Furniss Clotted Cream Shortbread: Cornish vs Scottish

Furniss Cornish Shortbread with Clotted Cream: shortbread the Cornish way

Clotted cream is Cornwall's defining dairy ingredient, and here it goes into the dough itself. The result is a shortbread that melts where a Scottish finger shatters, and that difference is worth understanding before you choose what to drink with it.

Published 26 Sep 2026 Curator-written, not crowdsourced

Furniss Cornish Shortbread with Clotted Cream: shortbread the Cornish way, in summary: Clotted cream in the dough gives this Cornish shortbread a softer, richer crumb and a gentle cooked-cream flavour. Keep it out of the tea, serve it with fruit rather than jam, and pour a clean black tea.

Last reviewed by the teas.co.uk team in September 2026.

Clotted cream is Cornwall's defining dairy ingredient, and here it goes into the dough itself. The result is a shortbread that melts where a Scottish finger shatters, and that difference is worth understanding before you choose what to drink with it.

Cornish shortbread against Scottish

The Scottish tradition prizes a sandy, crisp finger that snaps along a clean line. This biscuit goes the other way. Clotted cream adds fat and a little moisture, so the crumb is softer and more yielding and dissolves rather than breaking neatly, while the flavour turns rounder, with a warm cooked-cream note nearer to the top of a baked custard than to plain dairy.

The published label keeps the recipe short: wheat flour, a margarine of palm and rapeseed oils, cornflour, sugar, clotted cream at 6% and Cornish sea salt. Butter does not appear on that list, so the dairy richness comes from the clotted cream itself. The ingredient list names wheat (gluten) and milk as the allergens.

Its place in the New Wave range

The Furniss story starts in 1886 with John Cooper Furniss and a tea shop in the middle of Truro; the bakery has been in Redruth since 1988. New Wave is its modern everyday range, and this is the plain, dairy-led member of the trio we stock, with nothing in the dough competing with the cream.

Its sister shortbread adds Belgian choc chunks to the same Cornish approach, and the gingerbread with dark chocolate pieces is the spiced end of the range, built for a stronger cup. If you want the clearest taste of the clotted cream, this is the one to buy. The sweetness is only moderate, with the cream doing the heavy lifting.

Fruit, the fridge and the right cup

Treat it as a pudding biscuit. Fresh strawberries, raspberries or poached rhubarb suit it well, because the biscuit already brings the cream and jam on top would be one sweet thing too many. Keep it for the plate rather than the lunchbox, as a crumb this soft does not travel well in a bag.

Do not dunk it: a rich crumb takes on hot liquid almost instantly, collapses and leaves a film on the tea. Store it cool and dry rather than cold, because chilled fat gives up less aroma and a fridge-cold biscuit tastes muted. For the cup there are two good routes, a delicate Darjeeling or light Ceylon to let the cream come through, or a brisker black tea to cut the richness.

The packs we stock

Furniss New Wave Cornish Shortbread With Clotted Cream, 200g (barcode 5010254002274)

What the label says

The published ingredient list for Furniss New Wave Cornish Shortbread With Clotted Cream, 200g says it contains wheat (gluten) and milk. Check the current UK pack before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change.

Ingredients, as published: Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Margarine (Vegetable Oils (Palm, Rapeseed), Water, Emulsifier (Distilled Monoglyceride), Flavouring, Colouring (Annatto Bixin, Curcumin)), Cornflour, Sugar, Clotted Cream (Milk) (6%), Cornish Sea Salt.

Ingredient and nutrition information for this product, as published on the manufacturer's label. The pack in your hands is the final word.

What to drink with it

Teapigs Darjeeling Earl Grey, 15 Tea Bags 37.5g: A delicate Darjeeling-based Earl Grey that lets the cooked-cream note come through rather than covering it.
Twinings Scotland's Ceylon Tea (International Blend), 20 Tea Bags 40g: A light Ceylon blend for a gentle afternoon cup beside a rich, soft biscuit.
Tetley Earl Grey, 50 Tea Bags 125g: Tetley's everyday Earl Grey, left to brew a little longer, for when you would rather the tea cut through the richness.
Tetley Redbush Pure, 40 Tea Bags 100g: A plain redbush for an evening plate of shortbread and berries when black tea is off the table.

Elsewhere in the Furniss range

The full range is on the Furniss brand page.

FAQ

How is Cornish shortbread different from Scottish shortbread? This one carries clotted cream in the dough, which gives a softer, richer crumb and a cooked-cream flavour. A Scottish finger is sandier and snaps cleanly.

How much clotted cream is in Furniss shortbread? The published label lists clotted cream at 6% of the biscuit.

Can you dunk clotted cream shortbread? No. The crumb soaks up hot tea almost at once and falls apart, leaving a film on the surface.

Should clotted cream shortbread go in the fridge? No. A cool, dry cupboard is best, because cold dulls the aroma of the dairy fat.

What should I serve with it? Fresh berries or poached rhubarb, and a Darjeeling or light Ceylon if you want the cream to lead.

Curator's note: Put it out with a bowl of strawberries and a pot of Darjeeling. It does the cream tea job without a scone in sight. Lee, teas.co.uk, Tunbridge Wells.

In short: Furniss Cornish Shortbread with Clotted Cream: shortbread the Cornish way

Field	Detail
Brand	Furniss
Packs we stock	200g
Category	Shortbread
Allergens (as published)	It contains wheat (gluten) and milk.
Dunkable	No, the crumb collapses
Best with	A delicate Darjeeling or a light Ceylon
Serve with	Fresh berries or poached rhubarb