Those Cakes We Like ... Really Want To Know What A 'Posset' Is

Today, we are solving mysteries!

What is a posset? This is a posset. In a tart! Madness!

I read a lot of historical fiction as a teenager, and I still do now, although I tend to lean more towards fantasy for the escapism factor these days. One thing that I always wanted to know — but never bothered to look up — was what this “posset” was that ailing people and young children were given before bed in all these historical stories. My mind always pictured some sort of medication or warm drink to help with sleep. Imagine my surprise then, when I began to hear the word “posset” on cooking shows. A few months ago, I found a recipe for a lemon posset tart with raspberries by Queen of Cakes Dame Mary Berry. Researching it fascinated me, and inspired me to take Dame Mary’s recipe and adjust it so that it is more closely linked to its past, whilst still being every bit as much of a delicious treat.

A Slice of History

The modern posset is a luxurious dessert, made from cream which is boiled with sugar and citrus juice. The cream based posset has been around since the days of William Shakespeare, and is mentioned in many of his plays including The Merry Wives of Windsor, Hamlet, and MacBeth (where it is used as a vessel for the delivery of poison). These Shakespearean possets were either cream-based and thickened with biscuit by the rich, and with bread by the poor, or a milk version which continued to exist alongside the newer version despite predating it by at least two centuries. This early version of the posset was a sweetened drink made from hot milk which was curdled using wine or ale. The milk-based posset was considered medicinal and was frequently recommended as a treatment for colds and fevers. One of the most famous patients to be prescribed a posset as a remedy was King Charles I (before he lost his head). Interestingly, the posset seems to be a dish that never really gained popularity outside of England and the Netherlands; its early form may well have helped to form the myth that English food is flavourless and uninspiring.

King Charles I and William Shakespeare, famous fans of the posset, both as medicine, and a literary device,.

The posset of my childhood literary adventures was most likely the cream variety, thickened with biscuit or bread, its association with children and the elderly being a result of the dish’s soft texture, which made it perfect for those who were deficient in the dental department, or who suffered from sensitive stomachs and required soft, bland food. It was only in the 20th century that the citrus element was introduced and the modern posset was created. Even so, it remains a fairly uncommon dish, unlikely to be found in restaurants and on the tables of most home cooks. Despite this, it is a rich, tasty dessert which is very easy to make and is well-suited to being used as a filling for a tart, or as a citrusy alternative to the pudding you Americans seem to enjoy so much.

This recipe uses Limoncello, alongside grated lemon zest and a little bit of lemon juice, harking back to the old practice of curdling the posset with alcohol.

For fellow members of the Dead Pancreas Society, the carbohydrates for this recipe are 348g for the whole tart. I’d suggest serving it as either 6 or 8 portions at 58g or 43.5g of carbohydrates per portion.

Your Equipment

Digital kitchen scales

Mixing bowl or food processor

Pie dish (8 inch)

Baking parchment

Rolling pin

Saucepan

Cheese grater or other tool for finely zesting lemons (I have a very nice hand held one I picked up at a local Food Festival several years ago).

Wooden Spoon

Your Ingredients

A surprisingly simple dish to make, the most complicated part is the pastry.

For the pastry:

175 g All-Purpose Flour / Plain Flour

75 g Cold Butter, cut into cubes

1 tbsp Confectioner’s Sugar / Icing Sugar

1 Large Egg, beaten

For the posset filling:

600 ml Heavy Cream / Double Cream

150 g Sugar

2 Lemons (juice and zest)

25 ml Limoncello (replace one lemon’s juice with another 25ml of Limoncello if you want a more alcoholic dessert).

To serve:

200g fresh raspberries

A little extra confectioner’s sugar / icing sugar for dusting (optional)

Pouring cream (optional)

The Important Bit

You’ll need to fully bake your pastry case and allow it to cool to room temperature before it even sees the posset filling.

The first thing to do is combine your flour (175 g), confectioner’s sugar (1 tbsp), and butter (75 g) in your mixing bowl and rub between your fingers until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs. Alternatively put them into the food processor and use the pulse setting until you achieve a breadcrumb-like texture.

Add your beaten egg and mix (using a wooden spoon or the food processor) until the mixture forms a stiff dough.

Tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead it lightly until it is smooth.

Place a square of baking parchment which is more than big enough to completely cover the top of your pie dish onto your kitchen counter. Lightly sprinkle a little flour over the top, and place the pastry dough in the centre. Use your rolling pin to roll out your pastry until it is big enough to cover your pie dish.

The easiest way to line your pie dish without breaking the fragile rolled pastry too much is to use the baking parchment to position the pastry over the pie dish, then turn it upside down and gently push the pastry into place. Trim the pastry to fit the dish, and use the trimmings to fix any tears or gaps.

Prick the pastry base with a fork and put it into the fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes.

Pre-heat your oven to 350F / 180 C.

Line your pastry case with baking parchment and fill it with baking beads or dried rice or lentils.

Bake the pastry case in the oven for 15 minutes, then remove it from the oven and take out the baking parchment and whatever you have used to fill it.

Return the pastry case to the oven for another 5-7 minutes, until the pastry is fully cooked and is a pale golden colour. Leave it on the counter to cool to room temperature.

Leave the pastry case to cool to room temperature before you fill .

In your saucepan, place your heavy cream (600 ml), sugar (150 g) and lemon zest (from 2 lemons). Heat on a medium-low heat until the cream is just boiling, stirring constantly until the sugar has fully dissolved.

It really is as simple as boiling the cream, sugar and lemon zest.

Remove the cream from the heat and let it cool for 5 minutes.

Stir the lemon juice (use 1 or 2 lemons) and Limoncello (25 ml or 50 ml depending on how much lemon juice you used) through the cream mixture until it thickens a little and leave it for a further 5 minutes to thicken more.

Pour the posset mixture into the pastry case and carefully place it into the refrigerator to set for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.

Do not panic if the posset feels like it is too runny to set, have faith in the process and you will be rewarded.

When the posset has set, top the tart with raspberries, and dust with a little extra confectioner’s sugar / icing sugar, if using.

What did I tell you? It sets beautifully.

Serve cold, with a generous drizzle of pouring cream.

Victorian children never had it so good.

I’ll be back next month with potato bread.

Until then ...

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