The story behind suet pudding and other Christmas delicacies unearthed at Wakefield & District Family History Society meeting
Members of Wakefield & District Family History Society are in for a special treat at their meeting on Saturday.
Renowned food historian Peter Brears, will be on hand to talk about Yorkshire Christmas food through the ages.
He will illustrate his talk with food and drink samples for the audience to taste.
The monthly meetings of the society are held at Outwood Memorial Hall and Peter spent most of his childhood years living nearby.
He was born in Thorpe, between Leeds and Wakefield, in 1944. Aged five he moved to Outwood, which was then a pit village.
He won a scholarship to Castleford Technical High School then Leeds College of Art where he studied engineering, product design, and technical drawing.
As a boy he volunteered to work in local museums and on the Sandal Castle archeological dig.
His first proper job was Keeper of Folk Life for Hampshire County Council, but was soon back in Yorkshire with a brief spell at Shibden Hall in Halifax.
Peter then became live-in curator at Clarke Hall, Wakefield, turning the Grade II*-listed 17th century building into a living history museum where, from the 1970s until its closure in 2012, schoolchildren could learn about the domestic life of their ancestors. It was while at Clarke Hall that his interest in food history developed.
Peter, who now lives in Leeds, has written hundreds of publications, many of them focusing on the history of mealtimes and delicacies.
He said: “Christmas food really has nothing to do with Christmas. It was the main meal of the year and the tradition was passed down through families.
“For example, Georgian families did not eat many potatoes so they used suet pudding to soak up the gravy. It’s the only time most people tend to serve a boiled pudding.”
Peter will be bringing along samples of Yule cake, gingerbread, puddings and other goodies for members to taste – many of them baked by him in his kitchen.
There will also be samples of Wakefield brewed beer to accompany it.
The meeting takes place at Outwood Memorial Hall on Saturday, December 7. Doors open at 9.30am and the talk starts at 10.30am.
Non members are welcome but must email the chairman to check availability at chairman@wdfhs.co.uk