{"id":1126,"date":"2018-08-15T15:34:34","date_gmt":"2018-08-15T22:34:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/becomingbeathog.com\/?p=1126"},"modified":"2018-08-15T15:34:34","modified_gmt":"2018-08-15T22:34:34","slug":"the-beloved-oatcake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/becomingbeathog.com\/?p=1126","title":{"rendered":"The Beloved Oatcake"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tolerant of cool, damp climates, oats became a staple in what is now Scotland prior to the Roman occupation of the British Isles. Oats were easily processed, requiring only hand milling in a rotary device called a quern.\u00a0 Small cakes made of oats could easily be made with the addition of\u00a0some water and fat.<\/p>\n

Oatcakes have also been described as being the “mainstay of Scottish breads” for centuries.\u00a0 Jean Le Bel, around AD 1357-60, describes the\u00a0Beguine\u00a0nuns making “little pancakes rather like communion wafers”. This is thought to be an early description of a Scottish oatcake.\u00a0 Fourteenth century narratives related how solders would carry with them a bag of oats and an iron girdle (Scots equivalent of griddle) as their primary source of rations.\u00a0 John Froissart, a fourteenth century chronicler, wrote this about the Scots:<\/p>\n

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\u201cThey neither care for pots or pans,
\nfor they boil beasts in their own skins. They are
\never sure to find plenty of beasts in the country that they pass
\nthrough. Therefore they carry with them no other purveyance,
\nbut on their horse: between the saddle and the pannel, they place
\na broad plate of metal, and behind the saddle, they will have a
\nlittle sack full of oatmeal, to the intent that when they have eaten
\nof the sodden flesh, then they lay this plate on the fire, and
\nmoisten a little of the oatmeal: and when the plate is hot, they
\ncast some of the thin paste thereon, and so make a little cake in
\nmanner of a crak’nel, or biscuit, and that they eat to comfort their
\nstomachs. Wherefore it is no great wonder that they make
\ngreater journies than other people do.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

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Oatcakes remain a mainstay of the Scottish diet today, and are often enjoyed plain, or with butter, jam, or cheese.\u00a0 The recipe I chose to use was one of the simplest form, and one easily baked on a hot griddle or stone.\u00a0 I did bake mine in the oven, as I was preparing these for a large crowd and needed to make them ahead of time.\u00a0 They were delicious!<\/p>\n

MY RECIPE:<\/p>\n