Fast, old fashioned food.

The Staffordshire oatcake (words in brackets are my attempt to write it in a Stoke dialect).

Oatcakes in Staffordshire are thin, lace like and tasty. Unrolled they fit on a small dinner plate. They can be eaten with various fillings including savory ones like cheese, cheese and bacon, cheese and sausage (I feel a theme developing). Or you can have them sweet with jam or marmalade which is probably unacceptable to traditionalists. Oatcakes are food or ‘snappin’ to be eaten for breakfast with a strong cup of tea. They are tasty and if you are lucky to have an oatcake shop nearby they are delicious hot from the griddle.

They are an inexpensive meal and can be filled with your own fillings, perhaps chilli con carne or crispy duck? I guess you could even cook them with stewed apple and cream.

I cooked mine in the microwave rolled with grated cheese and added brown sauce. If you grill them you are better heating them flat to make them hot and crispy. Then sprinkle your filling all over like on toast so that the edges don’t burn. They can then be folded in half and finished under the grill. You can eat them with a salad garnish or coleslaw.

You never know you might enjoy them.

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