Nigel Slater’s latest recipe for a quince custard tart has sent fans into meltdown after the food critic shared photographs of the rather striking looking dessert on social media.
Slater, 67, is a bestselling author and long-time food writer at The Observer.
On Sunday (17 December), Slater shared a picture of his quince custard tart, a puff-pastry filled with custard and stewed fruit, on Instagram, directing fans to the full recipe online.
His caption read: “Not something to hurry, but a pleasurable way to spend a quiet afternoon in the kitchen and worth every minute of your time.
“The quinces need to be cooked until completely soft then left to cool in their syrup which is then boiled down for the glaze. You could make them with apples should quinces prove evasive.”
Fans were in hysterics after realising the baked tart bears a resemblance to something NSFW, with several Instagram users responding to the Slater’s post with explicit puns.
“Me, a Gynecologist, wondering why followers were DMing me posts about pastry...” one comment read.
“We all love a bit of food porn but flippin’ eck Nigel,” another commenter quipped.
Referring to the barrage of comments under Slater’s post, a third person enquired: “Is it my dirty mind or….*checks comments* nope, we are all filth bags together”
“Thanks literally reminded me to book my smear test tomorrow,” one woman joked.
“Nigel if we thought we loved you before it’s nothing compared to how much we love you now,” one Instagram user wrote, alluding to the fact that Slater was possibly completely oblivious about why the photograph would be perceived as sexually suggestive.
On Monday (18 December), Slater, seemingly inundated by messages and comments about the tart, responded to fans in a follow-up message shared on Instagram.
“Gracious me, thank you for all your likes and comments on my last post. Some absolute gems there,” the British journalist wrote, before wishing his followers a Merry Christmas.
“A very low-key Christmas here this year, so here is a picture of my tree in 2022 (probably my favourite ever) to wish you a very, very happy and peaceful Christmas and to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone for following and for all your messages over the year,” he added.
“Wishing you a happy Christmas.”
Slater was made an OBE in recognition of his services to Cookery and Literature at an investiture ceremony at St James’s Palace in July 2021.
