There’s something about us Scots and our love of questionable foods. Haggis is the obvious one (love it), Lorne sausage, macaroni pies, deep-fried Mars Bar and even Irn Bru cupcakes – Scotland is famed for it’s love of “unique” foods. And it could only be the Scots who would come up with a pet-name such as Fly Cemetery for a sweet little pastry treat like Fruit Slice.
Ever so simple and a lot more tasty than it’s pet-name may suggest, Fruit Slice is a melt-in-the-mouth short crust pastry treat, loaded with currants and lashings of sugar. It gets it’s pet-name from it’s appearance, rather than it’s flavour. Not for the weak stomached; it’s simply because of the currant’s resemblance too, well, lots of dead flies… Our Granny can even recall when her own Papa would pick out the currants and joke that they were delicious little flies! Yum…
I was quite surprised just how many people were chuffed to receive a piece of Fruit Slice when I made it recently. Not a huge fan of currants myself, I was unsure of how many people would be happy to take some off my hands but it turns out there’s already been requests for another batch!
Granny’s Top Tips
♥ You can make your own pastry if you prefer but the ready rolled pastry just makes the entire recipe that bit more simple.
♥ Why not mix things up (and messier) by trying Fruit Slice with puff pastry for a change?
Fruit Slice (Fly Cemetery)
Ingredients
- 1 Pack of Ready Roll Short Crust Pastry 375g
- 200 g Currants
- 75 g Sugar
- 50 g Butter
- 1 tsp Mixed Spice
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 190°c and grease a baking tray with a little butter.
- Roll out the pastry and cut into two rectangles. Place one onto your pre-greased baking tray.
- In a bowl mix the currants, sugar, butter and mixed spice until combined. This is easiest when your butter is at room temperature.
- Spoon the currant mixture evenly onto the pastry on the baking tray, leaving a small gap around the edges. Wet the edges with a little water. Place the other sheet of pastry on top of the currants and gently press the edges together.
- Brush the top pastry with a little milk or beaten egg.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes until a light golden brown. Remove from the oven and sprinkle a little sugar on top.
- Once cool enough to touch, cut the fruit slice into 8 slices and move to a wire rack to cool completely.
What do you know it as; Fruit Slice or Fly Cemetery?
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Donna says
June 4, 2016 at 5:49 pmThese look amazing, and so easy too! x
Amy says
July 1, 2016 at 9:22 pmVery easy, Donna! And I’m a big fan of easy recipes ;)
Mary says
February 5, 2017 at 10:31 amI like your recipes but I would like you to leave a tray/tin size please
Audrey says
March 21, 2017 at 4:37 pmCheers for an easy to follow recipe :) My mum calls it ‘fly paper cake’ :D looking forward to eating it!
Happychappie says
April 24, 2017 at 8:38 pmThis currant slice lacks love, to improve ,,being a chef, this product to me is just dried currants between 2 slabs of pastry, boring, how about binding the currants with currant jam, not to liquid, but thick jam, so it dosent run into the pastry, this product with a cup of char, would be a gastronomical delight
Gina Clark says
July 9, 2017 at 4:05 pmWe call it dead fly pie! This is just going in the oven now! Can’t wait!
Amy says
July 9, 2017 at 4:07 pmFab! Let me know how it turns out, Gina.
Jean Lamb says
August 9, 2017 at 2:58 pmThe last batch of #flycemetry was so good, decided to make a double batch this time ;) !
Ann Pickford says
September 10, 2017 at 1:10 pmWish I’d have found this recipe years ago…so easy ! My Dad loved these “Flies Cemeteries” and Eccles Cakes, would have loved to have made him these. I’m having a little trip down memory lane.
Amy says
September 14, 2017 at 9:58 pmThanks for commenting, Ann. Fly Cemetery is definitely one that brings back memories for people. We’re also looking a sharing a Eccles Cake recipe in the near future so be sure to keep checking back :)
carrelle says
November 24, 2017 at 8:30 pmwhat is the spice mix?????????
elaine says
November 1, 2018 at 11:58 amHi, I am in UK,my jar of mixed spice listed the ingredients as Dried orange peel(60%), Cassia, Ginger, Nutmeg, Pimentoes, Caraway seeds
Deborah says
January 15, 2018 at 11:00 pmyes!! Please tell us what you mean by “spice mix”?? what kind of spices are in it? We have a pumpkin pie spice mix here in the USA, is that what you mean?
Georgina morrison says
April 10, 2018 at 6:45 pmI added chopped dates, chopped apple and a good tbsp of marmalade to bind it together. It’s delicious.
joyce says
August 7, 2018 at 4:12 pmCan you freeze these please
Lindsay says
August 26, 2018 at 12:15 pmYes you can and they cut up much more easily and neater when frozen
Daphne says
October 19, 2018 at 5:35 pmWould like to know size of tin/tray to use
Thanks
Daphne says
October 19, 2018 at 5:37 pmWhat size of tray/tin to use please
Thanks
Ron Mundy (Mothers's maiden name: Brewster) says
October 26, 2018 at 10:45 amThese were always a big hit after Christmas Dinner. Mom and Grandmother were from Dunfermline, Scotland and never heard them referred to as anything other than Currant squares.
Dawn says
November 24, 2018 at 7:50 amI’ve been making these years I know them as currant slices made with Ruff puff pastry from my mums old Bero cook book they are my husbands favourite cake.
Renee Barrett says
January 3, 2019 at 6:10 pmThese Current Squares look delicious. I think I will make some.