I’ve been tempted to research recipes from Christmases past for a #Blogmas post or two but my big fail is that I’m not an enthusiastic cook and maybe I would feel forced to enter the kitchen!
Nevermind, with the help of BBC History Magazine (of which I’m a subscriber), I can share this recipe. My family aren’t big on Christmas pudding so it is generally something I eat rarely, yet I grew up helping my mum stir the pudding mix she made well in advance of Christmas and I may just treat myself to a pudding for one this Yuletide!
King George I was reputed to have eaten a plum pudding during his first Christmas dinner in England on 25 December 1714, earning him the name of the Pudding King. However, the pudding was not named ‘Christmas Pudding’ until the 1830s when it became part of the British traditional festive fare.
There are other historians that refute that George was ever called the Pudding King and trace the myth to the early 20th century.
Samantha Nott, of BBC History Magazine, states that this recipe will make three puddings and to make one large pudding the cook should halve the ingredients.
Ingredients
680g finely shredded suet (or substitute fat)
450g eggs (weighed in their shells)
450g plums or prunes
225g mixed peel
450g small raisins
450g sifted flour
450g demerara sugar
450g brown breadcrumbs
1tsp mixed spice
1/2 grated nutmeg
2 tsp salt
1/2 pint fresh milk
1 very large wine glass of brandy
1 lemon, juiced
Method
Mix the dry ingredients with the lemon juice and brandy.
Beat the eggs into a froth and add the milk – then add to the dry mixture.
Cover with a clean tea towel and leave to stand for 12 hours or overnight in a cool place.
Then, pour the mixture into a greased pudding mould and steam for 8 hours.
Wrap and store till needed in a cool dry place.
Steam for a further 2 hours before serving with brandy butter or custard.
Sources:
George I’s Christmas Pudding, BBC History Magzine, December 2018, page 90
http://foodhistorjottings.blogspot.com/2012/02/pudding-king.html
HistorianRuby: An Historian's Miscellany 
That is absolutely hilarious. I never heard that before
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I doubt that in the U.S. 1 person in 100 would know what suet is or where to get it. Certainly not in the grocery store LOL. Thanks for sharing.
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Atora Suet is the UK brand that I remember from childhood. It’s still on the supermarket shelves … I never use it though, I’m cooking more but I still find it a chore!
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I don’t ever remember seeing suet in our grocery stores. I became familiar with it several years ago when we began buying beef from a local farmer. We get a quarter of a cow and with it we can get things like organ meats, bones and suet if we want. I always get the suet then render it into tallow for making soap. I am now experimenting with making it into candles as well.
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You can buy vegetarian suet too, my mum switched to that so that my vegetarian sister could eat the same Christmas pud as everyone else.
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Su-what? Brits have such weird pudding variations. I laughed when I read you have a subscription to a History periodical. Who would have thought.
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This is me!
It’s a traditional ingredient in steamed puddings. I’ve never cooked with it, apart from at my mother’s side, as it’s too much faff, but lots of people still enjoy making their Christmas puddings – just not me!
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