The cream may be omitted, it will then make a good plain custard.
No. 252. Cabinet Pudding. Well butter a plain round mould or basin, round the interior of which stick a quantity of dried cherries, or Smyrna raisins, then about three parts fill the mould with sponge cake, interspersing two ounces of ratafias, over which sprinkle a good glass of brandy, then have ready the following custard: boil a pint of milk, in which infuse the rind of two lemons, free from pith, in a basin, have six whole eggs, which well whisk, with a quarter of a pound of powdered sugar, and add the milk by degrees, pass through a tammie and fill up the mould, round the edge of which place a band of buttered paper, have a convenient-sized stewpan, with about two inches in depth of boiling water, place in your pudding, cover a sheet of paper over, and let simmer gently over the fire, keeping the stewpan covered down close until the pudding becomes quite firm, by which time you should be ready to serve it, take out, detach the paper, and turn from the mould over upon a dish; have ready the following sauce: put half a pint of melted butter into a stewpan, into which stir the yolks of two eggs, and add a glassful of brandy, with the juice of a lemon, and sufficient sugar to sweeten it, stir over the fire until becoming a little thick, when pass it through a tammie, sauce over the pudding and serve.
No. 253. Bread Pudding. Procure four French rolls, the crumb of which put into a basin, with a pint of boiling milk, let remain until half cold, when add six whole eggs, with a quarter of a pound of currants, and one ounce of candied citron, cut into very small dice, mix the whole well together; have ready prepared as in the last a plain round mould, in which pour the above mixture, steam it as in the last; when done and ready to serve, turn from the mould, and serve with the same sauce poured over as before directed.
No. 254. Ground Rice Pudding. Place a pint of milk in a stewpan over the fire, and when boiling throw in the rind of a lemon, cut as thinly as possible, and quite free from pith; take from the fire, cover the stewpan, and leave ten minutes to infuse; then in a basin have six ounces of ground rice, which mix smoothly with half a pint of cold milk, take out the lemon-peel from the milk in the stewpan, pour in the mixture, and stir the whole over the fire until thickening, when take from the fire; add six whole eggs, six ounces of powdered sugar and a little grated nutmeg, mix the whole well together, have ready, well buttered, a pudding-dish, into which pour the mixture, and bake in a moderate oven until set; serve hot.
No. 255. Rice Pudding. Well wash six ounces of Carolina rice in one or two waters, drain and dry it upon a cloth, and put it into a stewpan with a pint and a half of cold milk and a quarter of a pound of butter, place the stewpan over a moderate fire, allowing its contents to simmer very gently until the rice becomes quite tender, when add six whole eggs well whipped, six ounces of sugar, and a little grated nutmeg; pour into a buttered pudding-dish, and bake in a moderate oven until set and nicely coloured; serve hot as before.
Sago, tapioca, semoulina, and vermicelli puddings are made very similar to the last, and served the same; they may of course be flavoured with lemon, any description of spice approved of, or a couple of glasses of brandy, rum, noyeau, maresquino, or almost any description of wine, spirits, or liqueurs.
No. 256. Macaroni Pudding. Have half a pound of macaroni, which boil in half a gallon of water until becoming tender, when drain it upon a sieve; have ready boiling in a stewpan half a pint of milk, in which put the macaroni (having previously cut it into pieces an inch in length), with a quarter of a pound of butter and the rind of a lemon, free from pith, tied in a bunch; let simmer gently about twenty minutes, when take out the lemon-peel and add six whole eggs, well whisked, with six ounces of sugar; have ready a pudding-dish well buttered, into which pour the above preparation; bake and serve as before.
No. 257. Gateau of Rice. Well wash half a pound of Carolina rice, which well drain and put into a stewpan with a quart of milk, a quarter of a pound of butter, and a few sticks of cinnamon; let simmer over a slow fire until the rice is very tender, and the whole becoming thickish, when take out the pieces of cinnamon; add six ounces of powdered sugar and eight whole eggs, stir in quickly over the fire until becoming again thickish, when have ready a plain oval mould, well butter the interior, lay a sheet of buttered paper at the bottom, pour in the above, filling the mould to within three quarters of an inch from the rim, and place in a moderate oven, where let remain until set quite firm, when take from the oven, turn out of your mould upon a dish, and serve quite hot, with a sauce over, as directed for cabinet pudding. Gateaux of macaroni, vermicelli, &c., may also be made by the above directions, preparing them as for pudding, but making the mixture as directed for the rice.
No. 258. Fruit Puddings. As almost every description of fruit pudding is made in the same manner, I consider it would be entirely useless to enter into their details, so shall here content myself with merely giving a description of the apple pudding, which, although one of the most common, is in my opinion one of the best.
Put a pound of flour upon your pastry slab, with which mix half a pound of beef suet, well shred and finely chopped, make a hole in the centre, in which pour nearly half a pint of water, mixing the flour and suet in by degrees, and shaking the whole lightly together, then take two thirds, which roll up into a ball, and with the rolling-pin form it into a round sheet, nearly half an inch in thickness; have ready a round-bottomed basin, well buttered and floured, which line with the sheet of paste, keeping it about an inch above the rim of the basin; have also ready sufficient apples peeled and cut in slices, with which fill the interior, adding a piece of butter the size of a walnut, six ounces of powdered or brown sugar, six or eight cloves, and a little grated nutmeg; wet round the edge of the paste above the basin, roll out the remainder to form a lid of about the same thickness, lay it over the top, joining them well together, then tie the pudding with the basin in a cloth; have ready a good-sized stewpan over the fire, three parts full of boiling water, into which put the pudding, boiling it about an hour and a half: when done and ready to serve take it from the cloth, pass your knife carefully round the sides between the pudding and the basin, turn over upon a dish, lift the basin from it gently, and serve as soon as possible.