Cream Tea - Cornish or Devonshire ??

There’s always been the debate hasn’t there about the cream tea, which is the correct way to eat it, the Cornish Way, jam then cream or the Devonshire way, cream then jam.

Having had a holiday in Cornwall recently and not getting my cream tea due to Covid and not ready to visit cafes etc., upon getting home I bought scones (I know, I should make them !) and clotted cream to partake in one of my favourite treats at home.  However, once ready to partake in my treat I realised we didn’t in fact have any jam so I used my mom’s homemade lemon curd instead.  This of course started the debate, again, between Mr KMT and I.  He’s a Devonshire eater and I’m Cornish.

So having bought enough scones to partake in at least 3 teas each, on his 2nd he decided to try both, one scone was duly Devonshired up and the other Cornished up, he disappeared to the dining room to eat his, which is his current WFH space, while I sat in my favourite spot, the old nursing chair in the corner of the breakfast room to devour mine.

So why do we like it different ways?  Personally I like the Cornish way as I like to add butter to my scone also.  I’m quite happy with a purely buttered warm scone, but it must be proper butter and lashings of it, so thick you leave teeth marks when eating it.  So when having a cream tea, my scone is buttered, then jam and then a dollop of the wonder that is, clotted cream.

Clotted cream, now there’s a thing. I’m not a cream fan.  I like a little drizzled over certain puddings but I don’t like it whipped.  I don’t like it adorning my hot chocolate, I’m happy with just the marshmallows !  At restaurants I’ll always ask if the cream is pouring or whipped and opt for ‘none thank you’ if it’s whipped.  So what is it about clotted cream that I just can’t resist?  I actually have absolutely no idea, I just love it and can’t resist it, especially on a good scone.  Which led me to look into how it’s made - very interesting and think I may have a go myself.  Interestingly too, it can only be called Cornish Clotted cream, if the milk used has come from Cornish Dairy cows.

So, I can hear you wondering, what was Mr KMT’s preference having tried both...

Cornish !  Get in !!  I’ve only been telling him that for 18 years. I said to him, “I keep telling you, you need to listed to me more, as I’m always right”!!!

This experiment however, did bring up another question; the correct pronunciation or scone!!??  Is it scone or scon?   I personally say scon.  But as Mr KMT rightly said, we don’t say ston, we say stone, however, we say shon not shone !!!!   I’ll leave that debate for another day…

Going back to the lemon curd instead of the jam, I think I actually prefer lemon curd !  Shock horror ! As you bite into the delectable clotted cream and all it’s creaminess you then get the sharp hit of the lemon curd and it was actually quite delicious.

While this was my Mom’s homemade I was eating this time, I do make it myself.  It’s quite easy, the ‘worst’ bit is standing at the hob stirring continuously waiting for it to thicken.  It’s not as thick and sturdy and shop bought and doesn’t last as long but it tastes...A.M.A.ZING !