Cottage pudding facts for kids

Cottage pudding is a classic American dessert. It's a simple, thick cake often served with a sweet sauce or custard poured over it. The sauce is usually made with cornstarch and can be flavored with sugar, vanilla, chocolate, butterscotch, or fruits like lemon or strawberry.

What is Cottage Pudding?

Cottage pudding is basically a plain, single-layer butter cake. What makes it special is the delicious sauce that goes on top! This sauce can be a creamy custard, a rich chocolate sauce, a sweet butterscotch, or even whipped cream or fresh fruit.

There are many ways to enjoy this simple dessert. While it's traditionally a single cake layer with sauce, the same cake batter can be used for other treats. For example, it can be made into a banana layer cake with custard and sliced bananas. It can also replace sponge cake in desserts like Washington pie or Boston cream pie. You might even find it used in fancy desserts like baked Alaska or to make ice cream sandwiches!

A Bit of History

Cottage pudding has been a favorite American dessert for a long time. One of the earliest recipes comes from a cookbook called Recipes Tried and True. This book was put together in 1894 by a group of women from a church in Marion, Ohio.

Famous cookbook author Fannie Farmer also had a recipe for cottage pudding. Her version could be baked with fruit at the bottom, making it similar to a fruit cobbler. Think of it like an "Apple Pan Dowdy" from her famous The Fannie Farmer Cookbook.

See also

In Spanish: Cottage pudding para niños