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Devonshire Brandy Pudding
Take the remains of a cold plum pudding, cut it into long strips half an inch thick, and steep them in brandy or rum for a few minutes. Fill a buttered mould, crossing them neatly and uniformly one over the other. Prepare a custard of five eggs, a pint of milk, and a flavouring of lemon and nutmeg; pour as much of this into the mould as will quite fill it, and send the remainder to table poured over the pudding. A floured cloth must be tied over the mould, and it should be kept boiling for one hour. Sufficient for four or five persons.
A thrift dish for leftover Christmas pudding, steamed rather than baked. The method is sound; only the vessel and the custard need thinking about.
- The mould and the clothA pudding basin or metal charlotte mould, well buttered, with a floured cloth tied over the top — the flour helps seal the cloth against steam. Buttered foil with a pleat, tied with string, does the same job.
- How to boil itStand the mould on a trivet or folded cloth in a deep pan, add boiling water to come two-thirds up the sides, cover and keep at a steady simmer for one hour. Top up with boiling water as it drops; a mould that boils dry will scorch the custard.
- A pint of milkThis is an imperial pint, 20 fl oz (about 570 ml), with five whole eggs. That is a rich, firm custard by modern standards — a baked-custard ratio rather than a pouring one, which is what makes the pudding hold together when turned out.
- Custard for the tableThe reserved custard will not set in the mould, so it has to be cooked separately in a bowl over simmering water until it coats a spoon. Poured on raw it is uncooked egg and will taste of it.
- Steeping the stripsA few minutes only. Cold plum pudding is dense but it will still slump if it sits in spirit, and the strips need to keep their edges for the crossed pattern.
- FlavouringThe recipe says only 'a flavouring of lemon and nutmeg'; most likely the pared zest and freshly grated nutmeg, though lemon rind or essence would both fit. Infusing them in the hot milk and straining before adding the beaten eggs will keep the custard smooth.
- Turning outLet the mould stand five minutes off the heat before inverting, or the custard tears. Serves four to five as the original says, with the extra custard poured over.
Cassell's gives this among the uses for cold plum pudding, and a Victorian household with a Christmas boiling had a great deal of it left over — puddings were made large, made in advance, and expected to last. Fried slices, pudding fritters and this steamed brandy version all belong to the same economy: a rich, expensive mixture of dried fruit, suet and spirit was too costly to waste, and reheating it in custard turned yesterday's dessert into a dish that could be sent to table in its own right. The Devonshire attribution is probably loose, as county names in nineteenth-century cookery books often are; no documented local origin is known for it. Brandy or rum with plum pudding long predates this recipe.