Andover Hampshire UK 1800’s  

Cookery Classes Town Hall Meeting Jan 1892

Scrap Bread Pudding

¼ lb. Bread Crumbs

1 tablespoon flour

2 oz. currants

1 oz. sugar

1 egg

1 ½ ozs. suet

1 oz. Candied Peel or rind of small orange

½ teaspoon of baking powder –

Soak the bread in cold water, a little salt – pour off the water, squeeze very dry with the hands, whisk up the egg, chop suet fine, add with currants & (?) well mix, turn into a well greased Basin & steam 2 hours, cover with greased paper –

The front page has the name “Ada Augusta Warrington, March 20 1880

I got this book from Andover, Hampshire UK; although I cannot say this it is originally from that area.  From one of the recipes, I get the town of Belper in Derbyshire, but it is a recipe contributed by someone named Burrell.  One very interesting thing, in researching the town of Belper, I found that there is very close to it the town of Bakewell; (Strait up the A-6 road directly north) could this be where this very first, well known recipe in the book comes from? 

Her hand writing is very hard to decipher, there have been several words that I cannot figure out.  So, I put them in quotes with a question mark and the word I think it might be.  She has an amazing cursive hand, that takes a lot of reading the recipes and knowledge of what kinds of ingredients go into them, to see the words she has written.  See what you think, and if you think I have misinterpreted them let me know.

There are several different handwriting types in this book, it was probably handed down through a couple of generations.

There are no baking temperatures listed in these recipes; during this time, it was assumed you would know how to put together a recipe without directions and what temperature to cook or bake them at.  You gauged your oven temps through experience of working in the kitchen next to your mother and other relatives throughout your childhood and youth.  You learned methods, techniques and timing so you never needed to have it written down in the cook books or diaries passed through each generation of the family.

Oven temperatures are seldom given in the old books and recipes; most times the only say something like a slow oven or quick oven.  These are the equlivent to today’s oven temperatures;

A very slow oven equals 250 to 275 degrees.

A slow oven equals 300 to 325 degrees.

A moderate oven equals 350 to 375 degrees.

A hot or quick oven equals 375 to 400 degrees.

A very hot oven equals 400 to 450 degrees.

Suet is going to be a common ingredient in these puddings, there is a difference between suet and lard; best to not substitute one for the other.   Breadcrumbs are also a common ingredient, the pudding was a common way to use up old dry or stale bread; the phrase “Waste not, want not” was taken very seriously, food was expensive and none was wasted if at all possible.   During the years of the World Wars, one and two, again food was expensive and rationed; you used everything you had and made due without things you could not get; such as butter, meat, eggs, sugar and others.

Suet – It is the hard, raw fat from beef or mutton found around the kidneys and loins.  The high smoke point and fast melting temperature makes it perfect for deep frying and pastry making.  After rendering into tallow, it is used in cooking and baking such things as the traditional English Christmas pudding.  The long process of rendering it down to tallow, involves melting and simmering several times, cooling it down all to refine the suet to a usable state.  Suet requires refrigeration if it to be stored for any length of time.

Do not confuse suet with all fat from the animals it can only be found around the heart and kidneys of cattle and sheep.  Nor should it be confused with drippings, which is the melted fats in the pan when cooking the meat.

Pre-packaged suet that can be found today in the markets is mixed with flour and dehydrated to make it stable at room temperature. Some care is needed to use this for the old recipes, the proportions of flour to fat will alter the stated recipe.  Fresh suet can be bought in markets and must be coarsely grated to use; then must be refrigerated prior to use and used within a few days of buying it.

Lard – Is a semi-solid white fat from pigs used as a cooking fat or a shortening.  It is prized for its properties of making pastries light and flaky, replacing butter in the recipes.  The leaf lard is from the “flare” visceral fat surrounding the kidneys and inside the loin.  With very little pork flavor it is perfect for use in baked goods; and since the early 1990 when trans-fats in partially hydrogenated vegetable oils became a concern for your health, it has had a resurgence of popularity as a “Natural” food.

As well as baked goods It has been used in culinary recipes for centuries, often for game meats to add fat in the cooking process to very low-fat meats such as venison; by “Larding” a roast you insert the lard into the meat so it doesn’t dry out during cooking.

Visit my ebay store to find some great kitchen utensils and collectables to go along with these vintage and antique recipes.

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