Cranachan, Small Pots of Raspberry Pleasure
I’m a fool for all things nice and nothing beats the combination of toasted oats, raspberries, whisky and a spoonful of heather honey. This dish is a classic, so I did not tamper too much with it apart from sourcing the best ingredients I could find. I did substitute half of the cream with crème fraîche, I know it’s not traditional but I added it to lighten the dish. This way you can enjoy and even lick the glass without feeling ill and in need of a lie down.
The inspiration for making this dish came from spending time out in my kitchen garden admiring the bees at work pollinating the raspberry bush. Last summer Mum visited and she gave Mr.P a small bee house as a birthday gift. We attached the bee house to the wall in between the raspberry and blackberry bushes. There were no occupants last year as we had only put it up at the end of the summer however this year we were delighted and very excited to see movement and very happy residents residing in the bee house.
They are fascinating little creatures buzzing away round the raspberry bush so I’m expecting a bumper harvest. This particular cane is the Tulameen variety bearing plenty of large plump fruits and the fragrance is what I like the most, a true sweet raspberry perfume.
I thought I should keep the dish simple and simplicity is exactly the way to describe a classic cranachan. I dug out the bottle of good quality Scottish whisky that Mr.P got for Christmas and along with the jar of heather honey, cranachan is the obvious choice.
I served them in these small glasses,however it’s the perfect dish to make in small kilner jars and to take along on a picnic. I would suggest however you bake a few shortbread instead of these fragile toasted oat wafers.
Toasted Oat Wafers
- 15g rolled oats
- 70g fondant
- 50g glucose
Preheat the oven to 200 °C and spread the oats on a baking tray. Toast the oats in the preheated oven, keep an eye on it as it does burn easily, stir the oats once or twice to evenly toast , leave the oats to cool.
Place a silpat on a large baking tray before boiling the sugar.
Weigh the glucose and fondant into a medium non-stick saucepan, melt over a moderate heat, once melted increase the heat and boil till the sugar reaches 160°C.
Pour the boiling hot sugar onto the silpat and leave to cool at room temperature.
Once the sugar is cooled completely break it up using a rolling pin and then powder the sugar and toasted oats using a very powerful blender such as a Thermomix.
Reduce the oven heat to 160°C and turn the fan setting off.
Line a baking tray with parchment paper, use a cookie cutter and sprinkle the sugar powder evenly onto the parchment paper in the desired shapes, I used a 5cm diameter ring cutter.
Bake in the pre-heated oven for approximately 10 minutes, until the sugar dissolves and forms a clear crisp disk.
Let the wafers cool completely, they will be super fragile.
Cranachan
- 20g rolled oats
- 100ml double cream
- 100ml crème fraîche
- 20g icing sugar
- 50g Scottish heather honey
- 1tbs Scottish Whisky, or to taste
- 2 punnets of raspberries
Preheat the oven to 200 °C and spread the oats on a baking tray. Toast the oats in the preheated oven, keep an eye on it as it does burn easily, stir the oats once or twice to toast evenly, leave the oats to cool completely.
Select four serving glasses for serving, set aside on a tray.
Select the best raspberries, about half the amount, set them aside.
Lightly crush the remaining raspberries with a fork, do not mash too much.
Soft whip the double cream, whisky and the icing sugar, fold the crème fraîche and the crushed raspberries into the soft whipped cream mixture.
Spoon half of the cream mixture in to the selected glasses, arrange a few raspberries, scatter a sprinkle of toasted oats and top with a little honey, repeat the process and finish each glass with the remaining raspberries, scatter the toasted oats and serve with a toasted oat wafer.
Serves 4
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Hi Madalene,
i cant find raspberries or good quality strawberries for making cranachan here in india!
pls help. suggest me a substitute.
rash
Delicious!!!!! I love your blog
A definite classic. When I first tried this a few years ago, I was sceptical, and was floored by how something so simple could taste so delicious. Your additions, like the heather honey, sound very special!
This looks just lovely. Sadly, however, it will be a while before it is raspberry season here in Oz – and when it is they cost an arm and a leg!
The best raspberries I have ever tasted came from a bush in an aunt’s garden in the Westchester area near Sheffield; what a difference!
This verrine looks so elegant and irresistible!!!!
Dear Jayne,
Fondant is a sugar syrup that is crystallized to a smooth, creamy white mass and is used for, icing cakes and cake decorations and as a ingredient in baking.
You can buy it from most good quality baking shops.
Kind Regards
Madalene
hi what is fondant it was in your cranachan recipe