National Indian Pudding Day

National Indian Pudding Day is on November 13th in the United States.

Indian pudding does not come from India; instead, it's named after the American Indians (the name pre-dates other terms for the natives of the Americas). It is, in fact, British in origin.

Indian pudding is descended from the British dessert dish known as hasty pudding. The dish itself dates back to at least the 16th century, although it was not called hasty pudding until the mid-18th.

The original dish is made from wheat flour which is the cooked in either water or milk until it resembles an oatmeal porridge  in consistency. Indian pudding originated in New England in the 17th century, where the settlers used the natives cornmeal to replace the wheat flour of the original. Hasty pudding tended to use water, whilst Indian pudding used milk, and the dish was sweetened with such things as maple syrup or molasses, and flavoured with spices such as ginger or cinnamon. Nuts, eggs, butter and raisins are also used, and the dish is baked in the oven to give it a different texture to the original.