It was customary to cook this old and delicious dish in the pan with the roast, letting the drippings fall upon it. As many of us now cook roast beef in a low oven and no longer have extravagant drippings, we prepare the pudding separately in the hot oven required to puff it up and brown it quickly. Serve it from the dish in which it was baked, cut into squares. It was traditionally served before the meat, but we prefer to substitute the pudding for the usual starch served with the main course.

Have all ingredients at room temperature, about 70°F. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Sift into a bowl:

Make a well in the center and pour in:

Stir in the milk. Beat in:

Add:

Beat the batter until large bubbles rise to the surface. (The batter can be covered and refrigerated for 1 hour, then beaten again before cooking.) Pour into an 11 × 7-inch baking dish or 6 regular muffin cups:

Heat the dish or pan in the oven until hot. Pour in the batter and bake for 20 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and bake until puffed and golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes longer. Serve immediately.