Boy, am I a "thread killer" or what? (embarrased smile)

Cheers,

Ron

Clotted cream is very thick, like a very runny Brie or Camembert in texture, but not sour or cheesy - it's more like condensed milk than any of the things you list. When I was in Canada recently I found something in the supermarket called 'Devon Cream' which was pretty close to clotted cream in texture, but it didn't have the slight crust I would normally expect.

The clotted cream we had at the Maids of Honor in Kew had the consistency of very soft cream cheese, and it was the same color and yet is not sweet at all but like the softest whipped butter, sort of :)
Here in NYC there is a place called Tea & Sympathy where you can get some scones with your tea to tide you over until you get back to the UK !

No, Ron, you're not a thread killer! Clotted cream is dee-lish on scones. It's in between sour cream and heavy cream. In fact, you can make your own version with a combination of those two ingredients. You'll have to wait for me to dig up the recipe proportions, though. It's handy to make your own because the imported bottle of clotted cream that you buy here at specialty stores costs several dollars :( but I suppose still cheaper than a flight over to London!

Thanks for the clarification! (pun intended)

BTW, why is it that there are (in my semi-urban area) resturants with French, Italian, Greek, Chinese, Japanese, Lebonese, German, and even Australian cuisines and there appears to be (at least locally) nothing that offers "traditional British cuisine?" For instance, steak and kidney pie, blood pudding, etc.

Just a thought.

Cheers,

Ron

In a thread of yummy recipes, this one tops them all (pun intended)!

Clotted Cream

1 cup heavy cream, room temperature
1/3 cup sour cream, room temperature
1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar

In a bowl, whip heavy cream to soft peaks. Whisk in sour cream and sugar. Beat until thick. Chill in refrigerator until ready to serve on top of delicious scone.

Not as authentic as Devonshire clotted cream, but will hold you over until you get there.

In the USA, there are several places on line to buy British groceries, including bottled Devon cream
just one source can be found at BBCAmerica.com

Thanks to all for the recipes! Elaine, I had never thought of checking BBCAmerica.com for grocer items! I went to their website and they have Clotted Cream and Double Devon Cream - do you or anyone else know what the difference would be?

Now I can't wait to have scones, strawberry jam, clotted cream and English tea and pretend I'm back in London!

I'll bet true experts will comment further, but I got this from

www.britishdelights.com

"Both Devon and Cornwall - counties in the South West of England - are famous for their thick cream, which is mainly produced on farms, and in small dairies.
The most famous of all is 'Clotted Cream' which achieves its thick clotted texture by heating cream of high-fat breed cows, such as the Jersey type, in pans, traditionally made of copper but latterly stainless steel, to about 190?f and allowing it to cool slowly. In the farmhouses, the pans were heated crudely over a fire or stove and the cream was rich in acid and aroma-producing bacteria. Dairy or factory methods were much better controlled, using steam heated pans. The cream is usually packed in shallow trays a few inches deep and forms a yellow crusty surface. The consistency is thick and heavy, almost like treacle, and is traditionally served by scooping the cream out into cups or small cartons."

DietDoctor : Probably because of the notorious rap that British cuisine carries with it ! (and not one that I share, BTW). However if you crave the stuff you mention, how about checking with your local 'Fish and Chippie' ? Here in Ontario, mine's no more than a greasy spoon but they make the best cod and chips you could imagine. However, in a freezer in the back they also carry incredible homemade steak pies, steak and kidney pies, scottish potato bread, and even Devonshire clotted cream (imported). Never thought I'd find such stuff in a place like that, but there you go.

And while we're on the subject of British food, is it only me or does anyone else love those sausages (can't remember the name but it's something like "Savaloy") with a dollop of HP Sauce on the side ? Delicious, but I can't get those here.

Sorry Elaine, It is meant to be 1/4 pint.
I am working on British pints, so a 1/4 pint would be equal to 5 american fluid ounces or 150 millilitres. That's what my husband tells me after pouring over a book for 10 minutes, this is all way too confusing for me! :-)
You need to feel the dough and add more liquid if not soft enough, because flour differs so much. I would say rather add a little too much liquid to start with because it is easier to add a little more flour than liquid.
Darn! This is too complicated, should we just get together and make them? haha! Well next time you're in Africa..... :-)

I got in such a need for a quick scone-fix, I went in to a Starbucks today and got one. I feel so ashamed of myself.

Well Degas, at least you managed to hold out from 08/28/2003 to 06/18/2005
Try not to feel too ashamed :-)

Mischka, holding out is not one of my strong points when it comes to food. I blame my dear old mom and that every 1.5 hours feeding plan she had me on as a baby.

Our Scottish friends who taught us the proper way to pronounce Culloden told us that "scoon" applied to the stone, not the tea-time delicacy.

For northerners scone rhymes with gone (this is the correct way, obviously ;) ), for southerners scone rhymes with stone.

The cheese or date varieties are the best.

My neice was saying scon (gone) when we met up with her in London a few years back. I was like "huh?" Anyway, just give me a fluffy warm plain one with lots of clotted cream and strawberry jam..I haven't had one since that trip..three years already? This is awful!!!!! Degas, I feel your pain!!!!

The pronunciation of "scone" (among other things) was also discussed on this thread:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34368153

topping for the gratuitously rude tmk649

The best scones are made by the ladies of Scone