakes/pancakes look simply amazing – SOOO good, my mum used to make something similar and they were melt in your mouth good – can't wait to try yours – thanks for a lovely post:)
Mary
mary says
I haven't had oatcakes like that for years. Are they the same as pikelets?
I remember reading The Country Child at school. It was our set book when I was about 10. And didn't she write another called A Traveller in Time? That was my favourite.
Heather says
I've never had oat cakes! I must try this 🙂
And that book looks so sweet! I need to look it up. You know how i love old timey things!
Inspired by eRecipeCards says
It is so much fun to revisit a book we loved as children. Course, mine was "Lord of the Flies" and not much cooking… but I digress
I so enjoy the slice of life posts, with classic rarely seen dishes. Too many bloggers get caught up in the new, when the joy is in the familiar!
Thanks for a great post. Think I'll spend part of the morning with Ralph, Piggy and jack!
Karen S Booth says
Thanks Kentish Keg-Meg! I also love Larkrise as well as Cider with Rosie too.
Karen S Booth says
Annie ~ YES!
Karen S Booth says
LOL! Thanks Monique! The Little Grey Rabbit is a series of books like Beatrice Potter…..similar!
Karen S Booth says
Thanks Mary ~ I bet your mum's were just brilliant…..if you make them they will be a taste from home!
Karen S Booth says
Thanks Mary ~ yes she also wrote A Traveller in Time and many more semi~autobiographical books, she was a prolific author.
Karen
Karen S Booth says
Heather, I knew you would like this old time feeling post!
Karen S Booth says
Thanks Dave! I also love the Lord of the Flies too…..and yes, it is nice to ponder and muse over things that have passed now and then…..
Karen
createwithmom says
filling pancake looks wonderful
kellie@foodtoglow says
Lovely, lovely post Karen. Sainsburys used to stock them years ago but I haven't seen them in ages. I'm sure yours taste miles better than shop bought and I will definitely be making these. I like to keep them savoury with tapenade and a little feta with chopped cucumber and tomato. Not traditional, but then again I'm not even British…Thanks for this.
Fiona Matters says
These look lovely. I adore oats and have them for breakfast most mornings (in the form of home made muesli) – these pancakes look just lovely. I love the idea of using them for wraps too. I will have to make them at some point.
Grace says
I was given a copy of Alison Uttley’s Magic in my Pocket for my 8th birthday, and still have it today. It contains stories from several of her books including the Country Child, and the chapter called ‘Christmas Is Coming’ has always been one of my favourites, and one I read to my sons at bedtime every Christmas Eve (and Sam Pig stories for the rest of the year!) I’ve also made my own version of the Garland Family’s ‘Kissing Bunch’ every Christmas since I had my own home-‘the best and brightest pieces of holly made in the shape of a large ball which dangled from a hook’. I am going to read an extract from ‘Christmas Is Coming’ at a carol service next weekend. I still love my Alison Uttley books even after more than 50 years!
Karen Burns-Booth says
Hi Grace, I LOVE her books and I also have Magic in my Pocket too! Karen