Carrots were utilized a lot during WW2..
They were promoted as a secret weapon against the enemy enabling pilots to see in the dark and civilians on the home-front were encouraged to eat up their carrots to help them see during the black-out and children warmed to “Doctor Carrot”- the children’s best friend.
Carrots were also rather sweet when cooked and used as a replacement for sugar or other foodstuffs in short supply because of the decrease in imported goods.
Today I tried carrots in a “mock apricot flan” recipe from the Ministry of Food. It was incredibly sweet and perfectly acceptable and I’m sure rather popular during WW2. I made mine into small mini-flans and served them with some mock cream
Mock apricot flan
- 1 lb finely grated young carrots
- 4 drops almond essence
- 4 tablespoons of plum jam (6 tablespoons in North America)
- 4 tablespoons water (6 tablespoons in North America)
- Shortcrust pastry/oatmeal pastry/potato pastry
Method
- Line a large 9 inch flan dish or pie dish with shortcrust pastry (or make small individual pies like I did)
- Bake without filling in a moderate oven for 25 minutes until golden brown
- Meanwhile place the grated carrots, jam, water and almond essence into a saucepan
- Bring to a simmer and cook gently and stir for around 20 minutes until you achieve a thick pulp
- Spoon into the cooked flan case and return to oven for 5 minutes
- Serve with custard or mock cream
