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If you love a rich, sticky and spicy bake then you’re going to love this gluten free parkin recipe.
Gluten free parkin is a traditional recipe from northern England, which is typically enjoyed around Bonfire Night.
Fans of my gluten free ginger cake will love this recipe.
In fact, if you’ve never have parkin before I’d describe it like a ginger cake had a baby with a flapjack!
It’s rich and spicy with a flapjack-esque flavour, warming spices from the ginger and the stickiness of the treacle and syrup.
This gluten free parkin is best made in advance and left wrapped in clingfilm or baking paper for a week for the flavours to develop.
This makes an extra sticky and sweet cake with rich spices coming through.
What is parkin?
Parkin is a delicious teatime treat filled with the rich flavours of ginger and spices.
It’s traditionally made around Bonfire Night in northern England and is basically a ginger cake with oatmeal.
I use gluten free porridge oats ground down in a blender to create this gluten free parkin.
Parkin, usually associated with Yorkshire, is best made and then left for at least a week as it turns from a hard cake into a sticky treat.
Gluten free parkin is actually really easy to make but I’ve never seen a gluten free version in the shops.
Hopefully this recipe means any coeliacs missing parkin will finally be able to enjoy it again.
Parkin ingredients
There’s a full recipe card for my gluten free Parkin below, but for the shopping list you’ll need:
- 150g unsalted butter
- 75g light brown sugar
- 150g golden syrup
- 100g treacle
- 200g plain gluten free flour
- 100g gluten free oats (blitzed in a food processor until fine)
- 1.5 tsp baking powder
- 4 tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp mixed spice
- 50ml milk
- 1 large egg
All of the ingredients for this recipe are easy to find in the supermarkets.
Gluten free oatmeal can be hard to find but gluten free oats will work.
Simply blitz them in a food processor for a few seconds and they will work perfectly in this recipe.
For the flour you’ll need to use any gluten free plain or all purpose gluten free flour.
If you want to make a gluten and dairy free parkin, simply substitute the butter for margarine and the milk for a dairy free milk.
I’ve not tried this gluten free parkin with an egg replacer so if you attempt an egg free or gluten free vegan parkin please let me know.
How to make gluten free parkin
There’s a full printable recipe card below but making this gluten free parkin is actually really easy.
Firstly you melt together the butter, sugar and syrups until it’s one big sweet and yummy liquid.
Next stir in the dry ingredients – and then pour into your lined tin.
Bake it up and that’s pretty much it; see, I told you it was easy!
However the magic is then leaving the parkin for at least a few days if you can bare it.
Giving it some time to sit means the flavours really mature and it becomes lovely and sticky.
My Gluten Free Parkin recipe
My gluten free Parkin recipe is super simple to make and this makes 16 squares in a 9-inch/23cm square tin.
If you can, I’d recommend making this up to a week before you want to eat it, as it means the flavours will have time to develop.
It just makes the best spicy, sticky and sweet squares which are lovely with a cuppa or for enjoying on Bonfire Night watching the fireworks.
If you make this recipe and love it, please do let me know by tagging me on my Instagram or using #theglutenfreeblogger. I love seeing your bakes!
And please do leave a review to let others know you loved it too! It would mean the world to me.
Gluten Free Parkin
This gluten free Parkin is a traditional teatime treat from Northern England. Perfect for Bonfire Night, it's sticky, syrupy and spicy. This recipe makes 16 squares and is best made a week before eating to give the flavours time to develop.
Ingredients
- 150g unsalted butter
- 75g light brown sugar
- 150g golden syrup
- 100g treacle
- 200g plain gluten free flour
- 100g gluten free oats (blitzed in a food processor until fine)
- 1.5 tsp baking powder
- 4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp mixed spice
- 50ml milk
- 1 large egg
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160'C / Fan 140'C / Gas Mark 3. Grease a 23cm / 9-inch square tin and line with baking paper.
- Add the butter, sugar, syrup and treacle to a large saucepan and place on a low heat. Continue to heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until melted and combined. Don't let it boil.
- Meanwhile measure out the gluten free flour into a bowl, add the baking powder, ground ginger and mixed spice and stir well to combine. Add the blitzed gluten free oats and stir well again.
- In a separate small bowl, add the egg and milk and beat lightly to combine.
- Once the butter/sugar mixture has melted, remove from the heat. Pour in the flour/oat mixture and stir well to combine. Next add the milk/egg mixture and continue to stir until everything is combined.
- Pour the mixture into the lined baking tin and place in the oven, baking for 50-60 minutes. It should be lightly springy to the touch when done.
- Remove from the oven and cool on a rack. For the best gluten free Parkin, once cool wrap in baking paper and place in an airtight container for up to a week before eating - the flavours will develop and it will become deliciously sticky and sweet. When ready to eat, cut into 16 squares and enjoy.
Notes
- Will keep in an airtight container for up to two weeks. This gluten free Parkin can be frozen once baked.
- For dairy free, use margarine instead of butter and a dairy free milk.
- If using self-raising flour, omit the baking powder from the recipe.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
16Serving Size:
1 squareAmount Per Serving: Calories: 187Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 32mgSodium: 60mgCarbohydrates: 26gFiber: 1gSugar: 9gProtein: 3g
If you do make this recipe please let me know! I’d love to see your photos using #theglutenfreeblogger, share them in my Facebook group or tag me on Instagram.
And if you have any recipe suggestions, please let me know in the comments what you’d like to see next!
LIKE THIS GLUTEN FREE PARKIN RECIPE?
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The flavour of this is great, but it’s very crumbly! Does your plain flour blend have xanthan gum in? We used Asda Gluten free plain flour.
It’s got a lovely flavour but I cooked it at too high a temp – didn’t notice the 140 fan – I could kick myself! Anyway, we’re going to serve it with whipped cream to make it more moist. I will definitely make another one and learn from my mistake!