The Original Victorian Christmas Pudding Recipe : 'Food, Glorious, Food': Cooking with Dickens
Вставка
- Опубліковано 16 гру 2018
- Dickens’s joy of Christmas illuminates his writing and is especially clear in his scenes of festive feasting; none is more important or joyful than when Mrs Cratchit brings out her flaming Christmas pudding in a Christmas Carol. In this video Pen Vogler shares her recipe to make an original Victorian Christmas pudding to challenge Mrs Cratchit.
Ingredients:
85 grams of plain flour
Pinch of salt
170g Veg or beef Suet
140g of brown sugar
1 teaspoon mixed spice
170g of breadcrumbs
170 grams of raisins
170 grams of currants
55 grams of cut mixed peel
1 apple
3 eggs, beaten
140ml of brandy
Butter for greasing
This video is the first in a series of five videos celebrating our special exhibition, Food Glorious Food: Dinner with Dickens.
Pen Vogler is a food historian specialising in food in literature and guest curator of the exhibition Food Glorious Food: Dinner with Dickens. She is also author of Dinner with Mr Darcy, Tea with Jane Austen, Dinner with Dickens and Christmas with Dickens, and edited Penguin’s Great Food series, published by Penguin Classics in 2011. She has written on food in history and literature for The Guardian Review, BBC History Magazine, Sunday Times, The Lady Magazine, The Oldie, The Observer. She has cooked recipes from the past for Radio 4’s PM and Making History, Mrs Dickens Family Christmas on BBC2 and been interviewed for a number of papers and podcasts. She has given talks and tastings at festivals and events throughout Britain.
I made this today for one of my family's Christmas gatherings. It was really easy to prepare, and then I just let it boil in a pot while we cooked everything else and I occasionally topped up the water. We did the whole thing with the holly sprig and the fire, which everyone loved! The kids were eager to try it, and they were asking for seconds before I even finished cutting slices for the adults in the family. It disappeared so quickly!
Lovely pudding explained by a gentle and lovely British lady. Thank you.
I followed this a couple of years ago and it was fantastic. Think I’ll do it again for the coming Christmas of 2023.
Here's the Ingredients list:
85 g plain (all purpose) flour
Pinch of salt
170 g beef suet (butter should be a good substitute)
140 g brown sugar
1 tsp mixed spices (an "apple pie" blend, or mix your own cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice)
170 g breadcrumbs (others have mentioned that these should be fresh, from bread you have in the house)
170 g EACH of raisins and currants (These were called "plums" back then, as were any other small, rich, dried fruits. Others have said they should be soaked in brandy overnight.)
150 g mixed citrus peel, cut small
1 apple, grated. She said it doesn't matter what size
Mix the dry ingredients together.
In a separate bowl, mix
3 eggs, beaten
140 mL brandy
Then mix your wet ingredients into your dry ingredients, stirring them together. This should be timed to take place on Stir-up Sunday, the last Sunday before Advent, and you should give the whole family a chance to stir.
Butter will taste good but doesn't give the same texture
What a beautiful gracious host with a lovely mild voice! a pleasure to listen to!! My mum used to make Christmas pudding with a brown sugar sauce on top!! Loved it!!
Mmmmmmmmm
Its my day off and I am making this right now! I planned ahead and ordered beef suet and REAL black currants online. They arrived a few days ago. Then I made my own candied mixed peel, because its not in any local stores. Can you tell I'm living in the U.S.? Hahaha. DNA and ancestry wise, I'm mostly British, and a total Christmas and culture nut. So of course, I have to try Christmas/plum pudding. Never had it before. It smelled amazing while I was stirring it up. Its boiling/steaming now. So fingers crossed, hope it comes out good. And I'll be reading my hardback authentic reproduction of the original release of Charles Dickens "A Christmas Carol" while I wait. I'm such a geek. Its February, lol. :)
I did the same last month for the same reasons.
Was it worth the effort?😊 I was considering doing it myself.
The world needs more “geeks” like you. Enjoy your Christmas 🎄
Check out recipies for brandy butter.
The recipe my mum used was handed down several generations. It had grated carrots and chopped walnuts in it. Fruit was soaked in brandy. Used stout for the main liquid. Then she'd steam the puddings for hours. The finished puds came out rich and black.
That's a proper plum pud. I'd love to compare your recipe with my Mum's.
Just a lovely warm video. Thank you.
Would be delighted to see more videos by Ms. Vogler. Just love her approach.
Made this last year, best pudding I've ever made. I cooked it and took it to my sons and he still has my basin lol
Made this pudding this Christmas (2020). Turned out magnificent!
Did you light it up?
i watch a christmas carol every year and i never tire of it.
How about the Patrick Stewart version?
@@Tea-Totally That’s the best one!
Don’t forget the custard sauce! Lol 😆 looks so yummy! I miss This. My grandmother (from Edinburgh Scotland 🏴) made this very Xmas.how I miss the smell from the kitchen and when it was done ....mmmmmm!
My grandmother was from England and made it, and the custard sauce.
I am just seeing this in 2021.
How lovely, thank you!
Just made one myself according to this video, it came out perfectly. Thanks. Just remember to add boiling water couple of times during the three hours.
She’s adorable so it’s worth watching just for her.❤
Agreed
I'm French and I remember with great fondness the first and only time I ate a Christmas pudding as a young kid on a student (pupil) exchange programme in London. Now, for the first time ever, I'm going to cook one myself: I already had my suet sent to me, directly from the UK thanks to Mr. Bezos... I'll find the rest of the ingredients here in Marseilles. Wish me luck!
Congratulations! Very well done. easy to digest and straightforward and an intelligent and competent presenter. Thank you for posting
Love it! We watch, "A Christmas Carol," every year. Thank you!
Thank you so much, I love "A Christmas Carol" and I usually read the passage of the Cratchits' Christmas dinner to my pupils at school. Greetings from Italy and merry Christmas
I made 2 of this recipe and it is very much like the one I had lost. I used apple juice instead of alcohol. They came out beautifully! This recipe will be the one I use from now on. Thanks for sharing.
This was an absolute treasure. I really enjoyed this video 😊
Wonderful video and I enjoyed learning some history. I love A Christmas Carol.
Thanks for sharing "A Christmas Carol" is my fave Tale. 🎄
I made adjustments to the ingredients - shortenings replacing suet and Rum replacing Brandy... still taste magnificent😋😋😋
Watching this at almost midnight on New Year's Day 2021! And boy am I now in the mood for some Xmas pudding. This looks absolutely scrummy, and a lot easier to make than I imagined.
Gorgeous recipe ..my Mum (born 1912) and Nan (born 1888).made some kind of pudding wrapped in pudding cloth almost every day 😊
This is in the 1955 Betty Crocker picture cook book but it's called suet pudding. My grandmother & mom both made it & served it with lemon hard sauce. The hard sauce can be any fruit flavor, they both used lemon. My wife never heard of it, so I begged her to make it for our 2nd Christmas we were together. She did & for 2 or 3 yrs more then it just kind of never was mentioned again. Maybe I'll make it this year!
I think we have that cookbook! want to try this
The hard sauce in the old Betty Crocker cook book was not the kind my mom and grandma made, theirs was cooked and you put it on top of your slice of the suet pudding, that way each person can put as much or as little as they like. My wife googled it and found the cooked hard sauce version. It's got white sugar, corn starch, juice from a lemon, some lemon zest. Boil it to thicken then let it cool. For an elegant dessert experience with special guests, after clearing the table, give each guest a dessert plate with a slice of suet pudding on it, then have a small pot in the center of the table with the warm hard sauce in it, maybe like an old Fondo pot and a warming candle under it, to keep it warm. Use a gravy ladle to serve the hard sauce. Let guest put as much or as little as they like. You can make suet pudding with diced apples and raisins or more like fruit cake, with Citron, figs, dates, raisins and diced apples.
@@theresamay9481 read my comment below about the cooked hard sauce.
Thank you very much for the opportunity to enjoy both the lovely pudding recipe and the history behind it!
Looks fantastic! I'm going to make one this Xmas. Thank you for the stories & the paced delivery of the recipe.
The waterproofing step was tremendously helpful, worked out very well, thanks Pen!
Thank you very much for a lovely video. Calm and instructional and I shall be making this on Stir Up Sunday! Blessings
You are amazing! Absolutely wonderful and lovely little video. Thank you so much!
Love how you capture the sound of the mixture.
Thank you Ms. Vogler! Have my water boiling right now, if the wife and I like it I'll make it for Christmas next year!
I also add a grated cooking apple but the thing that I think is unusual it the added finely grated carrot it adds sweetness. This is a very old family recipe.
Oh my! What a pleasure to watch and listen.
Food, Glorious Food.... from Oliver(Twist) Yes I love Charles Dickens!! ❤ Thank you for this really nice video and Merry Christmas 2020!! ❤🎄🎁🎁🎁😊
I’ts so interesting always to hear about English or any type of cookery ,so I certainly will keep going to. These particular videos
If you want it to be a really dark colour use prunes which are dried plums 🤔" plum pudding"😲😁 we make clootie dumpling in Scotland 😁
I hope to from now on, recognize Stir up Sunday. Should put that in my calendar right now.
Really enjoyable and informative video, thank you so much for making it
How lovely. Well done !
So lovely. Thank you.
Thanks you. Loved the video.
Made this last year. It came out just right.
I'm making one this year. I couldn't find beef suet. So I'll be using lard. And I couldn't find currents, so I'll be using raisins and golden raisins. And I'm making my own candied peels. I can't yet find the muslin clothe I need, and I don't have a mold yet, so Ill look for either and whichever I find I'll use. I've got my Brandy, and I'm excited to try it .
She’s so beautiful and I loved this video. Thank you for sharing this! I wish I could do this.
My Mum used to do a small fold in the tinfoil to allow for the expansion of the air.
Now I’ll have to get some suet!
I made it last year, and am already buying groceries to make it this year! A great recipe! I add more alcohol though, it makes the taste even richer.
gonna give this recipe a try, 'n i can't wait to taste it !
Wow! She is Amazing!
THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH FOR SHARING THIS WITH THE WORLD! ESPECIALLY FOR THE U.S. HISTORY BUFFS!
Top stuff!
Well worth the effort compared to store bought puddings :)
Thank you.
I made this and it turned out perfect!
what is christmas in july? christmas day in july. turkey dinner at 3 pm, some exchange gifts, all because we need a break during the year, and what a better way to remind the Lord !
Nice narrative about the history as well as a good recipe. Mine is a similar recipe but steamed for 9 hours!
I bet this would do well in an Instant Pot . . yessssssss.
Looks easy to make. Will think about making a Christmas pudding this year instead of buying one.
Thank you. I love you
My Grandmother used to make this at Christmas. She also made a white sauce that she poured over slices of it.
You did a great job! American Heritage has a segment where they cook “the Victorian way” and they make this and other foods exactly as they did back then. If you like this you will really enjoy that.
it looks sooooo yummy !
Really interesting video and the Dickens story was a nice touch. I was missing you cutting and eating it. The proof of the pudding is in the tasting, right?
Wonderful video! I have a recipe for Figgy pudding which uses fresh grapefruit and is delicious!
esto es una maravilla!!😍😘😘😘
Thank you!
Memories of decades ago, mom used to make them, with the pudding cloth tied and the corners looped back up, tied together and hung on hooks in the pantry for the next year, must make my own instead of buying one.
I enjoyed the historical background. I purchased a metal pudding tin with a locking lid while in GB in 1980. Could I use it for your recipe? My first pudding came out beautifully back then, but lost the recipe my host family gave me. Second recipe was a disaster. Looking forward to trying yours.
Beautiful 👌
Awesome Job and I truly enjoyed the "Dickens" information. Wish I could find some suet! I want to make this. I'm in South Korea. Not sure where I can find Suet here.
Very good! The real thing, unlike some we might mention.
I’m American and didn’t grow up with having a pudding at Christmas. I’ve wanted to make one the last couple of years. I think its too late for me to make one this year. Next year for sure
Try it anyway! That way you can make any adjustments to the recipe before next Christmas.
Marjorie Kloster thank you!!!
@@matthewseitz9995 If you do try it, let me know how you liked it, ok? Thanks, Matthew.⚘
Marjorie Kloster I will
Next week is stir up Sunday
I have loved Dickens all of my life since watching Alistair in that 1951 best version. but all recipes (But for Fanny Credcock's) Recipes have the batter so loose it cant's be molded into a Ball like the original one in the Book. how can I add something to make it mold without destroying the Taste?
I made this for my family and said "Gor blesh ush everyone!" and then my family left me.
Just put it on to steam. Thank you.
Love yr puding
I mixed it up today on stir up Sunday, my very first Christmas pudding. I used what looks like the vary same pudding bowl, but I’m going to get two puddings out of this recipe. It would be helpful if you said what size pudding bowl to use!
Looks wonderful is there written out recipie?
That was so lovely and informative, can I be a food historian please
Very good video. Easy to understand and to follow. But you forgot one very important step. You didn't soak the fruit in the alcohol. And it sure would have made a nice ending to your video to see you light it on fire and serve it. :)
If I understand correctly, Ms Vogler is recreating the Eliza Action recipe, which does not call for soaking the fruit in alcohol. Perhaps you missed that...
How many people that supposed to feed? Why they always do it in the same bowl
Very nice.
But Mrs. Crocombe from English Heritage set it afire with a holly on top. It's apparently flame-proof for a minute or so.
how big has to be the pot for the pudding?
I can't believe that the pudding wasn't cut open so we could see the inside. Also, what about the brandy sauce?
What size basin is that? I just picked up a 900ml/0.95 quart basin but not sure if that is too small.
I went to doing maths and ended up with 1,100 mls for the pudding after mixing, not counting the eggs or apple.
Can you use butter instead of suet?
Here is from Brazil, Have you already done a test of baking the pudding in the oven for 40 minutes? I did it and it was perfect without having to spend so much time cooking in the pan. only 40 minutes and it was wonderful. I love this wonderful pudding
Hi. Did you keep a water bath in the oven? Thanks
Is the pudding served straight away from cooking or does it need to set? Thank you.
Served straight after coming out the pot is best but if you’ve added enough alcohol it should potentially last for years before serving if you want to leave it.
Just reboil for about an hour if you leave it and you’ve got got perfectly fine figgy pudding
My mum would put it aside and add more alcohol to it weekly by poking it with a skewer and pouring or brushing on more of whatever (brandy, rum, etc.)
I have been trying my plums, trying to pull them, my plums won't pull, who do you pull plums?
Is it waxed paper?
I wonder if this is how fruitcake developed.
That's what I was thinking! But this is better than a typical fruit cake, as fruit cakes tend to be very dry, with little or no flavor.
I was just wondering what mixed peel you use? is it orange,lemon,grapefruit? Or orange, lemon, lime im making my own since our stores here dont sell it .
Orange n lemon yo
@@matt071482 ty
You might find candied peel online, or make your own. It’s delicious.
Where is the razzleberry dressing?
Christmas 🎄 2020 American, obviously, can anyone tell me about the ingredient called suet? 🙏🏻thank you 🎄
@ Linda Buck
Beef suet is the highly desirable fat above the kidneys. It's diced(finely)for this recipe I believe.
Thanks for sharing , my question is if I don’t want to steam right away and just store it after mixing all the eggs will it go bad with all the egg just storing it . I want to keep it a few days raw before Christmas 🎄
Having made Christmas pudding in the past and my own mothers recipe unfortunately turning green (we only looked 2 days prior and were very disappointed 😔) I can tell you the best method I adopted from the experience (Which turned out incredibly delicious) Is to steam it straight away as the recipe tells you, poke many many holes into it after its cooled with a skewer, wrap it up with baking paper, string and an extra layer of foil and around every 1-2 weeks add a tablespoon of brandy and/or a tablespoon of sherry (So 2 tablespoons in all). Depending on how long you wish to keep it, you could start to spread this time out to 2 weeks and then monthly and not worry about it too much doing its own thing. I made 2 in the September, served 1 at Christmas that year and managed to keep the other one all the way to the following christmas and it was amazing! Aged with the alcohol, I don't think I could have purchased a better pudding in the store (If I do say so myself 😆) and it felt like a very momentous achievement to have put all that care and time in to it. I appreciate this method might not be suitable for everyone, especially if you don't want to use alcohol at all in the recipe. But I did find it didn't taste incredibly alcoholic and much of it had most likely evaporated, but only preserved and intensified the flavour of the pudding, so not to worry on that front. I know you posted quite a while ago, but I hope this helps for future baking!
Oli2592 aww 🥰 thanks so much for the information. Appreciate it very much ..
@@tracyvancuylenburg4943 steam it as soon as its made and reheat it by steaming again when you want to eat it.
We always made ours the day after Thanksgiving, and doused the stored puddings with brandy every few days. It really must have time to "ripen", a month is traditional. Fyi my mum was from Wales, so the UK way is traditional. Fruitcakes the same, need to make at leat a few weeks ahead. The brandy preserves the food. Store in cool place (we had a fruit cellar but not everyone lives in a 100 year old house.) Enjoy! Also the old frutcake recipes weren't the dreaded leaden citrony disasters but lovely fruity cakes. Friends and family lined up in hopes of receiving my mum's fruitcake. She made 6 dozen, so most who wanted em got em. My job as a little one was picking the nuts which came from our own trees. Fond memories f a tradition passed down. Made mine last weekend, only 2 dozen cakes tho.
@@Oli-bm1ee LOL that reminds me of my Irish grandmother. She'd store hers that way since she had no refrigeration back then. She once said of a pudding saved since the year before that it had gotten so strong she was afraid to take it down from the cupboard. She did take it down, though, and it was amazing! Years later, when we'd moved to the U.S., she made a pudding and posted it over to us. For me, Christmas pudding = love.
What is “grease proof paper” that she puts in bottom of bowl and on top? Is it parchment paper in the US or “wax paper” thank you.
parchment works
hello,anyone know the size of the pudding tin
She said 1.5 litre :)
?? Dried plums are prunes?