THE ORIGINAL ‘RECEIPT’

BREAD AND BUTTER PUDDING.

….Cut some slices of bread and butter very thin, and lay them in a pie dish with a layer of currants, sultanas, a little cinnamon and sugar, or some orange marmalade between, till the dish is three parts full;  then fill up the dish with a good raw custard, and bake till the custard is firmly set and nicely browned.

~Handbook of Domestic Cookery.  London and Glasgow: William Collins, Sons & Company, Limited, 1882.

THE UPDATED RECIPE

• about 5 to 6 very thin slices of bread
• about 4 Tb. butter
• ¼ c. currants
• ¼ c. raisins
• ½ c. brown sugar
• 1 ½ tsp. powdered cinnamon
• 3 eggs
• 2 ¼ c. milk
• ¼ tsp. salt.

Preheat oven to 325F.

Grease a 6 ½ x 8 ½-inch (6 cup) baking dish with butter.

Using day-or-two-old bread, slice very thinly, and butter generously, sufficient slices to fill the greased baking dish ¾ full.

Combine the sugar and cinnamon together, until they are blended evenly.

In a mixing bowl, combine the eggs, milk and salt, and beat lightly with a whisk.

Sprinkle the currants, raisins, and sugar-cinnamon mixture between the layers of bread, and over the top, distributing the ingredients evenly.

Gradually pour the egg and milk mixture over the other ingredients, so that the bread is thoroughly moistened.

Bake in a preheated oven, at 325F, for approximately 45 to 50 minutes, or until the custard is set, and the pudding is golden brown.

Serve warm or cold. Feel free to add a pretty sprinkling of icing sugar on top. Serve with a scoop of ice cream if desired.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

This is surely in the realm of “Comfort Food”.

Bread and Butter Pudding was considered both nourishing and economical – a means of using up stale bread. It was frequently recommended as ‘Nursery Food’, being deemed wholesome for small children.

A note from Patricia: I’ve been making sourdough bread like a madwoman (I can magically eat the sourdough – it has something to do with the fermentation process), and I now have a surplus of bread happening in my freezer, so this recipe seemed like a delicious way to use up some of the bread. I also had all of the ingredients on hand – isn’t it great when that happens?? On a rainy afternoon, I got to “work” on this pudding, although this was by far one of the easiest dessert recipes I’ve ever put together. I decided to try to layer the bread in a somewhat organized fashion, and although it seemed like an awful lot of liquid happening in the baking dish, I popped the pudding in the oven and hoped for the best. The result? A sweet and creamy and warmly spiced dessert that was light and moist. I loved the bursts of raisins and currants throughout, and am looking forward to eating the rest of it for breakfast. 😉

The proof of the pudding is in the eating.

~Cutter, Sarah J. Palatable Dishes. Buffalo: Peter Paul & Bro., 1891. (p. 555)

In cooking eggs, the best way is to break them separately in a cup, for one bad one will spoil all that have been broken before.

~Dingens Brothers. The Cosmopolitan Cook and Recipe Book – Third Edition. Buffalo, NY: Printing house of E. H. Hutchinson, 1888.