Build your own Cranachan, take 2

Once again I take to the kitchen in an effort to create this most traditional Scottish dessert. I attempted this once before, but somehow it all went wrong.

If you have oats, cream, and raspberries, you can make Cranachan in some form. Some will say that the recipe is nothing without a shot of whisky in the cream, but the recipe I have specifies either vanilla or rum for flavouring the cream. It’s the first Maw Broon’s Cookbook, which I assume packs a respectable amount of time-honoured culinary weight.

You will find Cranachan on many dessert menus around the country, and all seem to have their own way of doing it. Some stack it high, others make Cranachan-inspired ice cream or tarts. That’s the beauty of it - it’s just so tasty and comforting whatever you do.

Step 1. You will need some oats. Luckily, my recent obsession with oats has left me with a glutton of them. You will then need to bring out a slightly nutty flavour in said oats by lightly toasting them, either in the oven or in a dry frying pan. I speak from experience when I advise you to watch them closely, lest they burn and fill your home with smoke.

Step 2. Go to the farmers’ market, allow yourself to be overcome with greed and buy far too many raspberries. Forgive yourself.

Step 3. Whip up some cream with a bit of caster sugar and a drop of whatever you fancy for flavouring. I had no vanilla and so far have not developed a love of whisky, so rum it was. (*hic*)

Step 4. Add some of your toasted oats into the cream, making sure the cream stays the dominant force in the mix.

I have not included any measurements because I didn’t use any. And it doesn’t matter anyway -this isn’t that kind of dessert. It’s this kind of dessert:

Happy Scotland-loving weekend.