FRUMMETY DAY - 06/04/2009

FRUMENTY BY TOM ROE

This was one of the recipes that came with my family when we moved from the country. It is made from wheat, boiled in milk. My Gran would start about three days before Christmas by putting the largest pan in the house- often used for jam making- on the front of the open range, which was the hottest part- until it boiled. It was moved further back then, and simmered in the cooler part for a day with the wheat constantly well covered with milk. Aunty Martha had the job of keeping it well stirred. At night it was lifted over the hot water tank built into the fireplace, to continue cooking with the gentlest of heat. This was repeated every day, up to and including Christmas Eve, with a close eye kept on the milk levels and the pan's contents in almost continual motion- so that the thick mixture didn't "catch" on the bottom.

We always celebrated Christmas Eve at Gram's and my Mother would go down to the house first. She would lay the tablecloth and carefully place the candles on the table. These were lit before anything else went on the table. This was usually Dad's job. As soon as the candles were lit, the rest of the seasonal food was brought out of the kitchen, where it had been stored. Out would come the pork pies, pickles, jams and relishes, home made sweets and savories, and all the other Christmas fayre.

The frumenty was always served first and flavored well with cinnamon. Without flavouring it is fairly bland, and the sweetening of it was down to personal taste- and rationing! Sometimes it was honey, sometimes treacle- black or golden, or if the allowance stretched that far proper sugar.

The treacle was brought loose from the shop. If I went to get Gran's jug filled on Christmas Eve, the shopkeeper would give me a sweet, which was a very rare treat. The shop sold most things loose like this- for molasses and treacle you took ajar, vinegar I used to take a big jug for this as it had lots of different uses in the kitchen, for pickles, first aid and preserving. We also got salt cut from blocks, which we used, for salting cod, which is still eaten extensively in Portugal and seaside Spain. Once at the shop if the price came to an odd l/2p the shopkeeper would try to sell you a candle or a couple offish hooks sooner than give you any change. We would tuck into our bowls of frumenty, knowing that we had to eat this first before we were allowed any of the goodies on display. My Granddad would lace his with rum or whisky, very furtively!

We usually had second helpings, and then we tucked into the large pork pie, then mice pies, trifles, cheese- the whole table groaned with the good things on it.

When everybody was full the table was cleared, leaving the candles still in position and lit. I was the only child, only grandchild, nephew etc., and in keeping with the tradition-as the youngest I then blew the candles out.

We still have the same ritual every year in our family- it has gone down through my children, and grandchildren, and now it's my great grandchildren that blow out the candles. My mothers parents didn't come as they lived in Skinningrove- only five miles away, but before the bus services, it had just as well have been five hundred miles. My mother's father-my Granddad was 1^st generation German immigrant, and they celebrated slightly differently, with the stolen cake and Teutonic trimmings!

To keep the season going, we always had presents at New Year, brought by Tommy New Year. I usually spent New Years Eve at Skinningrove to even up the score between my grandparents. As our children got older, Tommy New Year was a very useful way to get them to go to bed, so we could usher in the New Year in style.