Smells

I find it endlessly fascinating how our sense of smell can be so evocative, so vital, so astoundingly accurate in evoking memories.

If we map our own preferences in smells, it can be quite revealing and strange. Why is it that we like certain odours and not others? I personally can’t explain my fixation with the smell of petrol, boot polish, tea tree oil, lemons, lavender, rosemary bushes, geranium leaves, tomato plants, leather, tar, unlit pipe tobacco and star anise. I just love those smells and each one of them has a different, visceral, emotive effect on me.

On the other hand, the smell of certain foods can be delightful but the taste a real disappointment. At the top of that list for me is coffee, street vendors’ hot dogs and hot chocolate. Whereas something like a chilli has very little smell, but, well, we all know what those beautiful little beasts do to our tongues!

Here is a recipe that smells and tastes divine that my grandmother used to make:

Parkin

6oz plain flour
12oz medium oatmeal
1 tablespoon light muscavado sugar
1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger
a pinch of salt
1lb treacle
4oz unsalted butter
2 and 1/2 fl oz milk
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees/gas 4. Sift the flour into a bowl and stir in the oatmeal, sugar, ginger and salt. Dollop the treacle into a saucepan and heat gently with the butter - don't let it boil.

In another saucepan warm the milk so that you can dip your finger into it without burning, add the bicarbonate of soda and then pour this gently into the bowl with the flour and oatmeal and add the treacle and butter.

Fold everything together gently. Grease and flour a shallow baking tin and line with non-stick baking parchment paper. Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for about 40-45 minutes until the parkin is firm to the touch.

The longer you make this in advance the better - a week in advance is perfect, but 2 or 3 days will also be wonderful. Your parkin will be delightfully sticky and dense - but first you will have had to resist the temptation of eating it while it is cooling as it emanates the most deliciously treacly gingery smells imaginable. Parkins work surprisingly well as an accompaniment to cheddar and other hard cheeses as well as being perfect for tea.