Kids in the Kitchen Series
Have you made Bannock lately? Do you know what you are missing? Bannock is a variety of fry bread. It originated in Scotland and was passed on to the Indigenous Peoples of Canada by the Scottish fur traders. Historically, bannock was cooked over an open fire in a cast iron pan or in front of a campfire on a stick. When I was first shown how to make this traditional bread, I was taught to wrap the dough around a stick. The stick was then placed in the ground near the fire, and the heat from the fire would bake the bannock in just a few minutes. It is one of my favourite childhood memories that I enjoy sharing with children.
Making bannock is a wonderful activity to do with young children, or just for fun on a rainy afternoon. You can make this delicious quick bread with a few simple ingredients in just a few minutes.
When my daughters were small, I volunteered as a Tawny Owl Leader in a local Brownie chapter. One of the traditional Canadian Brownie Badges that we achieved together was making bannock.
I wish I had photographs of the little girls with their individual mixing bowls, kneading the dough, patting the dough and waiting patiently for the bannock to bake. They all had a great time and were proud to earn their badges. We brought some homemade strawberry jam to the Brownie meeting for all to enjoy with the freshly baked bannock. It was a memorable experience.
Recently, I made bannock with my young grandchildren. They loved the activity as much as they enjoyed eating the freshly baked bannock. We baked our version in the oven on a baking sheet.
Whatever way you choose to bake bannock, you will no doubt enjoy the flavour, texture and versatility of this quick bread. Serve the warm bannock with soup or stew or on its own with butter and jam.
BANNOCK
CHEF TALK: For a dairy-free alternative, substitute the butter for 1 cup of mashed potatoes and use 2 tablespoons of coconut oil or vegetable oil. I made this version with vanilla bean paste. If a more savoury version is desired, omit the vanilla bean paste and substitute your choice of 1 teaspoon dried herbs or two teaspoons of fresh herbs, chopped finely.
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour blend (I use Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour in my gluten-free Baking)
- 2 tablespoons baking powder
- 2 tablespoons sugar or 1 Tablespoon honey, maple syrup or maple sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup butter, cold and cut into small pieces, or dairy-free alternative
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 1 cup milk
METHOD:
- Preheat oven to 425°F/220°C (If you are using a convection oven on bake setting, reduce the temperature to 400°F/205°C)
- Mix the dry ingredients together: 2 1/2 cups of the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
- Cut in the butter with your hands or a pastry knife until the mixture is crumbly.
- Combine the sugar, vanilla and milk.
- Gradually mix in enough of this vanilla milk to make a soft raggedy dough.
- Separate the dough into four equal size pieces.
- Dust the work surface with a little more flour in front of each child.
- Show them how to shape each piece into a ball, adding a bit more of the flour if needed. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Show them how to flatten each ball into a circle, and then pat the dough until it is about 1 inch thick.
- Place the bannock on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Bake at 425°F/220°C for 10 – 15 minutes or until the bannock is firm in the middle when touched and turning golden around the edges. (It will sound hollow when you tap it).
- Enjoy hot out of the oven with butter and jam.
Here is your visual step-by-step in photographs How to Make Bannock:
Cut the butter into the dry ingredients until coarse crumbs with bits of butter remaining
Add enough of the milk mixture to create a raggedy dough
Split the dough into four equal pieces and form each piece into a ball
Flatten the balls of dough to 1-inch thickness and place on a baking sheet
The bannock is baked and ready to enjoy
Enjoy the bannock with butter and jam
Please CLICK the link above to access my UrbnSpice LEARNING TIPS, which are listed alphabetically on the Learning Tips blog post under the following subheadings:
- Parchment Paper
- Oven Temperature Accuracy
- Vanilla Extract
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More Urb’n’Spice Kids in the Kitchen Activities:
More Urb’n’Spice Canadian Themed Posts and Recipes:
The Ultimate French Canadian Yellow Split Pea Soup with Smoked Sea Salt
Please CLICK the link above to access my UrbnSpice LEARNING TIPS, which are listed alphabetically on the Learning Tips blog post under the following subheadings:
- Butter
- Oven Temperature Accuracy
__________
If you try my recipe for Bannock, please leave me a comment below with your feedback.
You can find me on social media (see links below) – just be sure to tag @urbnspice and #urbnspice so I am sure to see it. Enjoy!
Denise Paré-Watson
The Urbnspice Chef
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Sources:
Food.Com – Adaptation of Recipe
I did not know the history of bannock! Though, I can’t help wonder, what flour was it originally made with? I’m thinking all-purpose flour came long afterwards?
You are quite correct, Annika. I believe that the first versions of bannock were made from unleavened barley meal or oat meal, and later whole wheat flours were used. They were exceedingly dense by comparison. The dough was often cooked on a griddle or wrapped around a stick and ‘baked’ over an open fire. Are we not so lucky now to have ovens to bake them in and all-purpose flour to use nowadays? 🙂
I tried making this with tigernut flour and coconut sugar, it was very wet and sticky but it turned out pretty good. Do you have any suggestions on how to make it with different types of flour like tigernut or coconut flour?
Hello, Cheryl. Thank you for your comments. I can tell you that I used Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour for this recipe however I can provide any results using Tigernut and coconut flour as I have not tried them. I did find a recipe on line using a combination of spelt (often okay to use for people who are wheat intolerant but not for anyone who has celiac) and coconut flour (I have not tried it however): http://theyroar.com/2013/12/spelt-and-coconut-flour-bannock/
Coconut flour is very tricky – only a small amount is usually required when used on its own with the addition of many eggs. My experience with Tigernut Flour has been adding it as a part of the gluten free flour requirement in a recipe. It is important to consider that a Blend of several gluten free flours and starches are often more successful than using an individual gluten free flour (for example, just almond flour). I hope that this is helpful information to you.