Wartime Christmas Pudding

Name: Wartime Christmas Pudding
Yield: Serves 4-6
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons warm water; ¼ cup (30 g) mixed dried fruits (such as currants, raisins, and chopped citrus peel), soaked in water, rum, or brandy until plumped, then drained; Boiling water, for steaming; 1 teaspoon ground allspice, mixed spice, or ground cinnamon; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 2½ tablespoons sugar (optional); Unsalted butter, for the mold; 1 oz (30 g) shredded suet (about ¼ cup); ⅔ cup (75 g) grated carrot; 1 cup (100 g) grated potato; ⅔ cup (30 g) fresh bread crumbs; ⅔ cup (85 g) flour

Preparation info

Serves
4-6

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

The Official Downton Abbey Christmas Cookbook

By Regula Ysewijn

Published 2020

About

During World War I, sugar, flour, and eggs were hard to come by, so cooks—Mrs. Patmore and regular housewives—had to come up with creative ways to serve a treat, especially for Christmas. Potato and carrot often stood in for more costly ingredients, as they were plentiful and heavily promoted by the Ministry of Food. They both appear in this recipe, which is taken from a Ministry of Food war cookery leaflet, where it was titled War & Peace Pudding. It is an excellent ex