Bake the British Isles - Traditional Bonfire Night Oatmeal Parkin Cake
Come and have fun baking authentic oatmeal parkin with a British teacher, and learn some history around why we celebrate the Gunpowder Plot on November 5th. (Look out for other bakes in the series from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.)
Helena England, BA Hons, PGCE, MA
Average rating:
5.0
Number of reviews:(210)
What's included
1 live meeting
55 mins in-class hoursAssessment
I always love to see photos of what your children have baked!Class Experience
We will start by putting our aprons on and briefly introducing ourselves, then we will find out what the students already know about our beautiful British Isles. We will take a look at a map to locate the four countries that make up the UK. We will look at London in particular, as this is where the famous Gunpowder Plot took place. We will learn a bit about the events of the night of November 5th 1605, and how Guy Fawkes tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament. We will measure/weigh the ingredients to make the batter for oatmeal parkin, which is a delicious sticky cake traditionally eaten round the bonfire on Bonfire Night. We will make the batter, put it into cake cases, and have a quick clear up. While the muffins are baking, we will have time for a bit of fun with a quiz about Bonfire Night traditions; for example, what does 'Penny for the Guy' mean, and what is the flaming barrel run? As this is a baking class, it is essential an adult is on hand to assist where necessary. Bonfire Night is always a time we look forward to. The sky is lit up with fireworks which go on for hours, and the air is full of the smell of bonfires; we watch them from our window, and of course we have our own in the garden too. We wrap up warm and eat baked potatoes, toffee apples, bonfire toffee, tomato soup, and of course oatmeal parkin. It cheers us up once the dark, cold nights have come in. Look out for other sessions in the 'Bake the British Isles' series! I am also running the oatmeal parkin class as part of my Bake the British Isles Cooking Club, an ongoing class that includes all the bakes I have taught on Outschool https://outschool.com/classes/bake-the-british-isles-cooking-club-6l3gAsJy?sectionUid=63dc645d-530f-4c16-acbb-00068a555bdb&showDetails=true Please let me know in advance if your child has any additional needs; they are very welcome to join in. I will adapt the class to accommodate them where possible (and it usually is possible!). Usually the cake is made in a large cake tin, but this does take longer to cook. I am putting the batter into cupcakes in this class, so they can finish baking before the end of the class (fingers crossed!). NB the recipe contains egg and flour, so if your child has allergies this class will not be suitable for them.
Learning Goals
Students will know about the Gunpowder Plot, bonfire night traditions, and how to make oatmeal parkin
Other Details
Supply List
Equipment mixing bowls wooden spoon cup to break the egg into pan or bowl and microwave to melt the syrup, treacle and butter cupcake cases weighing scales/measuring cups wire cooling tray Ingredients for parkin: NB if you can't find any of these ingredients, let me know and I will see if I can find a substitute golden syrup (if you can't find this, we can use extra black treacle/molasses instead) black treacle/molasses butter self raising flour (UK) /all purpose flour plus baking powder medium oatmeal (I just put porridge oats in the blender to make this) brown sugar egg ginger splash of milk
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Joined July, 2020
5.0
210reviews
Teacher expertise and credentials
Hello everyone!
My name is Helena, and I live in the UK. It is my pleasure to share with my learners some of the best/worst/quirky bits of Britain through my own nerdiness for history and baking. Enthusiasm, positivity, patience, joy, respect are key to my classes, and I have found my learners have bucketfuls of these attitudes too. Many of my learners take every single class I offer…take a look at my reviews.
I have been a teacher for over 25 years (crumbs!), and I still work in the classroom. I also work for myself teaching groups and one-to-one, online and in person. My learners are aged 3-16. Each learner is different; I love it when they want to join in, ask questions, discuss conundrums, share knowledge but listeners and thinkers are most welcome too (and some of us just need more time to feel confident before contributing). I make sure my classes are joyous but orderly – it’s down to respect again. I aim for inclusivity – it’s helpful if you let me know if your learner has an additional need so I can adapt things for them.
I have a BA Hons in English Literature (2.1) from Southampton University, a PGCE (teaching qualification) from Leicester University and an MA in Creative Writing (distinction) from Birmingham City University. I also have a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) qualification too (I teach English to refugees as a volunteer).
My Outschool offerings are firmly based in Britain. We bake classic British recipes in my cooking classes. I bake at the same time, and we do each step together. (I can’t resist and I add in a bit of history of the bake and a silly food quiz too). The results go down a treat! My British history classes cover UK Myths, Legends, Folklore and Customs; Castles, Knights and Medieval Life; and Tell Me More! A History of the British Isles, which is a delightful romp through key moments in British history from the Stone Age up to 1800 (plenty of serious bits in there too, though...).
I also offer on request one-to-one or group classes on English, maths and EAL. I have lots of experience teaching Early Years, phonics, reading, writing and maths; I know that some families particularly want a UK teacher for this, and I am more than happy to oblige.
Come and join us!Reviews
Live One-Time Class
$17
per classMeets once
55 min
Completed by 23 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 9-13
3-6 learners per class
