Christmas Pudding
To wow your guests at Christmas, warm a ladleful of brandy over direct heat, and as soon as the brandy is hot ask someone to set light to it. Place the ladle, now gently flaming, on top of the pudding-but don’t pour it over until you reach the table. When you do, pour it over the sides and all, and watch it flame. Your guests will be very impressed!
Ingredients:
•75g/3oz Odlums Self Raising Flour
•175g/6oz Light Muscavado Sugar
•175g/6oz Margarine
•3 Eggs
•1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
•1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg
•1 teaspoon Mixed Spice
•Pinch of Salt
•225g/8oz Raisins
•225g/8oz Sultanas
•125g/4oz Mixed Peel
•100g tub Cherries
•100g packet Ground Almonds
•175g/6oz Breadcrumbs
•1 bottle Stout (300m/1/2 pint)
Method:
1. Cream margarine and sugar until light and fluffy.
2. Add the lightly beaten eggs and mix well.
3. Stir in the sieved flour, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and mixed spice.
4. Next add the raisins, sultanas, mixed peel, cherries and ground almonds.
5. Mix well. Finally, add the breadcrumbs and bottle of stout. Stir well, cover and leave to stand overnight.
6. Transfer to a 1 1/2 litre/3 pint greased pudding bowl.
7. Cover pudding with greaseproof paper and secure with string or tinfoil.
8. Place pudding in a saucepan with water half way up the side.
9. Cover and steam for 5 hours or longer.
10. The longer the pudding cooks the richer and darker it becomes.
11. Top up saucepan with boiling water as required and don‘t let it boil dry.
To steam pudding in oven:
12. Put two long strips of tin foil crosswise on work top.
13. Place roasting tin on foil. Sit pudding bowl into the tin and fill with boiling water to within 2cms/1″ of top of tin.
14. Then bring tin foil around to form a parcel, which should be airtight to prevent any steam escaping.
15. Place in preheated oven at 150°C/300°F/Gas 2 for the same length of time as above. There is no need to top up with water during cooking.
To serve:
Steam pudding for 2 hours and serve.
Note: the above quantities may be doubled if more than one pudding is required.
Source: Odlums