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Four Eggs (Fifteen drops of Essence)
Fifteen drops of Essence of Vanilla.
Twelve preserved Cherries. Three pieces of Angelica. Four Sponge Cakes. Six Ratafias. One pint of Milk. One ounce of Castor Sugar. Butter a pint-and-half mould, ornament the bottom with the cherries and angelica, break the sponge cakes and put into the mould, also the ratafias. Put four yolks and two whites of eggs into a basin with the sugar; whip them lightly together, stirring in the milk by degrees, and the vanilla; pour this mixture over the cakes in the mould. Cover the mould with a piece of buttered paper, and steam for about three-quarters of an hour. Turn the pudding out carefully, and serve.
This is a steamed cabinet pudding, printed here with its ingredient list truncated — the page opens mid-list at "Four Eggs (Fifteen drops of Essence)". The method is complete and workable, but you will have to supply proportions from the text itself.
- The missing quantitiesOnly the eggs (four yolks, two whites) and the vanilla are actually specified. Sugar, milk, sponge cakes, ratafias, cherries and angelica are all named in the method without amounts. For a custard of this egg count, a scant pint of milk and about 2 oz sugar is the conventional ratio, but the original does not state it and any figure is a reconstruction rather than a conversion.
- The mouldA pint-and-a-half mould is 30 fl oz, or a little under a litre — roughly a 3-cup-plus charlotte mould or pudding basin. Butter it generously and cold, so the cherry and angelica pattern stays put when the custard goes in.
- RatafiasSmall, hard, bitter-almond macaroons, once made with a proportion of bitter almonds. Italian amaretti are the closest current equivalent and behave the same way: they soften into the custard without dissolving to mush.
- AngelicaCandied stems of Angelica archangelica, sold in bright green batons and used almost entirely for decoration. It has largely vanished from shops; candied citron peel or thin strips of glacé fruit will fill the pattern, though the flavour is not the same.
- Let it soakThe original does not call for it, but pouring the custard over the cakes and leaving the covered mould to stand 20 to 30 minutes before steaming lets the sponge and ratafias absorb the liquid evenly. Steamed straight away, the pudding is more likely to set unevenly, with a drier top.
- Steaming heatKeep the water at a bare simmer, not a rolling boil, with the mould standing on a trivet or folded cloth. Hard boiling drives the custard past setting into curds and pinholes. Three-quarters of an hour is about right for this size; it is done when the centre resists light pressure and a knife comes out clean.
- Buttered paperA round of buttered greaseproof or parchment, buttered side down, keeps condensation off the surface. A layer of foil or a lid over the top secures it against the steam.
- Turning outRest the pudding five minutes off the heat before inverting, or it will slump. Serve hot with a vanilla or apricot sauce. A mould this size gives four to six portions.
Cabinet pudding ataand also sold as chancellor's pudding or pouding de cabinet ataand is built from stale sponge cake, small macaroons and a plain egg custard, then dressed up with glac he pa a pattern at the base of the mould. It is a hot sweet that can be assembled from yesterday's cake, set to steam, and turned out looking deliberate. The uneven egg count, four yolks to two whites, gives a richer, more tender set than whole eggs would; the book does not say why it is called for.