Traditional Old Fashioned Scottish Flummery Recipe - Larder Love (2024)

Author: Karon Grieve Published : January 2018

Want to finish off a meal in real Scottish style? And a dash of whisky too of course. Then this wee recipe for traditional Scottish Flummery is definitely the way to go.

What is flummery?

Flummery (what a wonderful word) is an ancient recipe that has featured in Scottish feasts dating right back to the 15th century.

This is an easy flummery recipe but you will have to soak the oatmeal for 48 hours prior to making the dish. So plan ahead when you want to add this wee touch of Scottish magic to your dinner table.

What does flummery mean?

Flummery means this Scottish dessert of course. But the dictionary also explains flummery as ‘meaningless or insincere flattery or conventions’.

The complete list of ingredients and full instructions for making this recipe can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.

What’s in flummery?

As I’ve already said, this is an old recipe. Nowadays you’ll see recipes for Flummery that incorporate jelly and tinned cream. Well that’s not traditional flummery.

This flummery dessert takes it’s starchiness from the soaked oats. It’s body if you will, the stuff that holds it together. Not the jelly that features in some of the flummery recipes on the internet.

A note on the oats. I used Scottish oatmeal in my flummery recipe. The starch in oats varies. When you boil up the oat water the time can vary on how long your flummery dessert takes to thicken. This is all due to the starch in the oat water.

Don’t even think about the calories in this little dish, what with double cream, whipping cream, sugar and honey, oh, and a wee dash of whisky too! You just have to think of it as a wee Scottish treat perfect for a supper party.

How to make flummery

You soak the oatmeal in cold water for 48 hours and then strain it reserving the liquid and discarding the oatmeal itself. It is the oaty flavoured water you want for making this dessert.

You then mix this with the orange juice and sugar and bring to the boil stirring for at least 15 minutes until it is very thick. timings of this depend on the starchiness of the oatmeal.

Tip; If it doesn’t thicken to your liking add cornflour in a little water to thicken it up.

Remove from heat and allow to cool before stirring in the double cream then pour the flummery into 6 little glasses and chill for at least 30 minutes in the fridge.

Then mix the whisky with the honey and add a teaspoonful to each glass. Finally whip the cream and add this on top of the flummery finishing off with a sprinkling of grated zest from the orange.

How many servings?

This recipe for Flummery will make 6 small servings. As it is a rich dessert make your servings on the small side. I like to serve mine in these small upright glasses with tiny coffee spoons.

This recipe was taken from my Scottish party food book A Wee Taste Of Scotland.

Here are some other Scottish puds you might like to try;

Cranachan Cheesecake

Porridge Brulee

Cranachan Cream

Finally, if you do try this recipe don’t forget to leave a comment/star rating below as I just love to hear from readers. Want more Larder Love? Then follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter and sign up for my newsletter too of course.