Coventry Godcakes are baked puff pastry

pasties Pasties (singular pasty or pastie) are patches that cover a person's nipples and areolae, typically self-adhesive or affixed with adhesive. They are usually worn in pairs. They originated as part of burlesque shows, allowing dancers to perform ...

containing sweet

mincemeat Mincemeat is a mixture of chopped apples and dried fruit, distilled spirits or vinegar, spices, and optionally, meat and beef suet. Mincemeat is usually used as a pie or pastry filling. Traditional mincemeat recipes contain meat, notably beef ...

, which originate from the city of

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

, England. They are in the form of a right-angled

isosceles triangle In geometry, an isosceles triangle () is a triangle that has two Edge (geometry), sides of equal length and two angles of equal measure. Sometimes it is specified as having ''exactly'' two sides of equal length, and sometimes as having ''at le ...

, marked with three slits on the top and sprinkled with sugar. The triangular shape and the markings are said to be reference to the

Holy Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, three ...

. Godcakes are a New Year tradition in the city, and are given by

godparents Within Christianity, a godparent or sponsor is someone who bears witness to a child's baptism (christening) and later is willing to help in their catechesis, as well as their lifelong spiritual formation. In both religious and civil views, ...

to their godchildren along with a blessing for the year ahead. In 2010, Leigh Waite, a local

Blue Badge Tourist Guide The Blue Badge tourist guide is a guide who has been certified as a qualified and accredited guide for tourists in the United Kingdom. History The initial certifying organization, originally called the Guild of Guide Lecturers, was founded to ...

with an interest in baking, was given a recipe by a local historian David McGrory. Leigh tried out the recipe, producing them to sell during the annual Heritage Open Weekend event in the city. In August 2012, the Coventry Godcake was officially re-launched at a celebration event at

Coventry Transport Museum Coventry Transport Museum (formerly known as the Museum of British Road Transport) is a transport museum, located in Coventry city centre, England. It houses the largest collection of British-made road transport held in public ownership. It is ...

attended by the Lord Mayor and guests, including the Coventry

Mummers Mummers were bands of men and women from the medieval to early modern era who (during public festivities) dressed in fantastic clothes and costumes and serenaded people outside their houses, or joined the party inside. Costumes were varied and mi ...

. The triangles created in country lanes where three lanes meet derive their names from the Coventry Godcake. A triangle is created by the passing of farm vehicles, originally horse-drawn carts, as they turn. The so-called "god cakes", which are not particular to any one city or county, take their name from these triangular pastries.

References

{{reflist British cakes British pastries English cuisine Culture in Coventry History of Coventry

See also

References