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Sect. 1.-General Remarks (Puddings may be either boiled)

822. Puddings may be either boiled or baked, and they are made in such a variety of ways as almost to be beyond the reach of definition. When boiled, they are generally tied up in a cloth. The outside of a boiled pudding often tastes disagreeably, from the cloth not being nicely washed, and kept in a dry place. It should be dipped in boiling water, squeezed dry, and floured when to be used. If the pudding is of bread, it should be tied loosely; if of batter, tightly over the basin. The water should boil quick when the pudding is put in; and it should be moved about for a minute, lest the ingredients should not be mixed at the moment of setting. Batter-pudding should be strained through a coarse sieve when all is mixed; in others, the eggs are strained separately. The pans and basins must be buttered, to prevent the paste sticking to them; which is also avoided by having a pan of cold water ready, and dipping the pudding in as soon as it comes out of the pot. Very good puddings may be made without eggs: but they must have as little milk as will mix them, and boil three or four hours. A few spoonsful of any kind of bottled malt liquor, or of fresh small beer, or one of yeast, will answer instead of eggs. Or, snow is a tolerable substitute for eggs, either in puddings or pancakes. Two large spoonsful will supply the place of one egg, and the article it is used in will be nearly equally good. This is a useful piece of information, especially as snow often falls when eggs are dearest. It may be taken up from any clean spot some hours before it is wanted, and will not lose its virtue until it melts, though the sooner it is used the better. In using eggs, the yolks and whites should be beaten separately, by which the articles they are put into are made much lighter. 823. PLAIN FRUIT PUDDINGS are, most of them, made either with the suet crust (par. 738), lining a basin and covering the fruit, which is then tied up in a cloth, or with the same crust, using butter instead of the suet, but not adding more than six ounces to the pound of flour.