Does your town have a food that it is famous for? When I was a home economics teacher, my students and I would learn about the origins of food. I found this topic of study fascinating. Therefore, this week’s post was of particular interest to me. So, what famous English recipe did we try to recreate?
Banbury cakes-its Banbury cakes!
Yes, the children and I made Banbury cakes in celebration of my husband’s upcoming birthday. Banbury is a town in England where my husband grew up. It is a lovely place filled with rich history and breathtaking beauty. What better way to celebrate my husband- than by making a cake- that his town is known for. This was a new recipe for me, so I am inviting you guys to come into the kitchen to learn alongside me and my four precious pupils.
Together, let us explore a bit of Banbury’s history- and of course, its famous cakes.
Come along- no dilly, no dally, for we have much to learn.
~My Second Trip to England~
On my second trip to England (you can read about my first visit here), I stayed in a hotel that dated back to the 17th century. It was an amazing experience (and just a bit cold if I am honest). Afterall, I was staying in an ancient building… so, a bit of a draft is to be expected. Anyway, if I looked out my room window, I could just make out the form of the Banbury Cross and the shadows of the fine lady upon a white horse. Curious about their history, I later learned of a famous nursery rhyme, written in 1784, about Banbury, England. Having a background in child development, I was intrigued to learn more. The nursery rhyme jingle goes like this:
“Ride a cockhorse to Banbury Cross,
To see a fine lady upon a white horse,
With rings on her fingers and bells on her toes, she shall have music wherever she goes.”
I have several photographs that I took of these famous landmarks, but unfortunately, I have not been able to locate those photographs (as they are on an old phone). Not being put off, I asked my father-in-law to kindly take some pictures of the Banbury cross and the fine lady for me. He happily sent me the next three photographs- which are presented to you all, from England, this past week. (Thank you, Grandad!)
~A Homeschool Lesson on Banbury~
The fine lady and the Banbury cross have cultural and historical significance in the life of the town. They are tourist attractions, and many people come to visit them each year. What fun to have lived in a town that is famous for so many things- but also, for such a fun thing as a nursery rhyme.
How could I not teach my children a homeschool lesson on Banbury, England this week? (One of the many reasons why I love the flexibility that homeschooling brings.) There are so many important things that can be taught, not necessarily coming from any curriculum, but instead- from personal experience.
~Banbury, a Special Place in Our Hearts~
I have so many warm memories from my time spent in Banbury. The excitement of being a newlywed, and then a new mom, paired with the excitement of living in a new country. Venturing out into the drizzly English weather, made pulling on my wellies, and bundling up tight, a true delight! Knowing that when I arrived back indoors, a cup of steaming hot tea and warmth would greet me.
Those are some of the most special times in my life. I wish I could have paused them and savored them even more than I did. While those days have passed, the memories remain. And in their place, lots of new memories have been built. Banbury, England- you will always have a special place in my heart.
~Banbury Town~
On weekends my husband and I would often visit Banbury town center. There was a museum and a gift shop that we would visit from time to time. I remember this shop had Banbury cakes for sale. We never tried any, but I tucked the idea into the back corner of my mind. Now, I am bringing forth that idea- in order to create a Banbury cake in my own kitchen- albeit across the pond.
Therefore, you can imagine my surprise… when recently, I stumbled across an old cookbook in an antique store. I opened the book randomly and immediately saw Banbury “tarts” as one of the featured recipes. Seeing as the cookbook was vintage, pink, and had a Banbury recipe in it- I knew it was supposed to come home with me. (Note: I did not use the recipe from the 1960’s “Ladies Home Journal Cookbook”, but I did read it for inspiration and comparison.)
My recipe was an amalgamation of many recipes and my own personal taste.
~Banbury Cakes~
Sources say that the Banbury cake dates back to the 16th century (or maybe even earlier)! It is my understanding, that a Banbury cake is close to an Eccles cake (another famous British recipe from the town of Eccles, Lancashire). However, unlike the Eccles cake, Banbury cakes feature an oval shape. Whereas, Eccles cakes, generally are a rounder shape. (I am certainly not an expert of historical, English cakes- but this is what I could gather.)
Banbury cakes feature puff pastry, raisins, currants, candied peel, and spices. I suppose the name Banbury “cake” can be a bit deceiving, as they are more of a pastry than a traditional cake. A last- minute decision, led me to serve my pudding alongside some English custard.
And for time’s sake, I bought refrigerated puff pastry, as well as English custard from Publix. I will also share the picture of my custard recipe (found in my Eve’s pudding post), if you want to make custard from scratch.
Banbury Cakes are our first way to celebrate Dad, and all the sacrificial things he does for our family.
Happy Banbury Birthday, Dad!
~Canned Custard- Not Quite Homemade, but a Close Second~
~A Reminder of a Beautiful English Town~
We have a book about Banbury that my sister-in-law gave us. Naturally, I like to keep it on our bookshelf as a reminder of the beautiful town my husband came from. I am so thankful for the town of Banbury and the role it played in my husbands’ life. We made some wonderful friends there. In fact, our daughter was almost born there- so it is a special place indeed.
The photographs I am adding were taken from my time in Banbury, England. A special part of the world- filled with kind people, interesting history, delicious desserts, and much beauty.
~Into the Kitchen We Shall Go~
Right, let us first step into the kitchen to prepare our Banbury Cakes for the oven… and our bellies. First stop, the chopping board to begin preparing the citrus candied peel.
~Making the Candied Peel~
It begins to feel like Christmas in my kitchen when I make candied peel (as that is the only time, I make it all year). Have you ever made your own candied peel? You can do so with many citrus fruits. Grapefruits, lemons, and oranges are commonly used to make a citrus candied peel. For convivence, you can sometimes buy candied peel from a shop (but it doesn’t taste as good).
Candied peel can be bitter. Therefore, triple boiling the peel and draining the cooking water, helps to alleviate any lingering bitterness. My top tip for making candied peel is to use unwaxed organic fruits- if possible. Wash the fruits well.
Candied peel is a delightful addition to many seasonal baked goods. I feel certain you will find it to be a handy recipe to have in your recipe collection.
Incidentally, candied peel will be used in several of my Christmas blog posts- so you will be familiar with this process.
~Now for the Star: The Banbury Cakes~
Now that we have our candied peel made, we can begin work on our Banbury cakes. Original recipes often call for currants. However, seeing as I could not find currants at my local grocery store, I opted to use two types of rasin (golden raisins being my substitution).
Traditional English recipes generally use all-spice (which I did not have on hand), so I simply substituted pumpkin pie spice. Incidentally, you can make your own all-spice mixture (which I will do for my Christmas recipes, so if you are interested in that please let me know.)
~Until Next Time~
In conclusion to this Banbury Birthday post, I will leave you all with a fun picture. This is the first pumpkin my husband carved after our daughter was born. This pumpkin sat in our English home and made our little one smile.
Tune in next week for some delicious ideas on how to use leftover Banbury cake fruit filling- as well as a way to use the simple citrus syrup from my candied peel recipe.
Also, check out my Cotswold Kitchen Mom Facebook page and Pinterest page to see more thrifted finds and ideas throughout the week.
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Thank you for taking the time to read, I hope this post has proven beneficial and encouraging. See you all next Friday!
~Elizabeth~
You have inspired me to make some Banbury cakes now – I think I still have an “original” recipe I got from the Banbury museum years ago 😊
It sounds like a wonderful treat for a birthday.
Hi Julia! I am so glad you have been inspired to make some of your own Banbury cakes. They were delicious…I think I may even prefer them to Mince pies. It was a fun traditional recipe to add to our collection. You will have to let me know how they turn out. 🙂