Vegan parkin - this vegan version of the classic Yorkshire parkin is a sticky, spicy ginger cake made with oatmeal. It is easy to make, incredibly moreish and perfect for bonfire night! Eggless and dairy-free.
This vegan parkin is a gloriously sticky, spicy ginger cake that is incredibly easy to make, very moreish and the perfect cold weather treat.
It is denser than a regular ginger cake, thanks to the addition of ground oats. This makes it an excellent, warming, filling snack.
Just the ticket for cold Winter walks or standing around the bonfire on Guy Fawkes night, especially if you wash it down with a flask of tea!
What Is Parkin?:
Parkin is a traditional ginger cake which originates from Yorkshire and Lancashire. It is baked throughout the winter months but it is traditional to eat it on bonfire night/Guy Fawkes night (the 5th November).
The main difference between parkin and regular ginger cake is that parkin contains oats, usually medium oatmeal. This gives it a denser, chewier texture than ginger cake.
Often it is baked to a hard slab, which is wrapped and stored for a week before serving, during which time it softens and becomes sticky.
There are various different recipes for parkin, it is difficult to say which is the most traditional and people have very strong opinions about how it should be made!
For this reason I can't claim that my recipe is the ultimate vegan parkin recipe. However, I did test eight (yes, eight!) different versions and this one was by far mine and my husband's favourite, so it is my personal ultimate vegan parkin.
I shall leave it up to you to decide whether it is traditional or not!
What Do I Need To Make Vegan Parkin?:
Treacle and golden syrup: Some recipes for parkin use all treacle, but I think that it is nicest made with a blend of treacle and golden syrup, all treacle is a bit too intensely flavoured for me.
You can skew the balance more towards either one of them if you prefer, as long as the total amount that you use remains the same (280g total syrup).
You can replace the treacle with molasses but there is no replacement for the golden syrup. There is simply nothing else like it. If you are unable to buy it then it is possible to make your own.
Brown sugar: Either dark brown soft or muscovado sugar will work. You can use light brown but dark is definitely better.
Vegan butter: Ideally you want to use a block butter/margarine, not the spreadable kind in a tub which has too high a water content for baking and won't yield the best results. I use Naturli Vegan Block or Flora Block.
You could probably also swap the butter for refined coconut oil, or do 50/50 butter and coconut oil. Some traditional recipes use half lard, half butter, so a mix of butter and coconut oil would be a good swap for this.
Oats: You could use fine or medium oatmeal, but I don't bother buying different oats just to make parkin. I simply pulse porridge oats in the food processor/blender until they are mostly ground up, but still retain some chunky texture; you don't want to blend them too far and end up making oat flour.
Plain flour: regular plain (all-purpose) flour is fine.
Baking powder: I tested versions of parkin with baking powder as the raising agent, and some with bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) as the raising agent instead. I much preferred the baking powder versions and they were far less likely to sink in the middle.
If you don't have baking powder but do have bicarb you can use 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) instead of the baking powder but be aware that the parkin is very likely to sink in the middle. It will still be delicious however!
Ground ginger and mixed spice: You want to go fairly heavy on the ground ginger for parkin, it should be spicy! I also add a bit of mixed spice for extra flavour.
If you aren't in the UK then mixed spice is a blend of sweet spices. You could use pumpkin spice instead or just add a bit of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.
Milk: I like unsweetened soy milk best for baking as it has the highest protein content. We are using it to replace an egg so high protein is best! Any variety will work however if you don't have soy, but do go for unsweetened if you can, there is already quite a lot of sugar in this cake!
Salt: a good pinch of salt helps to temper the sweetness a little and enhance the flavour.
How To Make Vegan Parkin:
(For ingredients and full instructions see the recipe card below)
Start by grinding up your oats; I use regular rolled porridge oats. Simply pulse them in a food processor or blender until they are roughly ground, they should all be chopped up but still retain some chunky texture. The photo below shows what you are aiming for.
Add the ground oats to a large bowl along with plain flour, baking powder, ground ginger, mixed spice and a pinch of salt. Whisk it all together until well combined.
To a saucepan add dark brown soft or muscovado sugar, golden syrup, treacle and vegan butter, heat gently until it is melted.
Pour the syrup mixture into the bowl of dry ingredients. Pour some non-dairy milk into the pan that had the syrup in and give it a stir to pick up any sticky bits that may be left in the pan. (This is optional but I don't like to waste the sticky bits stuck to the pan).
Add the milk to the bowl then stir everything together until no dry lumps remain. The batter doesn't look very appetising but it will taste delicious once it is baked, trust me!
Pour the batter into a greased and lined 23cm/9in square cake tin and spread it level. Bake for about 30 minutes until firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Once the parkin has cooled it can be eaten right away, or stored in a tin for up to a couple of weeks.
Top Tips:
For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.
For the ground oats, simply pulse rolled porridge oats in a food processor or blender until they are mostly ground up but still retain some chunky texture; you don't want to blend them too far and make oat flour. See photo above for what the texture should look like.
Parkin contains quite a lot of sugar, this is what gives it it's moist, sticky texture and wonderful flavour. Don't reduce it, the results won't be as good.
I really recommend weighing out your golden syrup and treacle as being too heavy handed with them can cause the parkin to sink, and they are very difficult to measure accurately in cups.
For an extra kick of ginger, stir a large handful of chopped candied or stem ginger into the batter before you bake the cake.
Unlike some parkin recipes which need to be stored for a week before they can be eaten, my vegan parkin is good to eat straight away. It will keep in an airtight container for a week or two however and will become more sticky and delicious as it keeps.
Can I Freeze It?:
Yes. Once the parkin is cooled it can be wrapped and frozen; either whole or in individual slices.
More Vegan Ginger Recipes:
No-bake vegan chocolate ginger tart
Thick, creamy vegan gingerbread hot chocolate
If you tried this recipe let me know how it went! Rate it, leave a comment or tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and hashtag it #domesticgothess
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Vegan Parkin
Ingredients
- 100 g (3 ½ oz) roughly ground porridge oats* (or medium oatmeal)
- 250 g (2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 2 ½ tsp baking powder
- 3 ½ tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp mixed spice (or pumpkin spice)
- a good pinch of salt
- 200 g (1 cup) dark brown soft sugar or dark muscovado sugar
- 130 g (4 ½ oz / ½ cup + 1 Tbsp) vegan block butter/margarine
- 180 g (6 ⅓ oz / ½ cup + 1 Tbsp) golden syrup
- 100 g (3 ½ oz / ¼ cup + 1 Tbsp) treacle (or molasses)
- 160 ml (⅔ cup) unsweetened non-dairy milk (soy is best)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/gas mark 4. Grease a 23cm / 9 inch square cake tin and line it with baking parchment.
- Whisk together the ground oats/oatmeal, plain flour, baking powder, ground ginger, mixed spice and salt in a large bowl until well combined.
- Place the brown sugar, butter, golden syrup and treacle in a saucepan over a low heat. Cook, stirring often, until melted and smooth. Don't let the mixture boil.
- Pour the syrup mixture into the bowl of dry ingredients. Pour the milk into the pan that had the syrup in and give it a stir to pick up any sticky bits that may be left in the pan.
- Add the milk to the bowl then stir everything together until no dry lumps remain.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and spread it level. Bake for about 30 minutes until firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Leave the parkin to cool in the tin then cut into bars and store in an airtight container.
Notes
- For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.
- *For the ground oats, simply pulse rolled porridge oats in a food processor or blender until they are mostly ground up but still retain some chunky texture; you don’t want to blend them too far and make oat flour. See post above for a photo of what the texture should look like.
Janet
This was gorgeous. I made a half portion in a 7in round tin. I used wheat free flour as well. It gets better and better as the days go by, but as there are only two of us at home a half quantity suits us best. Thank you
Nicky
I made a tray of this for Bonfire night- although no bonfires were had. I hadn't made a parkin before but have been a big fan of ginger cake for many years. I followed the instructions and whizzed my oats in the processor for the right texture. As the recipe suggested I also added a handful of glace ginger at the end and this added a nice difference in texture and punch of flavour.
This came out wonderfully sticky and tasty and I cut it into little rectangles. It stored very well in a tin for several days-before it was all eaten and was enjoyed by my colleagues at the register office where we have been busy working away through the Pandemic- a great, warming morale booster for long days and I imagine perfect for outdoor gatherings too.
jo
Absolutely delicious
Recommened
Christine Chapman
Really nice and was easy to make too.
Vicky
This turned out great, really delicious flavour and just how I remember parkin tasting. Kept really well in the tin for at least a week.
Ruth Middleton
This is a lovely recipe for Parkin. For years I have missed out on this autumn treat, but no longer! I am also gluten free so I swap out half the quantity of flour with oat flour and half gluten free with some xanthan gum to make sure the texture holds together. As a sneaky extra I add some chopped stem ginger, which is very nice!
Ruth Middleton
Just thought I’d mention that one day I made your clementine marmalade and used that in the Parkin instead of treacle. A man came to fix my shower and he had some and thought it was the best thing ever. He couldn’t believe it was vegan. Unfortunately for him, my husband ran off with the rest. No way was he giving away more!
Pongodhall
your husband ran off with the cake!
Good thinking, Parkin is gorgeous and I liked your variation too!
Benny
This turned out beautifully. I made both this x2 and your pecan pie for a charity bake sale at work. Thanks again
Claire
The best Parkin ever, it was rich and sticky outside. Will definitely be making again and not just at Bonfire night.
Bee
Made this for the first time and it was delicious but my second attempt failed miserably. Did the cocktail stick test and it came out clean then tipped cake on to a cooling rack and there are lots of pockets of treacle on the bottom. Have no idea ♀️ what went on.
Vicky
This turned out great, really delicious flavour and just how I remember parkin tasting. Kept really well in the tin for at least a week
Anna
Delicious! I tried this recipe after my first parkin (from a different trusted recipe creator) sunk disastrously, plus was too dry and sandy. This, however, was DIVINE! A breeze to make, beautifully flavourful/spiced, moist but not stodgy or heavy, and still going strong after over a week (wrapped up in greaseproof paper and sealed in a tin). I will definitely try adding stem ginger or even swapping some of the sugar/treacle for a few spoonfuls of marmalade, as some other commenters have mentioned. None of Hannah's recipes have failed me yet, and this was no exception. Thanks a lot for producing them for us!