Christmas pudding
Chef’s note:
Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without a Christmas pudding! I love to add freshly grated ginger for an extra zing – plus more brandy at the end! This vegetarian friendly Christmas pudding is easy to make for the whole family, and it will be on our specials board in Bakers & Larners’ this Christmas. Come along and give it a try!
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- 250 grams mixed fruit
- 100 grams diced cranberries
- 175g chopped dates
- 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- 3 teaspoons mixed spice
- 1 orange (zest and juice)
- 300 milliliters brandy
- 100 grams butter
- 100 grams muscovado sugar (you can use dark brown sugar if wished for a deeper colour and taste)
- 3 eggs
- 75 grams self-raising flour
- 100 grams fresh white breadcrumbs
Before you want to cook the pudding, soak all of the fruit and the fresh ginger in the brandy and orange juice for at least 20 minutes, ideally overnight.
Beat together the butter, muscovado sugar, and eggs. Then add the fruit and the liquid, combining until you get a thick batter.
Butter and flour a large pudding bowl, leaving a good 1.5” clear from the top.
Using parchment, wrap the whole bowl, putting a pleat in the top; there are plenty of videos online
to show you how to do this if you are not sure. I tend to then fully and tightly wrap the bowl in cling film,
but you can use muslin cloth tied at the top.Place the bowl in a hot steamer and steam for approximately three hours, remembering to keep topping the pan up with boiling water.
After three hours, test the pudding by using a wooden skewer. If it comes out clean, the pudding is cooked; if not, cook for a little longer.
You can serve your pudding straight from the steamer, but I like to soak it in extra brandy or rum once cooled and keep it for a few days before Christmas.
When are you are ready to serve, pour warmed brandy over the pudding, light, and enjoy the flames!
Serve with brandy butter or your favourite cream.