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Arrowroot Pudding
850. Mix an ounce and a half of West Indian arrowroot with a little cold water into a thin smooth paste; while doing this, boil a pint of milk gently with a little cinnamon and sugar; when boiling, pour it into a basin through a strainer upon the arrowroot, stirring it carefully; as soon as this becomes cool, beat three eggs and add them, stirring them well in. Then boil in a basin, or bake in a dish with a crust on the edge. From half an hour to three quarters is sufficient. One egg is enough for a plain pudding.
A Victorian nursery-and-invalid pudding that works as a baked custard thickened with arrowroot rather than flour. The whole thing turns on the temperature of the starch base when the eggs go in.
- Cool before the eggsThe instruction to wait until the arrowroot mixture is cool is the hinge of the recipe. Beaten eggs stirred into a near-boiling starch base will curdle into threads, and no amount of whisking will bring it back.
- Arrowroot quantityAn ounce and a half is about 40 g, roughly 5 to 6 tablespoons of arrowroot powder. West Indian arrowroot is the true Maranta arundinacea starch still sold as arrowroot; do not substitute cornstarch, which sets cloudier and tastes chalkier in a delicate pudding.
- The pintThis is an imperial pint, 20 fl oz, so use about 2 1/2 US cups of milk. Whole milk gives the right body.
- Sugar and cinnamonNo quantity is given. Two to three tablespoons of sugar and a single small stick of cinnamon infused in the hot milk suits the proportions; the strainer step exists to catch the bark and any skin.
- Baked versionThe recipe gives no oven temperature; a moderate oven, around 325-350F, suits a baked custard. Half an hour to three quarters is realistic for a shallow dish; the custard is done when set at the edge and barely trembling at the centre.
- Boiled in a basinThis means steamed, not simmered in the mixture. Butter a pudding basin, cover it tightly with pleated foil or a floured cloth tied under the rim, and stand it in a pan of water kept at a bare simmer for the same time.
- Crust on the edgeA strip of puff or short pastry pressed round the rim of the pie dish, a standard Victorian finish on baked puddings. It is decorative and gives something to cut against; the pudding is complete without it.
- YieldAbout four modest servings. The one-egg version noted at the end sets much more loosely, closer to a thick blancmange than a custard.