Crowdie is a type of soft, fresh cheese made from cows' milk, traditionally from Scotland. The cheese was traditionally made for domestic use by

crofters A croft is a fenced or enclosed area of land, usually small and arable, and usually, but not always, with a crofter's dwelling thereon. A crofter is one who has tenure and use of the land, typically as a tenant farmer, especially in rural a ...

and smallholders in the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland S ...

and

Islands An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

, using milk from the family cow. Its origins date as far back as the Viking era and possibly even earlier to the time of the Picts. Crowdie is a variety of lactic cheese. These rely primarily on the action of the bacteria converting the milk lactose to lactic acid to create

curd Curd is obtained by coagulating milk in a sequential process called curdling. It can be a final dairy product or the first stage in cheesemaking. The coagulation can be caused by adding rennet or any edible acidic substance such as l ...

s. When the milk acidity becomes high enough, the milk will coagulate even without the use of rennet. Crowdie used to be made by letting raw skimmed milk warm on a windowsill or by the fire until it was thickened naturally by the lactic acid which formed as the milk soured. The thickened milk was then heated gently until curds were formed. The warm curds were hung up to drip in a muslin cloth to drain the whey, then mixed with salt and sometimes a little cream to make a soft, crumbly cheese with a high moisture content and short shelf life. The natural souring of the unpasteurised milk gave the cheese its fresh, slightly citric taste. Following World War II, crowdie production on a domestic scale declined with the passing of crafting traditions. Its survival is credited to Susannah Stone, who continued to make it near the Ross-shire village of Tain. Apparently one day in 1962, after making too much, she offered the surplus to a local grocer. Her traditional crowdie became popular enough that she and her husband began to produce it commercially with their other traditional Scottish cheeses. Crowdie is now usually made from pasteurised milk in which most of the bacteria have been killed, so lactic acid is added to the milk to begin the souring process. The cheese is often eaten with

oatcake An oatcake is a type of flatbread similar to a cracker or biscuit, or in some versions takes the form of a pancake. They are prepared with oatmeal as the primary ingredient, and sometimes include plain or wholemeal flour as well. Oatcake ...

s and recommended before a ceilidh, as it is said to alleviate the effects of drinking

whisky Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Various grains (which may be malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden ca ...

. There are several variations on the basic crowdie: one variety known as "black crowdie" or is made by mixing crowdie with double cream and rolling it in a mixture of pinhead oatmeal and crushed black peppercorns. is a crowdie mixed with wild garlic and white and red pepper. is rolled in crumbled flaked hazelnuts and almonds. One of the most popular ways of eating the cheese is to turn it into a dessert called "cream crowdie" or " cranachan", traditionally eaten as part of a Burns supper. The recipe usually includes double cream, oats, whisky, honey and raspberries.

References

External links

Cheese.com entry
{{Scottish cuisine Cow's-milk cheeses Cottage cheese Scottish cheeses