“Aunt Victoria explained, and then turned her out of the room. Uncle James was crossing the hall at the moment; he had a large bunch of keys in his hand, and went through the double-doors which led to the kitchen and offices. Beth followed him into the kitchen. The cook, an old servant, came forward curtseying. The remains of yesterday's dinner, cold roast beef, tongue, chicken, and plum-pudding, were spread out on the table. Uncle James inspected everything.”
A cook of roughly the same moment, setting down the same dish.
1291. INGREDIENTS.--3/4 lb of suet-crust No. 1215, 3/4 lb. of any kind of jam. _Mode_.--Make a nice light suet-crust by recipe No. 1215, and roll it out to the thickness of about 1/2 inch. Spread the jam equally over it, leaving a small margin of paste without any, where the pudding joins. Roll it up, fasten the ends securely, and tie it in a floured cloth; put the pudding into boiling water, and boil for 2 hours. Mincemeat or marmalade may be substituted for the jam, and makes excellent puddings. _Time_.--2 hours. _Average cost_, 9d. _Sufficient_ for 5 or 6 persons. _Seasonable_.--Suitable for winter puddings, when fresh fruit is not obtainable.
Sources: The passage is from Sarah Grand, The Beth Book: Being a Study of the Life of Elizabeth Caldwell Maclure, free to read in full at Project Gutenberg. The recipe is from Beeton, The Book of Household Management of 1861, also free in full. Both are in the public domain in the United States. The binding above is ours — navy cloth, pudding stamp.