On 10 January the platinum pudding competition was launched by the department store Fortnum & Mason and The Big Jubilee Lunch. Open to all UK residents aged 8 and over (not connected with the competition, no qualified professionals), they were looking for a dessert dedicated to Queen Elizabeth II, who on 6 February will be reigning the United Kingdom for 70 years. Entries could be submitted until 4 February.
The winning pudding will be an important part of the celebrations marking the Jubilee. And the recipe should be inspired by The Queen’s life and work. And of course the person that creates the winning pudding will be invited to be at the centre of the celebrations. The jury includes Dame Mary Berry, Monica Galetti and Mark Flanaghan, the Head Chef of Buckingham Palace.
My own definition of a pudding turns out to be completely different from what is being meant. In Great Britain the term seems to apply for all kind of desserts. They can be baked or steamed, layered or rolled, pie or crumble. Fortnum & Mason is also loooking for a joyful and celebratory pudding that makes people smile. It should be “Fit for The Queen”. I hope it will be something that will be easy to create myself one day.
Examples of dishes creation on the occasion of a royal happening are the Battenberg cake (created for the wedding of Princess Victoria and Prince Louis of Battenberg in 1884) and coronation chicken. I myself find the latter dish quite tasty. It was created by the cookery writers Constance Spry and Rosemary Hume on the occasion of the coronation of the Queen in June 1953.
Let’s have a look at some of the most royal entries, that I found on Twitter. Aren’t they lovely? And some people have even been so kind to share their recipe online.