Sticky End? The British Pudding Faces Extinction, English Heritage Warns

At nan extremity of nan 17th period a French recreation writer who crossed nan Channel was intelligibly impressed by nan sweet, comforting treats offered to him, declaring pinch relish: “Ah! What an fantabulous point is an English pudding!”

More than 3 hundreds of years on, English Heritage has sounded nan siren that nan bully aged British pudding is facing extinction.

Research from nan kindness suggests two-thirds of households successful England, Wales and Scotland make puddings only erstwhile a period aliases less, while a 3rd ne'er cook aliases boil aliases steam one.

English Heritage warned that if thing was done to stem nan tide, nan awesome British pudding will not beryllium successful 50 years.

Dr Andrew Hann, a elder curator of history astatine English Heritage, said: “Sweet puddings are intimately intertwined pinch British history and it would beryllium a immense shame for them to dice out.”

For nan purposes of this research, nan kindness defines puddings arsenic cooked saccharine courses that travel a main repast – truthful not conscionable accepted “puddings” typically made successful mould aliases basins but besides dishes specified arsenic pome pies aliases crumbles.

Hann waxed lyrical astir nan benignant of puddings his mother would make. “She regularly produced a delicious pudding aft nan main people – things for illustration steamed sponge pudding pinch coming retired of a pudding basin pinch nan syrup dribbling down nan side. There was a full repertoire of delicious puddings. People are not mostly making these benignant of basking desserts but turning to things for illustration ice-cream, yoghurts aliases fruit.”

A steamed jam pudding. Photograph: The Picture Pantry Ltd/Alamy

English Heritage said recipes for sweetened nutrient pies from nan medieval play had been recovered and that by nan Tudor and Stuart times, puddings sweetened pinch chromatic aliases consequence were common, though galore would besides person contained meat.

Hann said puddings were erstwhile a luxury for nan well-off but arsenic sweetener became much wide available, much group could bask them. The 20th period was astir apt nan heyday of nan British pudding.

“However, nan investigation shows a clear displacement distant from nan accepted dessert complete nan past 50 years,” Hann said. “As much women entered nan workforce from nan 1970s onwards, households nary longer had arsenic overmuch clip to navigator and started to prioritise convenience. If this diminution continues, we tin expect nan classical awesome British pud to each but vanish wrong nan adjacent 50 years.”

The research, which was carried retired by YouGov, recovered 2% of British households eat a regular homemade pudding.

While half of group calved earlier 1970 said their parents made puddings respective times a week, that was nan lawsuit for only 26% of those calved successful nan 1970s. The downward inclination has continued since then.

In an effort to reignite Britain’s emotion matter pinch puddings, English Heritage has introduced 2 caller pudding-inspired ice-cream flavours to its sites: sticky toffee and pome crumble and custard.

The kindness is besides launching The English Heritage Baking Book successful early September. It contains recipes for each nan nation’s favourite puddings but besides immoderate of nan forgotten ones, accompanied by notes connected their history.

Four British classics astatine risk

Twelfth Night, aliases King, barroom is typically a yeasty consequence breadstuff flavoured pinch spices, and a token aliases legume hidden inside. Photograph: homydesign/Alamy

Twelfth Night cake
By nan reign of Elizabeth I, Twelfth Night progressive a celebratory cake, typically a rich, yeasty consequence breadstuff flavoured pinch spices, and a token aliases legume hidden inside. The personification who recovered nan legume became nan Lord of Misrule aliases King of nan Bean, and would person to organise nan evening’s revelry. The barroom survived nan Reformation. People began to usage eggs to raise nan cake, and arsenic sweetener and consequence came down successful price, nan barroom became little of a fruited breadstuff and much for illustration a rich | consequence cake. Over time, it was replaced by nan Christmas cake.

Soul cake
Also cognize arsenic a soulmass-cake, they were traditionally fixed to children aliases poorer people, known arsenic “soulers”, who would spell from doorway to doorway singing songs aliases reciting prayers complete Allhallowtide (Halloween, Saints’ Day, and All Souls’ Day). There are written references to nan civilization from arsenic acold backmost arsenic 1511. Records from nan 19th period show psyche cakes arsenic roundels containing flour, butter, sugar, currants, spices and eggs.

Cabinet pudding
Sometimes known arsenic chancellor’s pudding, it was very celebrated successful nan Georgian era. A accepted bread-and-butter style pudding, it is made pinch dried fruits and moulded and steamed. Served pinch custard.

Anglo-Saxon cake
A batch of nutrient eaten by Anglo-Saxons is still familiar. This barroom was made pinch honey, butter, oats and dried fruit, and cooked successful a dense robust saucepan pinch a lid complete a fire.

Source: English Heritage