Father Capon's Grandmother's Plum Pudding
1 pound kidney suet (membranes removed), chopped fine	1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 pound ground dried bread crumbs	1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 pound sugar (brown and white, mixed)	2 teaspoons salt
1 pound muscat raisins	1 large cup ground apples with juice
1 pound seedless raisins	1 cup flour
1 pound currants	8 eggs, slightly beaten
1 pound candied peel (orange, lemon, and citron) chopped fine	1 wineglass Cognac
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl by hand. Select a number of bowls sufficient to accommodate the recipe.  Fill them 2/3 full, cover with clean, white cloths and tie well.  (It's a good idea to use bowls of different sizes:  That way you will have puddings of varying magnitudes to choose from.) Steam for 6 hours.  Dry and store.  Before serving, steam for 1 hour.
His Grandmother's Own Plum Pudding Sauce
For a medium-size plum pudding, take 4 egg yolks, 4 tablespoons of sugar, 2 of cream, and 2 of Cognac.  Place in a pot and whisk well - away from the fire; then whisk on and off the fire, until the custard stage is reached. Back away, whisking, and add 8 tablespoons of butter.  As with Hollandaise, when the butter is blended in, the sauce is finished. (Other proportions of Cognac to cream are, of course, possible -- as are other flavorings than Cognac; the main secret, however, is in your hands.  If you thank me for nothing else in this book, you will thank me for this.)

Elsewhere Father Capon says "These...will give you a hint of what Christmas is like where I live.  The dinner, by the way, is always Standing Ribs of Beef, Yorkshire Pudding, Wild Rice, Mashed Potatoes, Creamed Onions, Cubed Turnips, Buttered Carrots, Green Beans, Pan Gravy, and several bottles of Chambertin."

And then, my own favorite quote from Father Capon:

 As you see, we celebrate not only the Word, but the flesh He came to save.

*Konecky & Konecky, New York, 1967

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Another Traditonal Plum Pudding

My sister made this one in 2003; it is somewhat easier and the result is somewhat lighter than Father Capon's; though it still has the suet I think there is proportionally not as much.  The beer is an interesting touch but I don't know how traditional it is.  The Hard sauce is very traditional, though.

Another Traditonal Plum Pudding
1/2 cup chopped dates	1/2 cup chopped nuts
3/4 cup dark seedless raisins	1/2 cup fine dry bread crumbs
3/4 cup golden raisins	1 cup minced suet (1/4 pound)
1/4 cup chopped candied citron	1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1/4 cup chopped mixed candied fruits	1 teaspoon salt
1/.4 cup chopped candied orange peel	1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 cups beer	3/4 teaspoon baking soda
4 eggs	1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar	1/8 teaspoon each ground cloves and allspice
Combine fruits and peel in bowl; add beer and let stand for at least 1 hour.  Beat eggs with brown sugar and add fruit-beer mixture.  Stir in nuts, crumbs, and suet.  Sift dry ingredients and spices; stir into fruit mixture.  Stir into two well-greased 2-quart pudding molds (I'm sure you can use bowls here too), filling three quarters full.  Cover tightly.  Put on rack in deep kettle; pour in boiling water to half the depth of the molds.  Cover; steam for 2 1/2 hours, adding more water if necessary.  Remove from steamer; immediately remove the top.  Cool completely.  Re-cover and store in refrigerator.  Before serving, steam for about 35 minutes to heat through.
Hard Sauce
Cream together 3/4 cup butter, 3 cups of sifted confectioners' sugar, 2 tablespoons cream, dash of salt, and 2 teaspoons rum extract.

Source:  Unknown, but definitely English - it came with an English pudding mold.

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Plum Pudding PA Dutch Style

It was my turn in 2004 and I made this one out of curiosity and respect to the other half of my ancestry.   The flavor is fairly similar to that of the others above, though it does not have the, er weightiness, of Father Capon's. It is also somewhat easier to make and does not make such a vast amount, so those wanting to start on a smaller scale may prefer it for that reason.

Plum Pudding, PA Dutch Style
1 cup flour	1/4 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon baking soda	1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt	1 cup dark seedless raisins
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon	1 cup currants
1/2 to 1 teaspoon ground cloves	1/2 cup nuts, chopped
1 teaspoon ground mace	1/4 cup finely chopped candied orange peel
4 oz. suet (about 1 cup chopped)	1/4 cup finely chopped candied lemon peel
1 cup sugar
2 cups soft bread crumbs
2 eggs, well beaten
Sift together the first six ingredients; set aside. Break apart the suet, discarding the membrane which coats it, and finely chop.  Combine the suet with sugar, bread crumbs, and eggs; beat together.   Mix in the orange juice.  Alternately add the dry ingredients in thirds and the milk in halves to the suet mixture, mixing until blended after each addition.  Mix in the fruits and nuts.  Turn into a well-greased 2 quart mold or two 1 quart molds.  Cover mold tightly and steam for 3  hours.  Serve with any desired pudding sauce.
To Steam:  place mold on a trivet or rack in steamer or deep kettle with a tight fitting cover.  Pour boiling water into bottom of steamer to no more than one-half the height of the mold.  Cover steamer and bring water to boiling.  Keep water boiling vigorously.  If necessary, add more boiling water to keep water level during steaming.
Note:  Upon cooling the minute pieces of suet may solidify as flecks throughout the pudding.  These disappear when the pudding is re steamed.

From the Pennsylvania Dutch Cookbook of Fine Old Recipes, Culinary Arts Press, 1960.

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Professor Plum's Pudding (No Suet)

This does not have the suet but note that it has a lot of butter.  Also, I do not have the recipe for Zabaglione Sauce but I am pretty sure the main ingredient is egg yolks.  Because of the omission of all the citron and candied fruits, I don't think it will really have the traditional flavor, but it might actually go over better with kids who don't like those 'yucky green things' (candied citron).  The use of bourbon is certainly not English but might appeal to Southerners.  I have not tried this one at all.

Professor Plum's Pudding
3 cups fresh bread crumbs	8 oz butter - melted
1 cup black raisins	4 eggs - large, beaten
1 cup golden raisins	1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup currants	1/2 cup Rum or Bourbon
1 1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon mace
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Chop raisins and currants in food processor.  Toss bread crumbs in a large mixing bowl with the raisins and currants, sugar and spices.  Then toss with the melted butter, and finally with the rest of the ingredients. Taste carefully for seasoning, adding more spices if needed.   Pack the pudding mixture into a steamer; cover with a round of wax paper or the lid.  Set the container on a trivet in the kettle, and add enough water to come a third of the way up the sides of the container.  Cover the kettle tightly; bring to simmer, and let steam about 6 hours. Check periodically to make sure water hasn't boiled off! Let the pudding cool in its container.  Store in a cool wine cellar or refrigerator.  It will keep for several months.  Resteam the putting approximately 2 hours before serving. If you wish to flame it, unmold onto a hot serving platter and decorate, if you wish, with sprigs of holly.  Warm 1/2 cup of rum or bourbon whiskey.  Pour around the pudding and ignite.  Serve with Zabaglione Sauce, if desired.

From Julia Child's The Way to Cook.

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