"This is Terrible - the Soda is Overwhelming!" Cherry Pudding

She ain't pretty, she just looks that way.Every now and then, I find handwritten comments in the margins of my cookbooks. Usually, these comments are positive, since cakers are pretty easy to please. After all, if most of your recipes start with “Empty contents of can,” your culinary arrow ain’t pointing high. Up until recently, I’d never come across a negative comment.

Then I found this recipe for Cherry Pudding in the London Newcomers’ Cook Book. “This is terrible," the handwriting screamed. “The soda is overwhelming!”

Naturally, my caker curiosity got the better of me. The comment was a little harsh. A teaspoon of baking soda didn’t seem like an “overwhelming” amount. So was Cherry Pudding really that bad?

Uh, yep.

I’ve eaten a lot of crap in my day, but this was among the crappiest. It was dry and crunchy. Plus, I was so overwhelmed by the baking soda, I passed out on the kitchen floor and woke up the next day. I wondered if an ingredient got omitted, but the recipe says “it's very dry.” So who knows? If anyone has a theory, let me know.

In the meantime, I’m adding my own comment to the page: “Tell it like it is, caker sister!”

To see some of the things I've found inside my cookbooks, check out the new Between the Pages section.

1 cup drained cherries (frozen sour are best) (See note)
1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 egg slightly beaten
1 teaspoon soda
¼ teaspoon salt

Mix together (it’s very dry). Bake in 9” x 9” greased pan about 40 minutes at 350/375° oven. Serve warm or cold [Editor’s note: won’t help], top with ice cream [Editor’s note: won’t help], whipped cream [Editor’s note: won’t help] or thickened cherry juice [Editor’s note: won’t help].

Note: I couldn’t find frozen cherries, so I used cranberries instead. Not that it matters. Please don’t make this. Ever.

Here's the page. This woman speaks the goddamned truth.



Source: London Newcomers' Cook Book