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‘Tis the season for rich food traditions. Sweet and spicy fillings encased in pastry, dense cannonball size cakes set alight and doused in
brandy butter; rolled up chocolate logs decked out with sprigs of marzipan holly; whimsical layers of sponge cake, custard and whipped
cream. They’ve been mentioned by Shakespeare, banned by Puritans, documented by Dickens and sung by Christmas carolers for genera-tions.
Enjoyed by many still, these traditional Christmas treats are almost all tied to pagan superstitions.
Christmas Pudding also known as Figgy or Plum Pudding
You may only know it from the Christmas carol “We Wish You
A Merry Christmas,” where carolers demand, “We won’t go until
we get some! We won’t go until we get some!” But this favorite
British dessert is a real thing indeed. The word “pudding” is a bit
of a misnomer. The pudding is actually a rich, dense, moist cake
flavored with nutmeg and cinnamon, orange marmalade, and dried
fruit.
Christmas pudding is traditionally made with suet (a raw beef or
lamb fat) instead of butter, which gives it a distinctive rich flavor
with a crumbly, moist texture. Raisins, candied citrus peel and
breadcrumbs (traditionally they contain 13 ingredients represent-ing
Christ and his disciples) are mixed into a batter, which is then
steamed for several hours. Brandy is poured over the unmolded
pudding and set alight (said to represent the passion of Christ) for
a dramatic, festive presentation. It is often decorated with a sprig
of holly, which is said to represent the crown of thorns, and many
households traditionally mixed in silver coins (for wealth), tiny
wishbones (for good luck), a silver thimble (for thrift), a ring (for
marriage), or an anchor (for safe harbor) and, when served, who-ever
got the lucky serving could keep the charm.
In the 14th century, Christmas pudding started out as a porridge
called ‘frumenty.’ It was made of beef and mutton with raisins,
currants, prunes, wine, and spices. It resembled more of a soup
and was eaten as a fasting meal in preparation for the Christmas
festivities. In “History Today,” writer Maggie Black tells us that the
porridge concoction slowly evolved into a plum pudding thickened
with the addition of eggs, breadcrumbs, dried fruit and often fla-vored
with the addition of beer.
By Elizabeth I’s day, prunes had come into vogue Black tells
us, “and their name became a portmanteau label for all dried
fruits.” As plums became synonymous with fruit, plum dishes with
and without meat became party food. It became the traditional
Christmas pudding around 1650, but it was forbidden by Puritans
in 1664 who associated it with Druidic paganism and Roman
Catholic idolatry. In 1714, King George I was dubbed the “pud-ding
king” (remember the nursery rhyme “Georgie Porgie pudding
and pie…”) after he re-established it as part of the Christmas meal,
having tasted and enjoyed plum pudding that was served to him as
part of his first Christmas dinner as the newly crowned monarch.
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