A mystery uncovered

[vera_j]

Don´t laugh too much ...but I have sampled a genuine English Christmas pudding for the first time! I have always read or heard about it at school, seen it in films, I  have a recipy - but I have  never eaten it. Today, before the Exams begin, we had a small Christmas party for everyone who signed in (30 people) and the topic was: English Christmas.
As usual on Thursdays, I couldn´t attend myself, I had to be in the library. However I was given a sample by the lecturers, a piece of pudding with custard, and a small, nice mincemeat pie with cranberries.
Um...well...the Legend was quite good but frankly, I can live without it. Finally my curiosity was satisfied, thank you. The pie was a pleasant surprise, the cranberry filling was very juicy and not very sweet! I was also the only one who actually recognised the cranberries!
So now, equipped with this knowledge and lots of calories, I am preapred for tomorrow exams! 

Comments

[linda-joyce.livejournal.com]

Your opinion of Christmas Pudding echoes mine exactly. AH you had a modern mince pie, the traditional mince pies don't have cranberries. If you look here http://www.thefoody.com/preserves/xmasmincemeat.html. You will find out what should be in it.

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

I am very pleased you share my attitude - I feared I could sound like ...committing blasphemy... you should see some visitors eating it: it was obvious they didn´t like it very much but all were making that noise "ohh...fantastic...delicious..."
Yes, before commenting, I went googling and found the history of it!!!

[entropy-house.livejournal.com]

There's legends about Christmas Fruitcake being passed down through the generations (not the recipe, the SAME cake). I've no idea what it's actually *like* because the one time someone gave us a fruitcake it was so hard to cut we decided our teeth weren't up to chewing it!

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

Ah, your expression "fruitcake" is much more familiar - actually pudding here is absolutely different, it is a thick sweet cream made of milk and flavoured stark - more like custard! Hahaha, so much for Legends!

[entropy-house.livejournal.com]

Pudding in the US really only means custardy types of things. In England 'Pudding' can mean 'dessert', which can be very confusing to me.

[kalypso-v.livejournal.com]

If you say "a pudding" (as opposed to "pudding", which as you say can cover any dessert), I assume it's going to be something quite stodgy. Some of them are quite nice, but unless I've guests I usually skip that course.

[quarryquest.livejournal.com]

Yuck ... Christmas Pudding and Christmas Cake ... two things I really can do without.

Christmas cake can be terrible, my mother makes one using the recipe I was given by my Home Economics teacher (I was doing A level at the time) because it actually tastes like a decent fruit cake rather than the things-which-pass-for-christmas-cake that you get handed round. Shudders. She even makes the almond paste (dad has a pathological loathing of marzipan)to go under the icing.

The only Christmas pudding I ever enjoyed was during the period when I was thought to be coeliac (the Drs got that one very wrong!) and mum produced a really nice gluten free one with figs in it. She had various versions in the freezer for years after and we ate them over time.

You have heard of the famous British TV Chef who in the 1970s did deep fried Christmas Pudding Balls to use it up (help!)

The only way I eat mince pies is if I make them myself, including the mincemeat, and use flaky pastry which I have made fresh too. Even People Who Don't Eat Mince Pies eat them.

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

You know, the lady who participated in the party actually made the mince pies herself too...

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I don't get this thing about fruitcake in the US. They obviously don't have a decent recipe. Ours is moist and soft and utterly delicious, and I'll eat it in summer. Pudding though? Nah, give me something cool like ice cream and fresh fruit in a brandy basket.

[entropy-house.livejournal.com]

I can't figure out why anyone buys it. The stuff seems to be intended like survival rations- brick hard and dry and held together by a ton of sugar.

I'm sure there are good homemade versions, but all the ones I've seen for sale would make fine doorstops.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Even bought cakes here are nice. Mine though? Dried fruit soaked overnight in brandy, and real marzipan made by me from ground almonds. Superb and irresistible. I don't make it much now because I tend to scoff it in secret.

[entropy-house.livejournal.com]

You really need to make something like that when you're having guests, so you won't touch it ahead of time, and it'll all be eaten up quick.

[nautile26.livejournal.com]

Mmmmm, Christmas Pudding. I seem to be in the minority here but I just love homemade Christmas Pudd. I made mine a few weeks ago and I'm looking forward to having it on Christmas Day.



Fruit mince pies however I find very rich; I can eat half of one so they are nice to share with someone. :)

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

Then enjoy your pudding!!!

[hafren.livejournal.com]

Ah, I'll be making my mince pies soon! They should have three little knife cuts in the top, for the three wise men.

Xmas pudding is nicer cold than hot, IMO, but too rich to have often.

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

Three cuts? This is a nice tradition!
Um...I also know that someome pours brandy over the pudding and lets flames lick it! We were not allowed to do this, we are forbidden to use open fire in the library!

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I never heard (or saw) that! Every coffee shop has mince pies now, but they call them Christmas tarts in case people should think they have meat. Ours usually have a plain top, or a little pastry star. I like the star; it's almost always a 6-pointed one. :-D

[watervole.livejournal.com]

Hm, well if the person serving thought mince pies should contain cranberries, then I do wonder if they knew how to choose a good Christmas pudding.

Was it black, moist, packed (I mean *packed*)with properly soaked dried fruit, and slightly oily in appearance.

If it failed any of those tests, then it wasn't the real McCoy.

And it should always be served hot with either thick cream or brandy butter. (and in small portions)

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

I am quite sure that it really was not possible to cook really in our Centre. The lady had orderd it from England and her friend delivered it...I think it was brown, soft and fruit there were soaked, not very oily though...and small portion it was - all divided amongst 30 people.:-)

[sac-whovian.livejournal.com]

You're one up on me! I've never had English Christmas pudding.

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

Yay!:-)