Digest Number 764 (Clotted Cream)

[bluesqueak]

> Just what is the cream clotted with, I ask. 
> Obviously, I'm American as well.  To me, the word
> "clot" should never be used in conjunction with food
> as it presents some very unpleasant imagery.  :)  I am
> very afraid of clotted cream as it sounds similar to
> what happens to my milk when I haven't disposed of it
> by its due date.  :)  I really need to know what
> clotted cream is before I could feel comfortable about
> eating it.  Hey, it took me quite some time to
> convince myself that eating cottage cheese was a good
> idea (are British folk familiar with this?)!

<Snip>
> ~Nicole, who highly enjoys any discussions that help
> her to learn more about another culture.

The joke in the West Country (the district where the process was 
invented) is that clotted cream is made by persuading the cow to jump 
up and down to 'clot' (thicken) its milk.

But in real life, you can feel safe about clotted cream. It's not 
clotted *with* anything - instead you scald the milk at 182 
Farenheit, removing a lot of the water content, then allow it to cool 
overnight in a nice sterile dairy. 

The cream is then skimmed off - since most of its water content has 
been removed by the scalding it is incredibly thick (in British West 
Country dialect 'clotted'). If you like cream, you will adore clotted 
cream.

And yes, we do know about cottage cheese. It comes with limp lettuce 
and a carrot stick, to be eaten while on a diet.[grin]

Pip