[Sca-cooks] plum pudding

[Daniel Myers]

On Nov 22, 2004, at 12:45 PM, Huette von Ahrens wrote:

> Here is what the Oxford Companion to Food says'
> under the category 'Christmas pudding':

[snip]

> Christmas pudding, the rich culmination of a long
> process of development of 'plum puddings' which
> can be traced back to the early 15th century.

[snip]

> When new kinds of dried fruit became available
> in Britain, first raisins, then prunes in the
> 16th century, they were added.

Eh?  No prunes in England before the 16th century?  I think that may be 
in error.

TARTLETES. XX.VIII. IX. Take Veel ysode and grinde it smale. take harde 
Eyrenn isode and yground & do þerto with prunes hoole. dates. icorue. 
pynes and Raisouns coraunce. hool spices & powdour. sugur. salt, and 
make a litell coffyn and do þis fars þerinne. & bake it & serue it 
forth.
[Forme of Cury (1390)]

This was one of 6 recipes calling for prunes in Forme of Cury.  There 
are also recipes in Liber cure cocorum and Two Fifteenth-Century 
Cookery-Books that call for prunes as well.

Raisins were also in use before the 15th century.  I'd hazard a guess 
that both long pre-date even the most primitive plum pudding.

- Doc


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  Edouard Halidai  (Daniel Myers)
  Cum Grano Salis
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