Potatoes, big and mealy, one and a half lb.
Butter, one and a half ounces
Flour, a tablespoonful
Milk, half a pint
Six eggs
A pinch of salt
Taste of cinnamon or lemon peel

"Boil or steam the potatoes, skin and rub through a sieve. Place them back again on the fire with the butter, the flour and the milk, all poured little by little, stirring well with the ladle, then add the sugar, the salt and the cinnamon or lemon peel (just a taste) and mix everything together well. Remove from the fire and, when the mixture is lukewarm or cold add the eggs, first the yolks, then the whites beaten. Bake like all other puddings and serve hot."

This recipe was taken from "The Italian Cook Book: the Art of Eating Well, Practical Recipes of the Italian Cuisine" by Mrs. Maria Gentile. It was published in the U.S. in 1919. For the entire copyright-free cookbook see www.archive.org.... P.S. I tried this recipe and found it very disappointing. In my opinion any pudding with rice, even a mediocre one, would be better than one made with potatoes. Possibly my opinion is influenced by the fact that I grew up on rice puddings, rather than potato puddings. Actually, I had never tasted a potato pudding until I made this recipe. In fact, I had no idea that puddings were made with potatoes. In any case I don't recommend this pudding, unless, of course, one is allergic to rice or something of that nature.... Photo and notes: Mary Melfi.

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