One
of my favourite sweet tastes is Butterscotch and Doncaster is the place where it originates.
Samuel Parkinson used local places such as the church and the racecourse to market
this delicacy. Originally, it was described as ‘medicinal’ and acquired a ‘royal’
label after Queen Victoria visited the town in 1851 and tasted the ‘sweetmeat’
which was sold as ‘an emollient for the chest in the winter season’.
Food
historians are divided over the name ‘scotched’ meaning ‘cut’ or ‘scored’ as Butterscotch
needs to be cut into pieces before hardening. Others are divided over whether the
buttery treacle ball is a ‘hard’ or ‘soft’ crack as toffee. I was privileged to be shown
a copy of the original recipe from Doncaster’s Archives and made the recipe as
near to the original for a Georgian baking event at Cusworth Hall. It was a great success!
Meryl says : Here are
some more recipes using Doncaster Butterscotch you might like to try. I’m not
promising any medicinal cures but they are certainly tasty!