Neenish tart
Encyclopedia
A neenish tart, is a tart
made with a pastry
base, sweet gelatine-set cream
, mock cream
, or icing sugar paste filling, sometimes with jam, and dried icing
on top in two colours, half one colour and half the other. The 2-coloured icings are usually brown ("Chocolate" icing) and white ("Vanilla" icing), pink icing and white, or even brown and pink these days. They are almost exclusively sized as individual servings, 10-12 cm in diameter. This tart was created in Australia
, and is still mainly only known from there , in particular the states of Victoria
and New South Wales
(as well as the A.C.T.
) It is also found in New Zealand. It has a superficial similarity to the US black and white cookie
.
Alternative names such as nienich (recorded in 1935) and nenische(1959) suggests a German
origin, except neenish was known before the alternatives, and it is suggested that these names were to give a "continental" flavour to the tart.
The earliest known reference to neenish tarts appeared in the Melbourne Argus
on 21 May 1924: ’"Culinary" (Brighton) asks for a recipe for Neenish cakes’.
The earliest recipe found so far is from the Cairns Post Queensland
, Saturday 3rd October, 1925, page 12, 'Some Uncommon Recipes', with an almond pastry, thick sweet custard, optionally stiffened with cornflour, and a water icing, half covered with a strong-coffee water-icing. Another early printed recipe is in Miss Drake's Home Cookery published in 1929, calling for cream
filling set with gelatine, and pink and white icing on top. A 1932 recipe in Miranda's Cook Book calls for custard filling and chocolate and white icing .
Tart
A tart is a baked dish consisting of a filling over a pastry base with an open top not covered with pastry. The pastry is usually shortcrust pastry; the filling may be sweet or savoury, though modern tarts are usually fruit-based, sometimes with custard....
made with a pastry
Pastry
Pastry is the name given to various kinds of baked products made from ingredients such as flour, sugar, milk, butter, shortening, baking powder and/or eggs. Small cakes, tarts and other sweet baked products are called "pastries."...
base, sweet gelatine-set cream
Cream
Cream is a dairy product that is composed of the higher-butterfat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, over time, the lighter fat rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream this process is accelerated by using centrifuges called "separators"...
, mock cream
Butter cream
Buttercream is a type of icing or filling, used inside cakes, as a coating, and as decoration. In its simplest form, it is made by creaming butter with powdered sugar, although other fats can be used, such as margarine or lard. Colorings and flavorings are often added, such as cocoa powder or...
, or icing sugar paste filling, sometimes with jam, and dried icing
Icing (food)
Icing, also called frosting in the United States, is a sweet often creamy glaze made of sugar with a liquid such as water or milk, that is often enriched with ingredients such as butter, egg whites, cream cheese, or flavorings and is used to cover or decorate baked goods, such as cakes or cookies...
on top in two colours, half one colour and half the other. The 2-coloured icings are usually brown ("Chocolate" icing) and white ("Vanilla" icing), pink icing and white, or even brown and pink these days. They are almost exclusively sized as individual servings, 10-12 cm in diameter. This tart was created in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, and is still mainly only known from there , in particular the states of Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
and New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
(as well as the A.C.T.
Australian Capital Territory
The Australian Capital Territory, often abbreviated ACT, is the capital territory of the Commonwealth of Australia and is the smallest self-governing internal territory...
) It is also found in New Zealand. It has a superficial similarity to the US black and white cookie
Black and white cookie
A black and white cookie, also known as a half and half cookie, a drop cake or a half moon, is a soft, sponge cake-like shortbread which is iced on one half with vanilla fondant, and on the other half by dark chocolate fondant...
.
Alternative names such as nienich (recorded in 1935) and nenische(1959) suggests a German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
origin, except neenish was known before the alternatives, and it is suggested that these names were to give a "continental" flavour to the tart.
The earliest known reference to neenish tarts appeared in the Melbourne Argus
The Argus (Australia)
The Argus was a morning daily newspaper in Melbourne established in 1846 and closed in 1957. Widely known as a conservative newspaper for most of its history, it adopted a left leaning approach from 1949...
on 21 May 1924: ’"Culinary" (Brighton) asks for a recipe for Neenish cakes’.
The earliest recipe found so far is from the Cairns Post Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Saturday 3rd October, 1925, page 12, 'Some Uncommon Recipes', with an almond pastry, thick sweet custard, optionally stiffened with cornflour, and a water icing, half covered with a strong-coffee water-icing. Another early printed recipe is in Miss Drake's Home Cookery published in 1929, calling for cream
Cream
Cream is a dairy product that is composed of the higher-butterfat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, over time, the lighter fat rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream this process is accelerated by using centrifuges called "separators"...
filling set with gelatine, and pink and white icing on top. A 1932 recipe in Miranda's Cook Book calls for custard filling and chocolate and white icing .