Bonfire treats

The modern day celebration of bonfire night appears to have originated in the late Victorian times when organised displays started to be the norm. But at some time in the 20^th century, the focus switched to domestic celebrations with children creating their own guys and standing on street corners asking for a ‘penny for the guy’ and collecting wood.

Combined with the firework display was a bonfire and the family event would be accompanied by food. Initially jacket potatoes or chestnuts would be cooked in the burning embers before post war interest in entertaining demanded more lavish affairs.

The 1950s Book of Good Housekeeping recommends that food should be easy to serve and to eat. ‘A good soup (prepared beforehand and readily warmed up) will be appreciated’ says the writer. And here is their recipe for tomato soup.

Certainly the soup coupes or Petit Marmites of the day produced by Denby offer the best possible vessels for drinking it.

‘The main course should be meat patties or hot dogs and a variety of pickles and chutneys.’ he or she continued. And the sturdy ovenproof nature of Denby Manor Green provides an ideal solution for the warming and serving of the food. Hot dogs are certainly traditional bonfire night fare.

Although we credit the Americans for hot dogs - via Frankfurt, of course - some historians believe they can be traced back to Nero. Whatever the truth, American President Rosevelt can take the credit for introducing the hot dog to the UK: Hosting a picnic in Hyde Park for King George VI in 1939, where it is recorded that the King liked them so much that he asked for more.

Extra warmth on a chilly night can come from hot chocolate with marshmallows served in Denby Manor Green tankards. Or perhaps some yummy freshly-baked traditional Yorkshire parkin rich in treacle and syrup.

This recipe for parkin actually comes from a 1930s book called the Manual of Modern Cookery, published a few years before the outbreak of WW11 when fireworks were abolished for the duration.