British Recipes > Northamptonshire Cheese Cakes

How to make Northamptonshire cheese cakes:
This type of cheesecake or "curd tart" is traditionally found in many areas of the British Isles, particularly in rural areas. Cheese cakes such as these were know by many different names and were differently flavoured according to region. Sometimes they might have a little rum added and in some areas they were eaten as an accompaniment to roast meat. No celebration was complete without them on the table and they were baked for sheep-shearing festivals, Midsummer and Whitsuntide.



Ingredients

Northamptonshire Cheese Cakes
shortcrust or flaky pastry
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
a little almond extract
a little grated nutmeg
2 tablespoons currants
1 egg
1 pint sour milk
a little grated lemon rind
(see measure conversions for more information)

Method

- Stir butter, egg and sugar in a saucepan over a low heat until thick; do not allow to boil.
- Boil the sour milk until it separates into curds and whey.
- Strain off the curd, press well.
- Add it to the mixture when cold, with currants, spice flavourings.
- Line some patty pans with pastry, fill them with the mixture and bake in a hot oven 220oc/425of/gas mark 7 for about 10 minutes.


FORUM FRONT PAGE - JOIN OUR FORUM

A topic being discussed at the moment on our forum:

Land For Food Production

Sat May 15, 2010 9:18 pm // 8 comments // granny_nuts


I wonder just how much land it would take to feed a family of, say, 4? I know that if my family didn't buy fruit and veg we wouldn't have enough to eat but is self sufficiency down to amount of land or method of growing? Last year I overcrowded my small veg plot with counter-productive results like mildew and snail infestation that went unnoticed until we came to pick the tomatoes (all holes!). I wonder if anyone has ever been totally self providing or whether the local market and barter played...