Illlll < il — l Pi hi 



c-a zaiXsssmKTaaazxsr^xB^KOEBj 



^\)c jTtu-mcr's iilontljiij llisitor. 



feeding the [loor, a disli made of it that is in 

 the iiijiliest esliinalioii lliroii^'lioiit Atnerica, and 

 whicii leully is very (jnod and very noiirisliiii;.'. 

 This is called /i«s/y pHrf(//?i£p ; and it is iiuidc in 

 llie tiillowin;; njanncr: 



"A (jnaiilily oC vvaior, |iro|)orlii>ned to ilio 

 qnantiiy of hasiy pudding intended lu he njade, 

 is put over the fire in an open iron |>ot,or kettle,and 

 a proper ipianiily of salt i'oi- seasoning the pod- 

 ding heinir previously dissolved in the water, 

 Indian meal is stirred into it, hy litil." and little, 

 with a wooden spoon with a long hainlle, while 

 the water goes on lo be heated, and njade to 

 liffll ; — great care lieing tidien to put in the meal 

 by very small (piantilies, ami by silling slowly 

 liirongh the fingers of the left hand, and stirring 

 the water atioul ve;y briskly at the same time 

 with the wooden spoon, with the right hand, to 

 mix tins tneal v\itli the water in sneh a manner 

 as to prevent lumps being formed. The tiieal 

 sboidd be added so slowly, that, when the water 

 is brought lo boil,lh(! mass should not be thirlier 

 tlinn water-grnel,anil half an hour more, at least, 

 shoidd be eu>ploye<l lo adil the addiiional (piujj- 

 lily of meal ne.cessary for bringing the pudding 

 to be of proper consistency; during whieii time 

 it shoMhl hi' .-.lirri;d about eonlinually, and kept 

 constantly boiling, Thi^ method of (ieierniiiniig 

 when the pudding inis ac(piired the proper con- 

 si<leni'y is this;— The wooden spoon used for 

 Ktirring it being |>iaced upright in the Uiiddle ol 

 the kettle, if it falls down, tnore meal nmst be 

 added ; but if the pudding is sufficiently thick 

 tmd adhesive to su.pport it in a vertical posiiiori, 

 it is declared lo be proof; and no more meal is 

 udded. If the boiling instead of being continued 

 only half an hour.be prolonged three fpiarters of 

 an hour or an Imur, the pndiling will be consid- 

 erably improved by tliis prolongation. 



" This hasly pndrlijig, when dcuie, may be eateii 

 in variiius wa\s. li may he put, while hot, by 

 spoonfuls into a howl id' milk, and eaten \\\d\ 

 tlie nulk with a spoon, in lieu (d bread : and 

 used in ihis way it is jeniarkahly palatable. It 

 may likewise be eaten, while hot, wiili a sain'e 

 composed of butter and brown stigar, or butter 

 and molasses, with or without a lew drops ol 

 vinegar; and however people who have not lieen 

 accus4onied to this Amerliran cookery may be 

 prejndicetl against it. they will llnd upon trial 

 that it makes a njost e.xcellent dish, and one 

 wdiiwh never fails to be iinndi liked hy those who 

 are accustomed to it. The universal foininess 

 of American.s for it t>roves that it must have 

 some merils;-<-for in a country which produces 

 all the delicacies of the table in the greatest 

 alintidance, it is not to be supposed that a whcde 

 nali«u shoidd have u taste so depraved as to give 

 n decided prefererjce lo any panicular species of 

 food which has not sonKJlliiuir to recommend ii. 



"The manner in which liasly pudding is eaten 

 W'itli butter and sugar, or batter ai.il molasses, in 

 America, is an follows: — The hasty pudding lie- 

 ing spread out cMjually upon a plate, while hot, 

 an excavation is made in the njiddle of il, wilh a 

 spoon, into which excavation, a piece of butter, 

 as large as a niilmep, is put ; and upon it a spoon- 

 fid of brown sugar, or more: .commonly of mo- 

 lasses. The bniler being soon melted by the 

 heat of the pudding, mixes with the sugar, or 

 molasses, and forms a sauce, which, being con- 

 fined in the excavations made for il, occupies the 

 tiiiddle of the plan-. The pudding is then eaten 

 with a spoon, each spoonful of It being dipped 

 in the sano,' heliire il is carried to ihe monih, 

 care being had in taking it u|i, to begin on the 

 oiil side, or near the brim of the plale, and to 

 approach the ceniro hy regular advances, in order 

 not to demolish to soon tin; excavation, which 

 forms the reservoir for the sauce. 



" liasly pudding has this in panicular to recom- 

 mend it,— and which renders il singnlaily n.".elul 

 as food for pooi- families, — that when more of it 

 is made at once than is iimnediately wanted, 

 what remnins may be preserved good fiir several 

 days, and a number of very pnlalable dishes may 

 be made of it. It may be cm in liiin slices, and 

 roasled beliu'e llie fire or on a gridiron, anri ealen 

 instead of bread, either in milk, or any kind of 

 soup or [lottage ; or with any kiinl of food, wilb 

 which liread is conuninily eali'ii ; or it may he 

 ealen cold, without any preparation, with a warm 

 .sauce made of bnlter, nudasses or sugar, and a 

 little vinegar. In this last mentioned way of 

 eating !l, it is rpiiie im palatable, and I lielicve 



more wholesome, than when ealun warm: that 

 IS to say, w hen it is lirst made. It may likewise 

 be pill cold.^vilhont any preparation, into hot 

 milk: and Ihis mixinre is by no means unpala- 

 table, parlicnlarly if it is sulli'red lo remain in 

 the milk till it is warmed ihronghont, or if it be 

 boih'd in the milk a few momenis. 



"A fiivorite dish in America, and a very good 

 otX", is made of cold boiled cabbage chopped 

 fine, with a small (]uaiility of cold boiled beef, 

 and slices of cold hasly pudding, all llieil together 

 in butler or hog's lard. 



" Thmigh hasly |iiiildings are commonly made 

 of Indian meal, yet it is by no means uncommon 

 to make lliem of etpi.'d pans of Indian, and of 

 rye meiil ; — and they are somelinies made of rye 

 meal alone; or of lye meal and wheat flour 

 mixed. 



'• To give a satisfactory idea of the expense of 

 preparing hasty puddings in ihis counlry, { Eng- 

 land) and of feeding the poor with Ihein, 1 nuide 

 Ihe fedlowing experiment: — .Ahoiit two pints of 

 water, which weighed just two lbs. avoirdupois, 

 were put ov»r the fire in a sauce-pan of ;i proper 

 size, and .'58 grains in weight of 1-120 of a pound 

 of salt lieing added, the ualer was made to boil. 

 During the lime- it was heating, small ipiaruitiea 

 of Indian meal were stirred inio il, and care was 

 taken, by moving the water briskly ahoui, with a 

 wooden spoon, to prevent the meal from heini: 

 formed iulo lumps; ami as olien ;is any lnin|i.s 

 were oliKfirTi d, they were earKlully firoken wiili 

 a spoon ; — the boding was then conlinued half an 

 hour.«ul during this time ihe |)udding was eon- 

 timially stirred about with the wooden spoon, and 

 so mneb more meal was added as was found 

 necessary to bring the jindiliug to a proper con- 

 sistency. This being done, it was laken from 

 the fire and weighed, and was Ibnnd to weigh 

 just 1 lb. Hi oz. Upon weighing the meal which 

 remained (ihe ipianiily (irst provided having been 

 exactly delerniiueil by weight in tire beginning 

 of the expeflme,nl) it was loimd that just hrilf a 

 pound ot' meal had bee.u nsid. 



''Fnim the lesnll of ihis experlnieni it appears, 

 fi)r each pomul of meal employeil in making 

 hasty puddifigs, we may reckon 31b. itoz. of the 

 pudding. 



''Though hasly-pndding is, I belii've, the cheap- 

 est food ihat can be [U'epaied wlih Inilian corn, 

 yet several olher yury cheap dishes may be made 

 of il, which in general aj'e eonsidiM'eil as beim; 

 more palatable, and which, most probably, would 

 he prel'erred in this counlry; and among ihese 

 wliat in America is called ti plain Indian pudding 

 cerlainly holds the first place, and can hardly 

 f"ail to be much liked by those, who will be per- 

 suaded to try it. It ir- not only cheap and whole- 

 smne, but a great delicacy ; and it is prinei.|ially 

 on acconnt of these puddings Ihal llie Ameri- 

 cans, who reside in Ihis country, [Enghmd] im- 

 port annually for iheir own consumption Indian 

 conn fiom the coniinem of America. 



'•In oidei' lo he able lo give the most particu- 

 lar and satisfiiclory iiilornialion respecting Ihe 

 ntanner of preparing tliese Indian puddings, I 

 caused one oi' Ihem lo he made here, (in London) 

 under my imim-diale direction, hy a person born 

 and brought up in Norlli .Ananica, and who 

 nnderslands perll-clly the .American art of cook- 

 ery in all ils hranci es. 



"This pudding, which was allowed by com- 

 petent judges who tasted it to be as good as lliey 

 had ever ealen, was I'omposed and prepared in 

 the following manner: 



Jlpprovcd receipt for making a plain hiiHan Ptid- 

 di7ig. 



" Tlirci- pminds of Indian meal, (from wlii(di ihe 

 bran had been separated hy sifting il in a com- 

 mon hair sieve) were put into a large bowl, and 

 fire pints nf hoilins; uatfr weri' put lo it. and ihe 

 whole Well silrred logelher; threr i/uarttrs nf a 

 pound of motnUsnt am! one ounrc nf salt were tiieu 

 added to it, and these being well mixed, by stir- 

 ring ihem wiili ihe other iiigredient.s, the pud- 

 ding was poured into a fit ha:;; and the bag be- 

 ing lied np (an empty space liein:r lefl in lying it 

 equal lo about one-sixlh of ils contenis, lor giv 

 iiig room lor ihe pudding in swell) this pudding 

 was put into a kellle of hailing water, and was 

 boiled sir hours without inlermission ; the loss of 

 the water in the kettle by evaporation during 

 this lime being Irccpiciitly replaced with boiling 

 water from another kettle. 



"The [inddinp upon being taken onl of the 



bag weighed leii pounds and one ounce ; and it 

 was fonnd to be perlectly done, not having ihe 

 smallest remains of that raw taste so disafiree- 

 able to all p.'daies, and parlicnlarly lo ibose who 

 are not used lo it, which always pjednminales in 

 dishes prepared of Indian meal wlien they are 

 not snnicieully cooked. 



"'I'bis piiiiding whiidi ou:;!i( lo come out of 

 the bag siiHicieiilly bard lo retain its liirni, and 

 even to be cut into slici's, is so rich and pahiiahle, 

 Ihat il may well be ealen wiibontauy sauce; but 

 those who can .-ifford it commonly eat it with 

 i butler. A slice of ihe pudding, about half an 

 inch, or three ipiarlers of an incli in ihii kness, 

 being laid liot upon a plaie, an excavation is 

 made in tlie middle of it, wiih the point of the 

 knifi', iulo which a small piin-e of bnlter, as large 

 perhaps as a nutmeg, is put, :itid where it soon 

 uiells. To ex|)edite the melting ot' the bnlter, 

 ihe small piece of pudding which is cm out of 

 ihe middle ol' the slice toli)rm the excavation for 

 leceiving the bniler, is I'retpiently laid over Ihe 

 huller I'itr a few momenis, and is taken :iway (and 

 ealen) as soon as the butter is melted. If the 

 butler is not salt enough, a little salt is put into it 

 alter it is melted. The pudding is to he eaieii 

 with a knife and fink, beginning at the circum- 

 ference of ihe slice and approaching regnl.irly 

 towards ihe cenire, each piece of piiihlinir being 

 laken np with the fork, ami dipped into it in part 

 unlji, as 1^ conunonly the case, belore it is carried 

 to tlie mouih. 



" A point of great iinporlance in preparing an 

 Indian pudding, is lo boil it properly .-I'ld suj/i- 

 cienthj. The w.iier must be actually boiling when 

 the pudding is put into il ; and it never iniist 

 be snlfered to cease boiling for a momeiil, till it 

 is done; and if the pnddinz is not boiled six 

 huiirs, it will not be sidTiciently cooked. lis 

 hardness, when done, will depend upon the space 

 h'fl in Ihe hag alier ils expansion. The consis- 

 tency of the pudding ought lo be such, that it 

 can lie taken out of the bag without falling to 

 pieces; — hut it is always belter, on many ac- 

 connls, to make it luo li.iril than too soli. T.ie 

 form of the pudding may be that of a cylinder: 

 or rather of a truncated one, the largest end 

 being towards Ihe month of the b;ij, in order 

 lhal it may lie got out of the bagwiih tiieater 

 facility: or it may be made of globular form, by 

 tying it np in a napkin. Hut whatever is the 

 form of the pudding, ihe bag, or napkin in whicli 

 it is lo be boiled, must be wet in boiling water 

 before ihe pudding, (whicli is quite li piiil before 

 it is boiled,) is pouieil into il ; oiheiwise it will 

 be apt lo run ihrongh the cloth. 



'"Though this pudding is so good, perfectly 

 plain, when made according to ihe directions 

 here given that I do not think it capable of any 

 real improvement ; yet there are various addilions 

 that may be made lo il, and lhal Ireipieiilly are 

 made to it, which may perhaps be i|]on;;lit by 

 some to .'ender it more palatable, or otherwise 

 lo improve it. Sud may, for inslance, be added, 

 and Iheie is no suet pudding whatever superior 



10 it ; and as no sauce is necessary wilh ii suet 

 pudding, ihe expense of the suet will be nearly 

 balanci'il by the saving of bniler. To a pmldiiifj 

 of the size of that jnsi described, in the coinpo- 

 siliun of which three pounds of Indian meal 

 were used, one |MMinii of suet will be sulficieiil ; 

 and this, in general, will not cost more ihan from 

 five pence lo s'X pence even in London; and 

 the bniler for sauce lo a plain pudding' ol' the 

 same size would cost nearly as much. The suet 

 puddiiiy will indeed be rather the cheapest oi' 

 ihe two, (in- llie pound of suet will add a pound 

 in weight to llie pudding; — \< liereas the bniler 

 will only aild live ounces. 



"As die pnihliug, made plain, weighinir 10 

 1-10 lbs. cost .IS pence, llie same pnddini;, wilb 

 the addiliou of one pound (d' each, would wei^b 



11 I-lli lb. and would cost l| pence,— nckon the 



snet at six pence the po I. Ilcnee il appe;ns 



ihat Inillan snel pudding may he iiia.U> lu Loudon 

 for about otic pcnni/ a pound. Whealeii lueail, 

 which is by no me:ins so palatable, and ceilaiiily 

 not half so nnliilive, now cosls somelbing more 

 lliaii three pence llie pound : and lo this may lio 

 added, that dry bread can hardly be e;ilen alone, 

 hui of snel pudding a very comfortable meal may 

 he made wiihonl any ihing else. 



"A pudding in great repnle in all parts of llie 

 Norlh America, is wlial is called an apple pud- 

 ding. This is an Indian [ludding, someliinea 



