Clotted cream

Good for English people in exile 


Note: made the slow cooker version and it did not work because the cream was allowed to boil.

The following recipe produces a result with the right taste, due to that leisurely, gentle cooking on top of a layer of milk which shields the slowly concentrating milk sugars in the cream from the excessive heat that would break them down. Our recipe is adapted from Jane Grigson's take on the subject, which appears in her invaluable Observer Guide To British Cookery.

The crust on top of the simmering milk/cream

The ingredients:

• 250 ml / approximately 8 fluid ounces heavy cream
• 500 ml / approximately 16 fluid ounces fresh milk

For this recipe you will need a double boiler deep enough to hold all the liquid with at least an inch left around the top, to avoid spillage.

In the top of the double boiler, pour in the milk. Then add the cream, stirring it in gently.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap / clingfilm and put it in a very cool place for at least 24 hours. You can of course do this in the refrigerator, but what works slightly better is if you leave the milk in a part of your house that is not as cold as the fridge but still quite cool (say around 45-50 degrees F) and safe from marauding life forms (such as cream-loving cats).

During the 24 hours it's allowed to sit, the cream will rise to the top of the milk. When it has risen, get rid of the plastic wrap and meanwhile put just enough water in the double boiler to avoid the whole business overflowing when you put the top of the boiler in.

Now comes the only tricky part. Heat the water to 82 degrees C (180 degrees F), no higher. (The first time we did this, we spent an hour or so "calibrating" the element on the stove by putting a candy-making thermometer in the water to make sure the temperature remained even, and then making a note of the right setting for that burner.) The temperature is important because the cream must not under any circumstances be allowed to boil. If it does, the cream won't solidify correctly afterwards.... so be careful about this.

Skim off the clotted cream

Once you've got the temperature of the water steady, carefully put the top bowl of the double boiler in place and leave it there untouched and uncovered (to avoid having steam or other condensation drip on the clotting cream) until the top of the cream crusts over to a nubbly yellow-cream colored surface. This will take at least 1 1/2 hours, but it is smart to allow a significantly longer time, as the thickness of your local cream may vary. Check the heat every now and then during this period, as the water will increase in temperature on the old burner setting due to the top pan of the double boiler being in place.

When the top of the cream has crusted over, remove the top of the double boiler from the bottom and cool it rapidly in a bowl of ice water. Store the bowl in the refrigerator until it's very cold.

Using a skimmer or wide flat spoon, gently remove the crust of thick cream from the bowl. Put it in another bowl along with a certain amount of the creamy liquid from underneath. (This helps the cream firm up, for some reason or other.)

The clotted cream ready to be refrigerated

Then put the remaining milk/cream mixture back over the hot water and allow another (thinner) crust to form. Again, this may take a good while, so count on at least another hour and a half. Remove this crust as well, adding it to the first.

When you're finished, the remaining milk can be used in cooking (it makes really good rice pudding, by the way, and baked goods like yeast buns). Drain off the last liquid from the removed clotted cream, put the clotted cream in a small clean jar, cover and store in the refrigerator. You need to use this within four or five days of making it.

Clotted cream can be:

• spread on scones or other small baked goods, with jam or jelly
• used as a rich and yummy cookie filling
• spooned over berries or other fresh fruit
• used as a topping for cakes and pies
• incorporated in pastries, sweet baking (especially brownies and fudge) and ice cream
• stirred into both sweet and savory sauces