Oatcakes o' pikelets man

[nanrobbo 12]

Does anyone remember the Oatcakes o' pikelets man that used to come around the estates? Anyway he came round Shirecliffe Estate. I have mastered Eccles cakes- Pork pies- Great Yorkshire puddings but I cannot seem to get the knack of oatcakes- cannot even find a recipe for 'em. Anyone can help?

[deecee 10]

This is courtesy of google

http://www.geocities.com/NapaValley/2333/

hope it helps

[Internetowl 10]

You can buy oatcakes from the bakers in the Castle Market - bottom of the ramp - 42p a pack not worth trying to make them at that price...

[janjan21 10]

Yummy Yummy i bought oatcakes today in Chesterfield you can seem to buy them more in Derbyshire Bakewell etc i have add the ones from castle market and also Kings Dixon lane but but they are rather small. Mine are the LARGE ones £1 for 5 and taist just like the man used to sell years ago on his bike.

[RoyalRegular 10]

Originally posted by nanrobbo

Does anyone remember the Oatcakes o' pikelets man that used to come around the estates?

 

Would that be Mr Dawson who lived on the corner of Lofthouse and Beulah Road?

 

He used to go out selling his oatcakes from a pushbike with a basket on the front.

[PopT 10]

DeeCee

 

The website may make good reading to the folks in Stafford concerning Oatcakes but they are much older than that.

 

see below

 

HAVERCAKES (Oatcakes)

 

 

 

In this part of the world one of our traditional foods is Oatcakes which we usually toast and apply liberally with best butter and they are magic. They are a sort of pancake made from Oats. In the old days these were called Havercakes and in the remoter parts of North Yorkshire they are still called that. ‘Haver’ being the Norse for Oats. Mind you some of the older farmers still count their sheep, counting in the old Norse (Viking) up in those parts. The way they count is in a rythmic way using the Norse numbers in a musical rhyming way, which is an easy way to remember.

 

The way the Havercakes used to be made was to mix Oats with water and milk in a bowl and leave to ferment overnight. The next day this mixture was stirred until it became a kind of mortar consistency and then was poured out onto a Baxter board until it formed a round pancake about the size of a dinner plate.

 

The Baxter board was a piece of flat board criss-crossed with grooves cut equi-distant in a square pattern, these grooves encouraged the mixture to spread evenly and yet not to run all over the place. The thin mixture would set into a flat round shape and then it was transferred to a large thin flat mud stone that was placed over a peat fire. The Havercake would bake in a matter of minutes on this stone. Of course today these cakes are made on a cast iron griddle on the gas or electric cooker.

 

If the cakes were to be eaten for breakfast they would be served up by rolling them into tubes with a heavy fruit jam filling, such as Rhubarb, Quince or Plum jam.. If the Haver cakes were to be stored they would be suspended over a length of pole near the fire and allowed to dry until they were hard, they say these cakes lasted for ever once they dried out. When required the half moon shaped folded cakes would be placed in canvas bags to be eaten later in the fields or at work etc. these bags became known as Haversacks.

 

The old Duke of Wellington's Regiment in Yorkshire were known as the 'Havercake Boys' as these cakes formed a major part of their rations. On recruitment days the recruiting Sergeants would tour the inns with a Havercake pierced on the end of his sword held in place with a ribbon of the regimental colours. To take up a soldier's life with this regiment was a real case of 'Having your cake and Eating it'!!!

 

 

Happy Days!

[owdlad 10]

Originally posted by Internetowl

You can buy oatcakes from the bakers in the Castle Market - bottom of the ramp - 42p a pack not worth trying to make them at that price...

 

I think the air fare from Australia (that big island on't other side of the lump) would make nanrobbo's oatcakes a tad expensive......and old before she got em home

[nanrobbo 12]

You are right owdlad it would be quite a long trip but worth it. Altho' we were over in Woodhouse about 8 yrs ago and the local shops didn't sell 'em. We hogged out on potted meat- pork dripping - pork pie etc all the goodies we missed. Thanks all for your input- still like a recipe. Regards all.

[nanrobbo 12]

Oh dear sorry deecee, having tried the web site you mentioned - there was the recipe. Put it down to reading messages too fast.

[deecee 10]

Originally posted by nanrobbo

Oh dear sorry deecee, having tried the web site you mentioned - there was the recipe. Put it down to reading messages too fast.

 

you're welcome nanrobbo, hope you like them

deecee

 

[oldpomona 10]

Middlewood Road 1960s an old guy called Moule ?? well over 70 lit his baking oven at 4 a.m. every morning and baked the finest oatcakes on this earth. I never could persuade him to part with the recipe but his shop was always my first calling spot. Oh how I could manage a proper oat cake here in N.Z right now. I have managed to import some Hendos though. O.P.

[RoyalRegular 10]

An old Dungworth recipe for Oatcakes.......

 

6 Heaped tablespoons fine oatmeal

3 heaped tablespoons plain flour

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 pint water

1/2 pint milk

1oz yeast

 

Mix dry ingredients. Warm milk and water. Mix in dry ingredients. Sprinkle yeast over the top. Leave to stand for 20 minutes. Cook in greased frying pan each side.

 

 

 

And the best of luck!