The Tudor Society

Tudor Cooking with Claire – Bread and Butter Pudding

For this week's Claire Chats video, I decided to do a recipe from the November section of Elinor Fettiplace's Receipt Book, a compilation of Elizabethan recipes by Lady Elinor Fettiplace. As I say in my video, I didn't think it would be sweet enough with just sugar scattered over the top, but it actually was when I actually sat down and ate a bowl of it. It was a big hit at lunch, disappearing rapidly.

Here is what you need to make this recipe:

  • 2 pints/just over 1 litre creamy milk or milk mixed with single cream
  • 4oz/100g breadcrumbs from 2-3 days' old white bread
  • 2 heaped tbsp flour
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 or 3 cloves
  • A blade of mace or a grating of nutmeg
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2oz/50g melted butter or margarine
  • 4tbsp raisins (or any dried fruit or mixed peel)

The recipe is a version of one of my favourite traditional British puddings and you'll find a modern recipe to that at http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/breadandbutterpuddin_85936.

Source

  • ed. Spurling, Hilary (1986) Elinor Fettiplace's Receipt Book: Elizabethan Country House Cooking, Viking.

There are 7 comments Go To Comment

  1. C

    I learned to make bread pudding from my Grandmother (English heritage). It is my grandson’s favorite and I am asked to make it every holiday for him.

  2. J

    This looks and sound as if it is very tasty! I want make it soon.

    1. C - Post Author

      It’s delicious, our household finished it very quickly!

  3. D

    I am going to make this! It looks delicious. Thank you for sharing!

  4. s

    You did not say whether the pan had to be greased or not for this recipe (or did I miss it?), but since the other recipe stated the pan was greased I went ahead and did it.
    i think I may have added the egg/margarine mixture too soon, because although the consistency of the pudding was as it should, there was excess liquid around the edges.
    It still tasted really good—-I made mine with dried cherries, and since I was out of whole cloves I had to use powered.
    I think test time I may try using cinnamon and dried blueberries.

    1. C - Post Author

      I did grease it just to make sure it didn’t catch around the edges. I’m definitely doing it again as it was such a big hit with the family. Dried cherries and blueberries sound perfect – yum!

  5. s

    Oops—that should be “next time”, not “test time”…

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Tudor Cooking with Claire – Bread and Butter Pudding