Spotted Pup

This recipe was submitted to us from Heidi who is a fantastic writer. I have visited her blog many times now, and am so impressed. She not only is a great writer, but she also is a journalist, editor and teacher and she has some fantastic articles on cowgirls. I have been reading them and would love it if you took a peek at them to find out some of the history behind these extraordinary women. It is so hard to find information on cowgirls throughout history, and I think Heidi was able to capture the "true cowgirl" in her wonderful articles. Thank you so much Heidi for submitting this recipe especially with the special family history behind it!

Spotted Pup

My dad told me about a dessert the cook would prepare when he and his parents were trailing their horses from Cut Bank, Montana to Salmon, Idaho, looking for grass during the “dirty thirties.” It was called “Spotted Pup,” and made with rice, condensed milk and raisins. The name comes from the resemblance to cowboys’ dogs.

2 cups granulated sugar

2 cups white rice

3 quarts milk or canned milk equivalent

1 pound raisins or other dried fruit

1 tablespoon nutmeg

This was a treat, as it required no eggs, and since there was little opportunity for baked items when traveling with a Chuckwagon. The cook would mix the rice, sugar and milk in a cast-iron Dutch Oven, then hang it over the campfire to simmer for about an hour or so until it started to get thick. Then he’d stir in the nutmeg (or cinnamon) and slowly stir in the raisins, allowing the fruit to plump up and the rice to thicken further. The dessert was ready when the spoon stood upright.

Submitted by: Heidi Thomas
http://heidiwriter.wordpress.com/ www.heidi@heidimthomas.com