Puddings

Remarks: Puddings are prepared in various ways. Some are boiled in a napkin and others are steamed in a mold. A third kind are baked in the oven in a mold and then turned out onto a platter, and a fourth kind, the so-called soufflés, are served from the same dish in which they are baked.

a) If the pudding is boiled in a napkin, rinse the napkin (washed without soap) several times in cold water, wring it out thoroughly, and spread unsalted butter over the middle of the napkin, covering an area the size of a large round plate. (Use ½ spoon butter for a pudding to serve 6 persons.) Arrange the pudding mixture on the greased napkin and tie it up tightly with string, leaving a space of 2–3 fingers between the knot and the pudding mixture. That is, leave not too much space and not too little, because in the first case, the pudding will be flat and may fall to pieces, and in the second case, it will be too hard because it does not have room to rise. Lower the tied-up napkin into a saucepan filled with salted water, which must then boil vigorously for 1½ to 2 hours, depending on the kind of pudding. Tie the ends of the napkin to a stick, which should be placed on the rim of the saucepan so that the entire pudding will be submerged in water without resting on the bottom of the pan. Frequently replenish with boiling water so that the water in which the pudding is cooking does not stop boiling at any time during the cooking process. Remove the pudding from the water, drain in a coarse sieve, then untie the napkin and remove it from the top of the pudding. Cover the pudding with a dish, overturn with the sieve, and carefully remove the sieve and napkin.