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Dessert

Fig Pudding

A custard-like pudding made with figs, butter, milk, raisins, strawberry preserves, whipped cream, eggs, flour, and gelatin.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Sterrett, Laura C · From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 11 ingredients
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Why it works: Raisin and flour match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,075 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓

Fig Pudding

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the figs

  1. Chop figs finely.

  2. Mix figs with butter.

  3. Add the other ingredients gradually.

Steam the pudding

  1. Sprinkle a mold with bread crumbs.

  2. Pour the mixture into the mold.

  3. Cover closely.

  4. Boil for three hours.

Make the milk thickening and serve

  1. Boil one quart of milk.

  2. Mix three tablespoons flour with milk and a little salt; stir into the boiling milk and let it boil.

  3. Pour into cups to cool.

  4. Serve with cream, sugar, and some kind of berries or jelly.

  5. Make in the morning to get cold for dinner.

Make the frozen custard

  1. Make a half gallon rich boiled custard and sweeten to taste.

  2. Dissolve two tablespoons gelatin (or a heaping tablespoon of sea-moss farina) in a half tea-cup cold milk; add to custard.

  3. Let the custard cool.

  4. Put the custard in the freezer.

  5. As soon as it begins to freeze, add one pound raisins, one pint strawberry preserves, and one quart whipped cream.

  6. Stir and beat well like ice-cream.

  7. Add blanched almonds or grated coconut if desired.

  8. Add currants instead of raisins or add chopped citron if desired.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

946Calories
29 gProtein
32 gFat
136 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 7 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Grape1/2 cup (76g)62
Cream1 tbsp (15ml) heavy51
Strawberry1 cup (152g)49

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By Sterrett, Laura C. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Raisin + flourtop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together9,075 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  2. Butter + milktop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together81,283 recipes

    Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).

  3. Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together41,516 recipes

    Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).

  4. Milk + strawberrytop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,130 recipes

    Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).

  5. Milk + teatop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together738 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4-heptenal (creamy, biscuit).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Butter
Adds richness and fat that softens the figs and carries their flavor through the pudding.
Flour
Thickens the boiled milk so it sets into a soft, spoonable body.
Eggs
Help bind the mixture and give it structure as it sets.
Gelatine
Sets the custard so it holds its shape once frozen and chilled.
Whipped cream
Adds air and richness, making the frozen dessert lighter and smoother.
Strawberry preserves
Add sweetness, moisture, and fruit flavor throughout the frozen custard.

The step that matters

Stir and beat as it begins to freeze. Beating while the custard is partly frozen breaks up ice crystals, keeping the texture smooth and evenly distributing the raisins, preserves, and cream.

Swap the strawberry

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, milk, raisin, cream, egg, tea, flour):

  1. Vanillafits better
  2. Figfits better
  3. Coconutfits about as well
  4. Strawberrythe original

Fit is the average pairing score against butter, milk, raisin, cream, egg, tea, flour. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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