INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

"Bannock, a simple type of scone was cooked in pioneer days over open
fires. Variations in flours and the additional of dried or fresh fruit make
this bread the simple choice of Canadian campers even today. Oven baking
has become an acceptable alternative to the cast iron frypan. McKelvie's
restaurant in Halifax serves an oatmeal version similar to this one. For
plain bannock, omit rolled oats and increase the all purpose flour to 1
cup.... One of the earliest quick breads, bannock was as simple as flour,
salt, a bit of fat (often bacon grease) and water. In gold rush days, dough
was mixed right in the prospector's flour bag and cooked in a frypan over
an open fire.
Indians wrapped a similar dough around sticks driven into the ground
beside their camp fire, baking it along with freshly caught fish. Today's
native _Fried Bread_ is like bannock and cooked in a skillet.
Newfoundlander's _Damper Dogs_ are small rounds of dough cooked on the
stove's dampers while _Toutons_ are similar bits of dough deep fried. At a
promotional luncheon for the 1992 Inuit Circumpolar Conference, Eskimo
Doughnuts, deep fried rings of bannock dough, were served. It is said that
Inuit children prefer these "doughnuts" to sweet cookies.
Red River settlers from Scotland made a frugal bannock with lots of
flour, little sugar and drippings or lard. Now this same bread plays a
prominent part in Winnipeg's own Folklorama Festival.
At Expo '86 in Vancouver, buffalo on bannock buns was a popular item at
the North West Territories ' restaurant. In many regions of Canada, whole
wheat flour or wheat germ replaces part of the flour and cranberries or
blueberries are sometimes added. A Saskatchewan firm markets a bannock mix,
and recipe books from coast to coast upgrade bannock with butter, oatmeal,
raisins, cornmeal and dried fruit."
Stir together flours, oats, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add melted
butter, raisins (if using) and water, adding more water if needed to make
sticky dough. With floured hands, pat into greased pie plate. Bake in 400F
oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until browned and tester comes out clean. Cut
into wedges. SERVES:6 VARIATIONS: In place of raisins add chopped dried
apricots or fresh berries.(Blueberries are terrific if one is camping in
northern Ontario in August.)
SOURCE: "The First Decade" chapter in _A Century of Canadian Home Cooking_
Posted to MC-Recipe Digest V1 #641 by thelma@pipeline.com on Jun 07, 1997

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