The History of Bread Pudding – Part 2
Website design By BotEap.comWelcome back! Today, we are going to talk about the history of bread pudding here in the United States.
Website design By BotEap.comMore history
Website design By BotEap.comMy research reveals that bread pudding was a popular food on literally both sides of the Mason-Dixon line. It seems that during the Civil War, soldiers were known to substitute biscuits for bread, and sweeteners were apparently extremely difficult to recover, especially for Confederate soldiers. My research revealed some pretty colorful descriptions of, in times of desperation and overwhelming cravings for sweets, soldiers would crumble cookies and mix them with whatever sugar they could find along with raisins and water and boil the mixture in tin cups. There are also stories about how the shortage of sugar and flour during those times of war, led to the preparation of fruit cakes that were described as “fearsome to taste and digestion”.
Website design By BotEap.comA SAMPLE OF BREAD PUDDING RECIPES THROUGH TIME
Website design By BotEap.comHere are a couple of recipes that I came across in my research for bread pudding. As you can see from the dates, they are very old. I found it interesting to read them and use my imagination to visualize how things were done back then.
Website design By BotEap.com[1747] “A bread pudding Cut the whole crust of a white Penny bread and cut it into thin slices in a liter of new milk, place it on a charcoal source to heat, until the bread has absorbed all the milk, then put a piece of sweet butter, stir, leave it stand until cool, or you can boil the milk and pour it over the bread and cover it tightly, it also fills up; then take the yolks of six eggs, the whites of three, and beat them with a little rose water and nutmeg, a little salt and sugar, and if you wish, mix well and boil for half an hour. . “—The art of cooking, simple and easy, Hannah Glasse [1747] P. 109
Website design By BotEap.com[1824] “Bread pudding Grate the crumb of a stale bread and pour it into half a liter of boiling milk, let it rest for an hour and then beat it until obtaining a pulp; Add six well beaten eggs, half a pound of butter, the same powdered sugar, half a nutmeg, a glass of brandy and a little grated lemon peel; put a paste on the plate and bake. “—Virginia’s housewife, Mary Randolph, 1824 facsimile edition with historical notes and comments by Karen Hess [University of South Carolina Press:Columbia] 1984 (p. 150)
Website design By BotEap.comIn my next post, I will include some more recent recipes. I hope you again enjoy looking back to compare these recipes and see how they have changed over the centuries. We will even get to some very current recipes that, perhaps, you would like to try. I am sure you will find that the basic recipe lends itself to many modifications and has endless possibilities for variation. Come back in a few days for the rest of the story …
Website design By BotEap.comEnjoy your meal