Maize pudding better remembered as Gateau maïs or Poudine maïs

 I've been considering trying my hand at revisiting this well loved snack/pudding/ desert which I loved when I was a child.  I don't think my English Mum made this, but our cook made this for Dad and I went we were at home on our own.  Often it was offered at tea time on visits to old 'aunties' together with a cup of Vanilla Tea for adults or Coca-Cola or Fanta for the kids. My choice would have been home made lemonade with Citron de Rodrigues, or 'Sirop Canne' which you could get as a dark sticky liquid straight from the sugar estates during the sugar pressing season. Diluted with ice cold water and a slice a citron,  Sirop Cannes has to be one of the best non alcoholic drinks! That has given me an idea to try to create this drink at home.

 I had been thinking about why a 'boiled' pudding or cake.  Very few people had electric ovens, or even refrigerators,  and cakes had to be bought from a Patisserie, but this could be made at home, even over a 'charcoal brasier' or feu de bois  in the outside kitchens of the old Mauritian colonial houses,  and was affordable to even modest income families.  There were umpteen versions, none tasting the same,  as each cook added their own twist depending on what was available.  As a 'Gourmet Gourmande' which was one of my father's pet names for me, I never passed over the opportunity of tasting home made offerings.

Of course I searched the internet for recipes and for the origins. I remembered grated coconut in the pudding rather than on top some of the time, which would of course mostly been from the grated flesh of a fresh mature coconut, often straight from the garden,.  Maize grits were locally produced and I do remember my old friend telling me how her sister used to whine during the war, when Mauritius suffered from many food scarcities, for wheat bread, when all they had to eat was maize.  The raisins too were not a 'store cupboard' staple for many people, but one for which children were sent out to the local corner shop and just enough was purchased: so many cents worth which gave a small handful wrapped in a twist of newspaper could be brought home in anticipation of something special later in the day.  We are talking about the sixties here, now there are supermarkets and wonderful bags imported from South Africa or Australia, with local incomes mainly able to afford purchasing and having some to spare in the kitchen, rather than just sufficient for a recipe. 

We had some for lunch in the garden today, and the verdict from Mr S: very nice and reminded him of some Indian desserts. 

I used an oblong pyrex dish 22 x 17 cm with cover brushed with a little almond oil to help release.  You can use anything to mould the desert, individual ramekin dishes for example.  I added the orange zest and juice, as tasting along I found it needed some zing/sharpness.

125g Polenta

600g milk

100g water

50g creamed coconut block...I chop up a block a freeze it and use pieces in soups, curries etc.

50g desiccated coconut

1 tsp vanilla essence, I would have used a pod, but I had none...

5 cardamom pods, seeds removed and ground in a pestle and mortar

2 tbsp sugar, I used Billington's soft light brown, but du sucre rouge would have been used.

2 tbsp raisins, they would have used a pale raisin, but I had dark ones soaking in Marsala  to hand

Grated rind of two oranges, and juice of one.

2 tablespoons of toasted flakes of coconut which also needed using up.

Weigh and put everything into the pan except for the sugar and toasted coconut flakes.  It is best to leave the sugar nearly to the end, as it helps to prevent any burning.

Cook everything on a moderate to low heat stirring all the the time to prevent sticking, till you get a thick porridge like mixture, add the sugar stir off the heat to distribute, taste add a little more orange juice if required, then pour into the mould.  Level and sprinkle with coconut. It will thicken as it cools, I like mine cold from the fridge.

I used the remaining orange sliced as a side, but it is fine on its own. 

I am thinking of all sorts of versions possible to incorporate different flavours...but it will be some time.  This amount will serve eight people in my opinion, but not if they want seconds!