Plum Pudding & Knox Gelatine

The girl on the above postcard is holding aloft a traditional plum Christmas pudding topped by a sprig of holly. She may be holding it up either to show it off or to keep it away from the dog who looks ready to jump at it.

Plum pudding first became associated with Christmas back in medieval England, and the association became stronger in the 19th century. Ingredients and methods of preparation evolved over time. Originally dried fruits were used as a method of preserving meat. When methods of preserving meat improved, the meat content in the mixture diminished as the sweet content increased.

Before the 19th century, the English Christmas pudding was boiled in a pudding cloth, and often was round like a cannonball. Since the Victorian era the usual method of preparation has involved putting the batter into a basin and then steaming it. The pudding is usually made ahead of time and reheated for serving. It may be topped with a sprig of holly and/or flamed with brandy and served with a sauce.

A recipe for steamed Plum Pudding for Christmas can be found here. A microwave version of the recipe is also included there. A refrigerator version of plum pudding was published by Knox Gelatine on the recipe card shown below. This card has a 1930 copyright. The refrigerator recipe looks easy and tasty, but it includes uncooked egg whites. Uncooked eggs are unsafe and should not be eaten nowadays. Maybe egg white substitute would work.

The Plum Pudding recipe also was included (without the picture) in the Your Electric Refrigerator and Knox Sparkling Gelatine recipe booklet (©1929). Knox Gelatine is recommended as a thickener than prevents ice crystals from forming in the refrigerator. It is also recommended as a way to use left-overs.

The most festive looking recipe from the Knox booklet is the one for Asparagus Bavarian Salad.

My mother used to make Jello salads for holiday dinners, and I always enjoy having a molded Jello salad for holiday dinner. That is actually the only time I eat Jello. My mother always added an envelope of Knox Gelatine to the recipe to make the salad firmer, but I don't do that. The idea of colorless unflavored gelatin has always made me a bit squeamish when I think of its source. Gelatin is derived on a commercial scale in the United States today from, (in order of predominance), pigskins, cattle bones, and cattle hides (source).

If you would like to try making a Christmas Plum Pudding, the fastest and most modern way to cook it is in the microwave as shown in this video. (Unfortunately, measuring in grams is not the American way. I never heard of black treacle before. It is supposed to be similar to molasses. )

Visit Sepia Saturday to see more vintage images.