Prune Pudding

Recipe No. 118 from the U.S. Army’s WWII cookbook — Desserts. Quantities are exactly as printed, for 100 servings; a scaled-down 8-serving version is in the notes.

Ingredients

• Prunes, dried — 10½ pounds
• Water, cold — 4½ gallons (10 No. 56 dippers)
• Sugar, granulated — 6 pounds (3 No. 56 dippers)
• Cinnamon — 1 ounce (4 mess kit spoons)
• Salt — 1 ounce (2 mess kit spoons)
• Cornstarch — 1⅞ pounds (1⅓ No. 56 dippers)
• Water, cold — 1½ quarts (1½ No. 56 dippers)
• Lemon juice — ¾ pint (½ mess kit cup)

Directions

Key ingredients

Cinnamon · Cornstarch

1. Wash prunes; add water. Heat to boiling; reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes or until soft.
2. Drain and remove pits.
3. Measure prune juice and if necessary add water to make 9 quarts (nine No. 56 dippers) liquid.
4. Combine prunes, prune juice, sugar, cinnamon, and salt; heat to boiling.
5. Mix cornstarch, cold water, and lemon juice together; stir until smooth. Add slowly to hot prune mixture. Reheat to boiling; boil 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Notes

SCALED TO 8 SERVINGS (the original is ÷12.5): Prunes, dried — 13½ oz Water, cold — 1½ qt Sugar, granulated — 7⅔ oz Cinnamon — about ½ tsp Salt — about ½ tsp Cornstarch — 2⅓ oz Water, cold — 7⅔ tbsp Lemon juice — 2 tbsp

Serve with cream or evaporated milk.

⚠ As printed, the manual is inconsistent here — “Water, cold: 4½ gallons (10 No. 56 dippers)”: 4½ gallons = 18 qt, but gloss says 10 dippers = 10 qt. Transcribed exactly as printed; the parenthetical Army measure is usually the safer one to follow.

— TM 10-412, Army Recipes (War Department, 15 August 1944), recipe No. 118, Desserts. Army measures: 1 No. 56 dipper = 1 qt; 1 No. 55 dipper = 1¾ qt; 1 mess kit cup = 1½ pints.