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Strawberry Hydropathic Pudding

Although instructions are given for making this pudding with strawberries only, any other fruit, or any mixture of fruits, may be made into a pudding in the same way. Take a basin the size that the pudding should be. Put at the bottom a round piece of stale crumb of bread about the size of a five-shilling piece. Place round this, in an upright position, and about an inch apart from one another, fingers of bread, three or four inches long, according to the depth of the basin. Pick some strawberries, and boil them with a spoonful or two of water and as much sugar as will be required to sweeten them pleasantly, until they are reduced to pulp. Put the hot fruit gently into the basin with a spoon, so as to disturb the bread as little as possible; cover the surface of the fruit with little odds and ends of bread cut up into small dice, and press the pudding by putting a plate upon it with a weight on the top. Leave it in a cold place for three or four hours, or all night if convenient. When wanted, remove the weight and the plate, turn the pudding upon a dish, and serve. It will come out in a shape. A little custard or cream served with it will be a great improvement. The pudding derives its name from the fact that, thus made, it is served at one or two hydropathic establishments where the patients are not allowed to partake of pastry. Time, about a quarter of an hour to boil the strawberries.