Haibun
Indian
Pudding
There was a time
before dishwashers.
When I was a little girl, our neighbor Mrs. Altman had a one
hundred piece china set.
Beautiful roses covered the edges of the dishes. We were allowed
to stand in front of the china cabinet and admire them.
However, once a year she would take out all the dishes and wash
them. The neighborhood children would come in and, oh so
carefully, help with the drying.
And why were we so willing to do this? It was for our payment. A
dish of Mrs. Altman’s specialty… Indian Pudding!
at the drive-thru
the hamburger's special sauce
all over my shirt
Indian Pudding
Concord Museum
Version
6 cups of milk
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup molasses
3 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup of granulated sugar
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of nutmeg
1 cup golden raisins (optional)
Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream
Method
1 Scald the milk and butter in a large double boiler. Or heat
the milk and butter for 5 or 6 minutes on high heat in the
microwave, until it is boiling, then transfer it to a pot on the
stove. Keep hot on medium heat.
2 Preheat oven to 250°F.
3 In a separate bowl, mix cornmeal, flour, and salt; stir in
molasses. Thin the mixture with about 1/2 cup of scalded milk, a
few tablespoons at a time, then gradually add the mixture back
to the large pot of scalded milk. Cook, stirring until
thickened.
4 Temper the eggs by slowly adding a half cup of the hot milk
cornmeal mixture to the beaten eggs, whisking constantly. Add
the egg mixture back in with the hot milk cornmeal mixture, stir
to combine. Stir in the sugar and spices, until smooth. At this
point, if the mixture is clumpy, you can run it through a
blender to smooth it out. Stir in the raisins (optional). Pour
into a 2 1/2 quart shallow casserole dish. Bake for 2 hours at
250°F.
5 Allow the pudding to cool about an hour to be at its best. It
should be reheated to warm temperature if it has been chilled.
Serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Serves 8-10.
