The Cooking Mistake That Led To The Creation Of Bakewell Pudding

The Bakewell pudding is a classic dessert in the United Kingdom, much like the similarly named Bakewell tart, though it would be a mistake to consider these two dishes interchangeable. And no, this isn't your typical American-style vanilla pudding, either. The Bloomers of Bakewell claim that the Bakewell pudding is traditionally made using puff pastry, strawberry jam, and almond custard, much like the Bakewell tart uses jam but swaps custard for almond sponge cake. However, Inn Travel declares that though the strawberry jam is a staple filling in both, the pudding is known for its use of shortcrust pastry, and the top of the tart is more "sponge-like."

Bakewell pudding sounds and looks a lot like its tart counterpart, so much so that unless you were keenly aware of the differences between the two, you might easily mistake one for another. That being said, the Bakewell pudding has a place in the hearts of those living in Bakewell to this day, and the dessert has a far more interesting tale attached to its invention than many of Britain's other baked goods.

Now you may be wondering to yourself: How was the Bakewell pudding created? According to The Culture Trip, Bakewell puddings exist all thanks to a cook during the 1860s in none other than Bakewell, Derbyshire. An inn owner, Mrs. Greaves, asked her cook to make a strawberry tart. But instead of mixing the filling together and baking it, the cook made a fateful mistake. They ended up spreading an egg custard mixture on top of the jam filling and baked the tart, thus creating the iconic Bakewell pudding, which was so well received that people began purchasing the dessert routinely.

The Bakewell Pudding Shop says that the original inn in which Bakewell was invented was called "The White Horse," and in the same town, the first The Old Original Bakewell Pudding Shop opened, selling the sweet as their sole dish to this day. The Great British Chefs' recipe still closely follows the method the cook in The White Horse used so many years ago and describes the Bakewell pudding as having a classic pastry base, jam filling, and egg and almond batter slathered on top, which pairs perfectly with a side of ice cream on a hot summer day. Both are definitely two of the most unique pastries you need to try at least once.