2 quarts milk.
6 Boston crackers—split and buttered.
8 eggs—beaten very light.
2 cups sugar. Nutmeg, cloves, and cinnamon to taste.
1 teaspoonful of salt.
1 lb. raisins, seeded and cut in two.
Make a custard of the milk, eggs, and sugar, seasoned with the spices,
by heating the milk _almost_ to boiling, then taking it from the fire
and adding gradually the yolks, sugar, seasoning, and whites. Do not
boil it again. Butter a pudding-dish; put a layer of crackers in the
bottom, moistening with a few spoonfuls of the hot custard. On this lay
some of the raisins—a thick stratum; cover with crackers—the buttered
side downward; moisten with the custard, and proceed in this order
until your crackers and fruit are used up. Pour in custard until only
the top of the upper layer is visible, but not enough to float them;
cover closely and set in the cellar over night. In the morning add the
rest of the custard, at intervals of five or six minutes between the
cupfuls.
Bake two hours in a moderate oven. Cover with paper if it should seem
likely to harden too fast.
Eat hot, with sauce.