A china cabinet display with a treacle tart on a vintage cake stand and stacks of dishes around. The homemade, hanging heart is a lovely nod to England.

Treacle Tart, English Heart- Looks like a Wonderful English Cottage

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This week the children and I are making a luscious treacle tart as well as a simple English heart. 

If you have been following along with my posts, you may have gathered by now that my family loves sweet treats and making our home feel cozy and warm.

In thinking about this week’s blog post, I decided there was no better way to make our home sweet, than by making an English-inspired treacle tart. And no better way to make our home look like a cozy English cottage, than to sew a hanging English heart.

Both of these lovely, sweet treats are simple to make- so come join us for a week of family time and fun as we celebrate an English-inspired tradition of making treacle tarts and English hearts.

A handwritten recipe for treacle tart alongside some vintage books and decorations.

~Golden Syrup~

Clued in by some of my earlier posts, you may have discovered my appreciation for Golden Syrup. Golden Syrup is so delicious that you can literally eat it right off the spoon. It is a sticky- sweet ingredient that is commonly found in English grocery stores and is often used in baked goods. 

If I had to describe Golden Syrup, as an American-to an American, I would say that it is a butterscotch flavored syrup that picks up warm notes of caramel and toffee. A cross between corn syrup, honey, and maple syrup- a delightful marriage of warm flavors.

Now, Golden syrup is a bit harder to source in America, but luckily, you can sometimes find it in the international section of Publix. (I also plan to make some of my own golden syrup to share as a mini post later.)

As mentioned above, a treacle tart features golden syrup as a key ingredient. It also features homemade short crust pastry, homemade breadcrumbs, and fresh- squeezed lemon juice.

With this in mind, if I have piqued your interest, and whetted your appetite, follow me to the kitchen- where we can learn to prepare this delicate dessert together.

Golden Syrup being used in a treacle tart recipe.

~A Treacle Tart's Creation~

A handwritten recipe for English Treacle Tart.
*Annoyingly, I smugged the ink in the last moment.

A treacle tart is a new recipe for me, and I was surprised to learn that it contains lemon juice. I guess in my mind, I did not link a citrus flavor with the sweet properties of Golden Syrup. 

Having now made the dessert, I can certainly see how the lemon flavor cuts the sweetness of the golden syrup. All the while, giving the tart a slight citrusy taste to the balance out the otherwise, sweet buttery tart. 

However delicious the original recipe may be, the next time I make this recipe, I would like to try it without the lemon to see if the tart reminds me more of a transparent pie or a pecan pie.

Again, I was surprised to learn that the treacle tart has breadcrumbs as a key ingredient. The fresh breadcrumbs are what gives the tart it’s stogy texture. They also help to soak up all the luscious golden syrup. 

This time, I used a mix of my homemade bread leftovers and some store -bought bread that I had on hand. However, next time I would only use my own homemade bread, as I think it creates a sweeter flavor and overall better mouthfeel.

Bread in a basket with a vintage basket liner.
*My leftover homemade bread is behind the storebought slices. You may recall the lovely vintage basket-liner from my "Biscuits and Bunting" post.
Bread for the English tart beside a vintage flower vase and a homemade candle.
*The bread I had on hand was not stale, so I simply popped it in the oven for a few minutes to make it just crisp. The vintage flower vase was a fun one dollar find, and the candle is a homemade soy candle that I hand-poured into a vintage bread dish. (How fitting, I may have planned that.)

~The Pastry and the Filling~

Grated butter and flour in a bowl-ready to be made into my short crust pastry.
*Frozen, grated butter, flour, and cinnamon. (The cinnamon can be omitted, but I find it adds a lovely warmth and depth of flavor to the recipe.)
Short crust dough draped over a pie dish.
*The pastry draped over the pie dish. I find if you use the rolling pin to act as another "hand", you can carefully roll the delicate dough onto the pie dish with less effort and more success.
Short crust pastry dough rolled out with heart shapes cut out of the pastry.
*Sweet, heart cutouts to decorate the top of the treacle tart.
Fresh lemons, ready to be squeezed and added to my treacle tart recipe.
Breadcrumbs being added to golden syrup for the treacle tart base.
*Fresh breadcrumbs being added to the warm golden syrup and lemon juice.
An unbaked treacle tart with heart decorations.
*The filling is complete and the heart, pastry decorations are on top. The tart is now ready to be placed in the oven and baked. (Note: I did use a Pyrex pie dish to bake my tart in-while not technically correct-it is what I had on hand, and it did the job. I am a big fan of using what you already have in your cupboards.
The baked treacle tart, ready to be served.
*Ta-da! The treacle tart is now out of the oven and ready to be eaten. I can almost smell the cinnamon and citrussy, sweet flavors now!

~A New Method, An Old Recipe~

After making the short crust and the treacle tart filling, I was feeling quite tired. So, I was slightly annoyed when I suddenly remembered that I needed to make whipped cream for the top. Oh dear! So instead of lugging the heavy mixer out, I decided to try a fun new method with the children.

In leu of whisking the heavy whipping cream by hand, we placed the cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla into a Ziplock bag. We then took turns shaking the cream until it turned into whipped cream.

I will be honest; the first attempt ended in a slightly curdled cream. For there were simply too many hot, eager hands vigorously shaking that Ziplock bag! However, I am happy to report that our second attempt was much more successful. I thought I would share this idea (although not completely my own), as it is simple. If I can save one busy mom another mixing bowl to wash up…then it is an idea worth mentioning. 

Aside from topping a treacle tart with whipped cream, English people also eat treacle tarts with custard or single or double cream. You could even add vanilla ice cream when the tart it hot. The possibilities are endless: your tastes, your ideas, your dessert.

Making homemade whipped cream by shaking it in a Ziplock bag.
*Of course, an obvious comment needs to be added here: There is the possibility of a huge mess when four children, and shaking cream, are involved. Hey ho, we managed to make our whipped cream with only minor casualties.

~Sharing the Treacle Tart~

Treacle tart with homemade whipped cream, ready to be served.
*Is it correct to call our whipped cream, "whipped", or should it be called shaken cream?
Treacle tart on a vintage cake stand with vintage candleholders beside it.
*Vintage candlesticks found at a thrift store for a bargain! They add a touch of old fashioned glamor. The pink table linen was from my grandmother. I like to use fabrics on tables to create soft textures and layered looks.
Baked treacle tart with homemade fabric heart.
*Any opportunity to stage a space, right? Who says simple things cannot be made beautiful?
A table displaying a treacle tart and some vintage fabrics and candlesticks.
*A slice of tart removed with a beautiful English dessert server-ready to be a dessert delight.

~ Vintage Pie Dishes~

Not surprisingly, I find old pie baking dishes lovely and quaint. While I do find old kitchen dishes beautiful, I do not use many of my vintage finds for baking or for serving. This is just an abundance of caution- in regard to lead paint- that was commonly used in dishes long ago. I try to be aware of this because I have young children.

However, I do inspect any dishes for cracks or chips. I try to choose what I use for serving sparingly. Any truly old pieces- I use for display on open shelves or in a china cabinet. This way the dishes can be admired but not used for daily purposes.

That being said, I was very tempted to use one of my favorite vintage heart pie dishes for this recipe. (And yes, I know my recipe features a tart not a pie.) In the end, I used my trusty glass Pyrex pie dish. I will, however, attach a photograph of it for you to admire.

…Enter the vintage pie dishes.

Vintage pie dishes on display in a china cabinet.

~English Heart~

When I lived in England, I often saw fabric hanging hearts in people’s homes or for sale in village shops. I found those adorable hearts, charming as they gave almost any space a whimsical feel. 

Having come back to America to live, I decided I would create a simple pattern for my own hanging hearts. This way, I could sew and scatter those hearts all around my home.

Equally, I was fascinated with the way English people chose to display these adorable, fancy heart decorations. Often, they were hanging on a bedroom dresser drawer, a bed post, in an entryway, or in a quaint kitchen. Their warm material gives a soft texture to an otherwise hard object.

~How the Heart was Made~

I made this pink and gingham heart alongside my four children- so I didn’t expect it to be perfect. (Even without them by my side, I don’t expect it to be perfect.)

The pink and white gingham was a thrift purchase that I got for one dollar. I took the fabric home and washed it, and I have enjoyed using it as a topper for my jam jars- and now for my English hearts.

Vintage ribbon is lovely, and I was thrilled to recently purchase quite a collection of it from a thrift store. I also used one my dried mini flower bouquets (that I previously made as a school project with my children) as a decorative accent to compliment the heart’s fabric.

In the past, I have filled these hearts with rice as a filler, but this time I decided to use pillow stuffing- as I had this on hand. In my opinion, adding a bit of dried lavender to each heart before sewing it closed adds an extra special touch.

~Pinning, Sewing, Stuffing~

A hanging heart pattern being cut out of fabric.
*Paper patterns are easy and inexpensive to make. Once the pattern is cut out of the paper, the paper pattern can then be pinned onto the fabric, ensuring it stays still while cutting the fabric underneath.
Fabric heart with hanging loop being pinned between two layers of heart fabric.
*By placing the ribbon hanger between the two pieces of cut fabric, you can turn the sewn pieces inside out- revealing the hanging hook at the top of the heart.
Using a vintage sewing machine to sew a fabric, English heart.
*The two layers of my English heart (right sides together) pinned and being sewn together on my grandmother's sewing machine.
The supplies for my English hanging heart.
*English heart supplies laid out on the table and ready for use. Dried lavender and adorable buttons add a bit of extra special charm and beauty.
The hanging heart being filled with dried lavender before being stuffed with pillow stuffing.
*Leaving a small unsewn section in the top of the fabric is important for two reasons: It allows you to turn the fabric inside out- ensuring that the pretty sides of the fabric are revealed. It also allows you to add your stuffing and dried lavender before hand sewing shut.

~The Many Places to Hang an English Heart, How to Decide?!~

It may be apparent by now that I also enjoy staging little areas in my home. When I make a new creation or find a new treasure, I often place the item in multiple places before finding its final home.  Of course, these English hearts are no exception.  So, I tried my newest heart out in several locations. I have, of course, included photographs for you to see.

However, and wherever, you decide to display your English hearts, these simple, lovely hearts make great inexpensive gifts. You can have full creative reign as you mix and match fabrics and ribbons, adding buttons or patches. The possibilities are limitless- so get to creating.

An English heart hanging in an entryway of a home.
*Hanging hearts make for a welcoming entry into a home.
An English heart hanging on a chair in front of a window curtain.
*An English heart happily hanging on an old chair-also from England).
An English heart hanging on a dresser drawer knob for decoration.
*My favorite place to display English hanging hearts-on dresser drawer knobs. This dresser is very old and a personal favorite as it is from England.
A handmade English heart hanging on a bed post for decoration.
*This is the last staging I will torture you all with. A perfect addition to a bedframe- adding personality and charm.

~The Mess That Creativity Brings~

Note: I am veering off topic just a little here. Whether I am preparing a new blog post, working on a homeschool lesson with my children, folding laundry, changing diapers, or just preparing meals for my family, I am often amazed at what an untidy mess the house can become. In fact, sometimes it seems everywhere I look is crowded with toys or laundry, schoolbooks or dishes.

In those chaotic moments, I try to remind myself that the mess points to a home that has served us well. Dishes in the sink mean that family meals were eaten together.  Toys scattered all over the floor mean that my children were sitting there imagining, playing, giggling. Books in piles mean a warm lap was shared and stories were heard…. 

I want to remember that out of all the mess, shines one thing—love. If love is there, the mess fades away, and a happy place remains.

(Please note: This is what I am trying to tell myself. Now that doesn’t mean I like that same “love-filled mess”…just that while my children are at home… and still so small, the tidy home is often not present, y’all!)

~Reminders From People who Have Been There Before~

My wise 83-year-old neighbor has often reminded me, “Don’t wish for the perfectly tidy home, for one day it will be both tidy and quiet, but you will wish it could be noisy and messy once more.

I say this, also knowing that children benefit from learning to keep spaces tidy and to help with family household responsibilities. However, I also know that they are only little once. 

The mess represents a special time of motherhood, intertwined with childhood- a time of learning and laughter.

For everything a season: a time of block towers stacked about, Lego pieces scattered on the floor -anxiously waiting to find a bare foot to lodge under, tea parties with teddy bears and baby dolls, puzzle pieces that are forever lost in couch cushions, and crayons and coloring books left open on the floor.

Chaotic messes created by the sweetest, most precious, little hands and feet. 

~On Motherhood... Or Shall I Say, Parenthood~

As a last word to my readers, I never want to come across in an idealized fashion that makes moms/mums like me, feel like I don’t ever fuss and moan and feel overwhelmed, let me assure you, I do.

Being a mom is exhausting yet fulfilling.

The anomaly of a “mother’s cup”- often empty yet also overflowing… and all at the same time.

~Until Next Time~

I hope these simple ideas inspire you to use a bit of creativity and inexpensive items to make a home cozy, lovely, and warm. Not forgetting that love is the best decorative piece to spread around a home.

In final conclusion, I am adding a photograph of an early morning rose. A lovely reminder of the beauty that comes in the morning with God’s new mercies every day.

Until next week, same time, same place.

~Elizabeth~

An early morning photo of a rose.

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