The fragrance of steaming Christmas pudding is an indelible memory of the season for most of us, something worthy of mention by Dickens in his famed book the Christmas Carol.
More than a decade ago the staff at the hospital cafeteria in Yorkton began selling puddings as a fundraiser, a tradition now carried on by Susanne Welechenko.
"It was actually a recipe that was made at the hospital," she said, explaining she used to work in the cafeteria at the hospital.
At the time they made and sold Christmas pudding as a fundraiser, but rules changed and they could not longer sell them, said Welechenko.
That was when Welechenko decided to start making and selling the puddings, filling the void left by the rule change at the hospital.
"I had the idea maybe I could make it and sell it," she said, adding her reasoning was simple. "Because there was a request for it."
Welechenko started with the hospital cafeteria recipe as a base for her own. "I took that recipe and twisted it and made it better."
Welechenko said it took some experimenting to settle on a final recipe.
"There are so many variations," she said, noting the spices vary, as do whether people add raisins, other fruits and nuts.
In addition some Christmas bread puddings are steamed, and canned, where as Welechenko noted, "mine is baked."
The main ingredients in Welechenko's puddings are of course bread, milk, eggs and sugar, plus spices which she kept secret. She packages the pudding in one kilogram packages, with accompanying rum sauce.
"It's enough for an after dinner dessert for about 10 people," she said, adding "there's real rum in the rum sauce. There's no other way to do it."
While generally making the puddings in two styles, one with raisins, the other without, she will go custom mixes on request, adding she does a pudding with egg nog instead of milk, and using mixed fruit, not just raisins.
Welechenko said she does the puddings by herself.
"I just love doing it. I just have a passion for it," she said. "I look forward to it every year."
Welechenko did try making cookies one year, but the passion was not the same.
"They were a huge seller, but by the end of the season I didn't like making cookies anymore," she said.
While she does sell the puddings, the reward goes beyond money.
"The reward is getting the feedback from the people afterwards, how much they appreciated the dessert for the season," said Welechenko.
Interestingly Christmas pudding was not part of Welechenko's own upbringing.
"I never grew up with it," she said.
That it was not part of her own seasonal tradition was another reason for taking on the pudding making.
"I was interested in the tradition in so many homes that I was unfamiliar with It's a dessert that has been traditional," she said, adding she recognized "there was actually a need," for the service.
Welechenko said even for families where Christmas pudding is a cherished tradition, they often look to buy now.
"They were recipes mothers and grandmothers made," she said, adding today "it's a working world. People don't have time It's been kind of lost because of the world we live in now.
"I was interested in bringing that back to the table."
That was back in 2002, and Welechenko has been at it ever since.
For the most part Welechenko said sales have come through word-of-mouth, with her base still coming from those who purchased through the hospital cafeteria years ago.
In 2007 Welechenko took a new step in marketing, attending a craft show in Theodore, selling 18 puddings that first year.
"Every year since is been about 40," she said.
This year she attended a craft sale in Saltcoats, and sales were slow. She said she came to a conclusion pretty quick.
"I think it's because it's a baking community. There are lots of great bakers out there," she said.
While investigating new avenues for sales, Welechenko wants to keep it a cottage undertaking.
"I don't want to go too big," she said, adding "the most I ever made in a year was 200."
Welechenko said she starts making puddings in October.
"I make sure I'm done by Dec. 1," she said, adding that ensures the enterprise does not interfere too much with the family come the holiday season. She said she makes the puddings ahead because "they freeze really well."
You can contact Welechenko by calling 783-2587, or email at [email protected]
