Sultana Pudding

A simple raisin-and-sponge tart of the Crisco-promotional era. The method is sound, but the original assumes a cook who knows what "a shallow dish" and "moderate oven" mean.

• Oven temperatureA moderate oven is usually taken as about 350F, though period sources put it anywhere from 350 to 375F. Thirty minutes is right for a shallow tart; the topping should be set and lightly browned, and a skewer in the centre should come out clean.
• Dish sizeA shallow dish means a pie plate or tart tin of about 8 to 9 inches. The quantities given are small — half a cup of fat, half a cup of flour, two eggs — and in anything much wider the layer will be too thin to set properly.
• CriscoThe book was written to sell Crisco, and the recipe is built around it. Any solid vegetable shortening works, though modern formulations are lower in trans fat and slightly softer. Unsalted butter gives better flavour; creamed the same way, it behaves nearly identically here.
• SultanasSultanas are golden raisins, seedless and from white grapes. Older stock often needed picking over for stems; today they can go straight in, though a brief soak in hot water or a little lemon juice keeps them from drying out under the topping.
• The pastry"Plain pastry" is a short crust with no sugar. It goes in raw and bakes with the filling; the layer is shallow enough that half an hour in a moderate oven will cook the base through, but a metal tin on a preheated baking sheet gives a crisper bottom than glass.
• Spreading the toppingThe batter is stiff and the raisins will drag if you push it around. Drop it in spoonfuls over the fruit and spread gently outward from the centre with an offset spatula.
• Lemon extractHalf a teaspoon of extract in a batter this small is assertive. The zest of one lemon is a closer match to what modern palates expect from citrus.
• Yield and servingAn 8-inch tart cuts into six modest wedges. "Serve cold" is deliberate — the topping firms as it cools and slices cleanly, where it is crumbly warm.