How to make a Figgy Pudding from Victorian England

[sam_uelson]

Grandma used to start hers on January 1st and give it a shot of brandy every week until Xmas. By December it was so potent you could light it just off the fumes alone.

[Magpiebard]

Last time I made one, I went with rum and started it about 5 months in advance. One small piece and someone needs to make sure grandad doesn't try stairs for a bit.

[SoberOKMoments]

I'm 81. I remember "helping" mum take the pudding out of the cupboard, unwarpping it and her pouring more brandy over it before wrapping it up again and putting it back on the cupboard shelf. This ritual went on for months. At the end of the Christmas dinner, the lights were turned off when it was served ablaze (to oooos and ahhhhs) and then it was topped with a hard sauce (sweet icing with more brandy in it) and served.

[disorderlymatron]

I can remember when you talked about deciding to leave your job and do this full time. I sincerely hope it's been nothing but a wonderful journey for you 🥰

[candydandy]

My Mum makes these every year. For months prior to Xmas you have to duck when walking around her house, lest you clonk your noggin on one of the puddings hanging in doorways around the house. LOL!

[kellykat]

Love it! Miss it. Local church ladies used to make them in small sized coffee cans. My 98 yo great grandma insisted we order them for every Christmas.

[Levacque]

All right folks, a quartern is one quarter of a pint, so that brandy measurement is one sixteenth of a pint, or two tablespoons. It's one more detail to demonstrate just how impoverished the Cratchits are.

[nursemarn]

The longer they sit the better they taste. My gran always made hers months ahead.

[robertnewell]

I worked with a British Nurse for a few years who made these every Christmas & shared them with me. Loved to eat these while watching “Dickens A Christmas Carol”

[breakabletape]

This is still common in Newfoundland, as well. We call it figgy duff, but it is usually made with wild berries. To specify the berries used, we call it blueberry duff, blackberry duff, etc.

[s.s.]

My only encounter with Christmas pudding was a canned one my dad bought at a specialty shop one year. He took it out of its tin, set it ablaze, and served it with warm, runny custard. It reminded me very much of fruit cake. I hope to make my own one day to surprise him with an authentic(ish) taste of home for Christmas.

[seonaelizabethcoster]

My mum always makes a plum pudding for Christmas, and it's the best part of Christmas. It's the one "hot" dessert we have (I'm in Australia, so Christmas is usually hot and humid). Mum's recipe from the Australian Women's Weekly, circa 1980-84, so probably adapted from the original. My siblings and I always knew it was nearly Christmas when mum started soaking the fruits in brandy for two weeks. Then, around Melbourne Cup Day (first Tuesday of November), she'd boil it. The house would just smell of Christmas all day. 🤤. It's currently in the fridge, aging up nicely, ready for Christmas lunch. I can't wait.

[gardnerhill]

I have a recipe from a London hotel that's from Dickens' time! My nieces used to come over the weekend after Thanksgiving to help me chop and peel and mix the batter so it could marinate in liquor for weeks before Christmas. Good memories.

[oprophetisfake]

You can use dried plums instead of raisins if you like but cut them up small.

[aking]

Nothing says Christmas like a raging fiery pudding!!!❤😂🔥🍮🌲

[dhandley]

My grandfather was from Derbyshire. My dad used to steam it in a metal coffee can, from midnight to 4 am, adding water as needed. I used to help him and stay up all that time. Put a clean penny in for luck. Serve with a hard sauce. Very dense dessert. Great memories! Chopping the suet finely enough is the hardest part.

[PhilipHema-tdvd]

Years ago, living in NZ a group of friends would gather in the middle of Jul/Aug a southern winter. Our Swiss friend would ask us to bring an attractive sealable jar. We would pack the jar with dried fruit and fill with cognac. After months in the larder we we ould open the jar and eat the fruit and drink the fruit- flavoured liquid. Save some for New Yeaar's.

[katmandudawn]

I made a plum pudding using a recipe from a 1980’s Bon Appetite magazine . They had an article on a traditional Christmas dinner that included a great Brussels sprouts recipe.

They had Christmas pudding was great and I froze held for later since it’s so dense.
I used a pudding mold instead of cheese clothe. It was easier.

[rachelmoss]

If you put the raisins and currents through a meat grinder before adding them the pudding gets a nice dark colour. I get this for my birthday cake every year 😀 No candles for me, I blow out the whole cake!

[annedavis]

I am from Indiana..but i remember my great grandmother and my mother making this for Christmas.. exactly this recipe. It was huge and lasted several days.
They sometimes for breakfast sauteed/browned the slices in butter,
it was a tradition and a treasured memory.
We called it jonnybull