Figgy Pudding - A Victorian Christmas Tradition

A rich boiled pudding made with flour, suet, figs, and other dried fruit, traditionally eaten at Christmas.

ORIGINAL 1845 RECIPE (From Modern Cookery for Private Families)

The Author’s Christmas Pudding.

To three ounces of flour, and the same weight of fine, lightly-grated bread-crumbs, add six of beef kidney-suet, chopped small, six of raisins weighed after they are stoned, six of well-cleaned currants, four ounces of minced apples, five of sugar, two of candied orange-rind, half a teaspoonful of nutmeg mixed with pounded mace, a very little salt, a small glass of brandy, and three whole eggs. Mix and beat these ingredients well together, tie them tightly in a thickly floured cloth, and boil them for three hours and a half. We can recommend this as a remarkably light small rich pudding: it may be served with German, wine, or punch sauce.

-MODERN RECIPE-

INGREDIENTS

3 oz (85g) Flour
3 oz (85g) Bread Crumbs
6 oz (170g) Beef Suet (Lard or Crisco will work as well)
6 oz (170g) stoned Raisins
6 oz (170g) Currants
4 oz (113g) Minced Apples
5 oz (142g) Brown Sugar
2 oz (57g) Candied Peel
½ teaspoon Nutmeg and mace
A few grains of Salt
3 oz (88ml) Brandy
3 Eggs

METHOD

Boil the pudding cloth for 20 minutes. Then carefully remove it from the pot and lay it out flat. Spread suet, lard or butter across it and rub in a liberal amount of flour.
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix. Then form into a ball and place in the middle of the pudding cloth. Gathering the cloth tightly around it, twist the cloth at the 'neck' then wrap it with a string several times and tie tightly around it.
Boil a large pot of water with an upside down plate on the bottom of the pot. Set the pudding in the boiling water and let boil for 3 1/2 hours. Check often and add more boiling water when necessary.
Remove pudding from the water and allow to dry before unwrapping. This can be served right away or aged for several weeks/months.

Punch sauce for Sweet Puddings

This may be served with custard, plain bread, and plum-puddings. With two ounces of sugar and a quarter of a pint of water, boil very gently the rind of half a small lemon, and somewhat less of orange-peel, from fifteen to twenty minutes; strain out the rinds, thicken the sauce with an ounce and a half of butter and nearly a teaspoonful of flour, add a half-glass of brandy, the same of white wine, two thirds of a glass of rum, with the juice of half an orange, and rather less of lemon-juice: serve the sauce very hot, but do not allow it to boil after the spirit is stirred in.