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Cinnamon Bonnag
Cinnamon Bonnag is a traditional Manx recipe (from the Isle of Man) for a classic sodabread with mixed dried fruit, candied peel, golden syrup and cinnamon that's a classic tea-time treat. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Manx version of: Cinnamon Bonnag.
prep time
20 minutes
cook time
90 minutes
Total Time:
110 minutes
Serves:
10–12
Rating: 
Tags : Vegetarian RecipesMilk RecipesBaking RecipesCake RecipesBritish RecipesManx Recipes
Bonnag is a traditional Manx bread which, it is believed, has been around for hundreds of years.
Traditionally, Bonnag used to be a bread eaten daily by local Manxies, if there was a celebration or a party the bonnag would then be filled with fruit and currants as a treat for the family.
Bonnag is traditionally served with butter or some people like it dry, we like to give our guests the opportunity to try it many different ways. We also offer our guests fresh homemade marmalade, jam and a popular one Manx honey.
Bonnag and Scottish Bannock share an etymology and are similar in preparation. However, it does seem that the original spelling of bonnag was 'sonnag' and it was only after the introduction of modern baking soda did the bonnag spelling enter the vernacular. The Isle of Man's original grains would have been barley and oats not wheat.
The original Bonnag was a barley cake, about the size of a breakfast plate, cooked on a griddle. This was prevalent until the 1860s when chemical leavening (originally bicarbonate of soda with buttermilk and then double action baking soda) became popular and the traditional bonnags were replaced by the more cake-like forms of today, though barley was probably stillt the main grain.
Dried fruit also became prevalent in the mid 19th century and by the 1890s bonnag had become fruited breads leavened with soda with wheat flour becoming more common than barley. Indeed, the increased gluten in wheat flour is needed for a bonnag to rise properly. Though to be fair, imported wheat did not fully replace barley as the island's staple grain until the 1910s.
Manx slim cakes hearken back to the original method of making bonnag as a flat griddle cake.
Ingredients:
340g (12 oz) flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
170g (6 oz) butter
115g (4 oz) sugar
340g (12 oz) mixed dried fruit
114g (4 oz) candied peel, chopped
1 tbsp golden syrup (corn syrup)
300ml (1 1/4 cups) buttermilk.
Method:
Sift together the flour, bicarbonate of soda and ground cinnamon into a mixing bowl. Add the softened butter and rub in with your fingertips until you have a crumb-like consistency.
Stir in the sugar, dried fruit and candied peel, followed by the golden syrup. Work in just enough of the buttermilk to form a loose batter.
Spoon this into a greased loaf tin then transfer to an oven pre-heated to 180C (350F) and bake for 90 minutes, or until cooked through. When done the bonnag will be risen and golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre will emerge cleanly.
Allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack and allow to cool further.
Serve warm, sliced and spread with butter.
