If you ever watch British sitcoms on television or read British
fiction, you know that over there they call dessert
”
pudding.
”
It doesn’t matter what the dessert is, the sweet that follows
the main part of the meal is pudding.
If you ever watch British sitcoms on television or read British fiction, you know that over there they call dessert “pudding.” It doesn’t matter what the dessert is, the sweet that follows the main part of the meal is pudding.
There are other traditional English foods, like plum pudding, that are not what we consider pudding but rather a steamed spongy cake sort of thing.
I was thinking about this and about why, since so many of the early Europeans to settle here were from England, we don’t call it pudding, too. Instead, most families I know call the end-of-meal sweet “dessert ” – unless it really is pudding. And then we give it a specific name: chocolate pudding, bread pudding, rice pudding, etc.
It appears that very early puddings were created as ways to extend the edible life of the meat scraps, offal and blood remaining from the butchering process. There is a link from the Roman word “botellus” to the French “boudin,” (a type of blood sausage) and our word “pudding.” The legendary Scottish haggis is an example, using the sheep’s stomach as a casing for the offal of a sheep, oatmeal, stock and seasonings.
Besides these “black” or meat-based puddings, there were “white” puddings, which were cereal- and suet-based. Custards, which are actually the basis for what most of us think of as puddings today, originally used eggs for thickening but evolved to use tapioca, arrowroot or cornstarch. This branch of the pudding family extends to creme caramel, creme brulee, flan and other baked egg-based delights.
The egg-based recipes in turn evolved into custard powder and pudding mixes, which require no cooking at all. Instant chocolate pudding was a mainstay of my childhood and one of the first things I learned to make by myself.
So, I got to wondering if it was possible to find a “from scratch” chocolate pudding recipe that was that so much better than chocolate pudding mix that it was worth the bother. After trying the recipe from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book, I would have to say it’s worth it: maybe not for a quick after-school snack, but certainly for a dessert for adults – even though it involves the dreaded step of “cooking and stirring until thick.”
Chocolate Pudding
Serves 4
3/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 2/3 cups milk
4 beaten egg yolks
1 tablespoon butter
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
Step 1: In a medium-heavy saucepan or the top half of a double-boiler, combine sugar, cornstarch and cocoa. Stir in milk. Cook and stir mixture over medium heat until thickened and bubbly, then cook and stir for 2 minutes more.
Step 2: Remove pan from heat. Gradually stir 1 cup of the milk mixture into the beaten egg yolks. Add egg mixture to milk mixture in pan. Bring milk mixture to a gentle boil. (Note: I used a double-boiler. Mine did not come to a boil, but you could see it thickening.) Reduce heat; cook and stir for 2 additional minutes.
Step 3: Remove pan from heat. Stir in butter and vanilla. Pour pudding into a bowl or individual serving cups. Cover surface of pudding with plastic wrap. Chill; do not stir during chilling.
Here is an innovative way, using a slow cooker, to make tapioca pudding, courtesy of Alton Brown of The Food Network. Note that this needs to be started the night before you want to serve it.
Tapioca Pudding
Serves 4
3 1/2 ounces large pearl tapioca, approximately 1/2 cup
2 cups cold water
2 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 egg yolk
1/3 cup sugar
1 lemon, zested
Pinch of salt
Step 1: Place tapioca in a medium mixing bowl along with the water, cover, and let stand overnight.
Step 2: Drain water from tapioca. Place the tapioca into a slow cooker along with the milk, heavy cream and salt. Cook on high for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
Step 3: In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolk and sugar. Add small amounts of the tapioca mixture into the egg mixture until you have added at least 1 cup. Then add this back into the remaining tapioca in the slow cooker.
Step 4: Add the lemon zest, and stir to combine. Cook for an additional 15 minutes, stirring at least once. Transfer the pudding to a bowl and cover the surface with plastic wrap. Allow to cool at room temperature for one hour, and then place in the refrigerator until thoroughly chilled.
I wanted to include a recipe for rice pudding, but all the versions I found contained raisins, which I do not care for. Rather than just leave them out, I’ll continue my search for a rice pudding with something else in it, or I’ll make one up.
I also encountered several recipes for “sticky toffee” pudding, which is apparently an English traditional soft cake with toffee sauce. Those recipes seemed daunting, so I am including “Sticky Toffee Dessert” from Nigella Lawson, which is wonderfully easy and tastes great.
Easy Sticky Toffee Dessert
(From “Nigella Bites”)
Serves 6-8
For the cake:
scant 1/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons self-rising flour
1/2 cup whole milk
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons chopped, rolled dates
For the sauce:
3/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed
Approximately 2 tablespoons unsalted butter in little blobs
2 1/4 cups boiling water
Step 1: Preheat oven to 375 degrees and butter a 1 1/2 quart baking dish.
Step 2: Combine the sugar with the flour in a large bowl. Pour the milk into a measuring cup and beat in the egg, vanilla, and melted butter.
Step 3: Pour over this mixture the sugar and flour, stirring with a wooden spoon just to combine. Fold in the dates, and pour into the prepared baking dish.
Step 4: Sprinkle over the sugar for the sauce, and dot with the butter. Pour over the boiling water (fear not!) and transfer to the oven. Set the timer for 45 minutes, although it might need 5 or 10 minutes more. The top of the dessert should be springy and spongy when it’s cooked; underneath, the butter, dark brown sugar and boiling water will have turned into a rich, sticky sauce. Serve with unsweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
