My mum always made her own Christmas puddings as did the generations before. Once I moved into my own house, I have preserved the tradition. There is some debate about which branch of my mum's family provided the recipe, it is possibly an amalgamation with her own enhancements. All I know is some years ago I photographed the handwritten page of her recipe book and that is the basis of mine.
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| Mum's Handwritten Recipe |
Ingredients
- ½lb (225g) Plain Flour
- ½lb (225g) Breadcrumbs
- ½lb (225g) Suet
- ½lb (225g) Dark Brown Sugar
- ½lb (225g) Raisins
- ½lb (225g) Sultarners
- ½lb (225g) Currants
- 1 Grated Carrot
- 1 Grated raw apple
- ½teaspoon (3ml) Salt
- ½teaspoon (3ml) Cinnamon
- ½teaspoon (3ml) Mixed Spice
- ½teaspoon (3ml) Ground Nutmeg
- 2oz (57g) Chopped Almonds
- 2oz (57g) Chopped candied peel
- Rind and Juice of a Orange
- Rind and Juice of a Lemon
- 3 Eggs
- 1 Wine Glass (125ml) Brandy
Note about some of the Ingredients
You can buy all this in a well stocked supermarket visiting the bakery aisle or using your prefered home deliver provider. In the UK it may be cheaper to buy the dried fruit in a specialist shop and if you are making christmas cake too you'll need a lot so this can be worthwhile.
For the squeamish, don't look up what Suet is, just buy it the box won't say on the outside. Here in the UK one of the leading brands in Atora. Your pudding will taste nice but will not be vegetarian. They do also see a vegetable based version though I have never tried it.
Method
Preparation
You will probably need to turn some bread (good way of using stale bread) into breadcrumbs. I always do this in the food processor.
The carrot and apple will need to be gratted, you can do this in the food processor with a gratting attachment or by hand. Also break and then beat the 3 eggs.
Once the preparation is done you can mix all the dry ingredients together, the the fruit and finally the liquid. Make sure you do this in a large mixing bowl the quantity of mixture is always more than I expect it to be, you will have 2L of mix and you need plenty of room to mix it around.
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| Dry ingredients in the bowl |
The family recipe says that the mixture should be left overnight, I have not always done this and it seems to make no difference. However, there may be a practical reason, the steaming process takes me about 14 hours, therefore if you prepare it the day before you can get up and start it at 7AM and it will be done by a sensible time.
Bowling and Sealing
The original recipe describes (1 large and 2 small) puddings, however, you could also make 2 large puddings. I have always done them in Pyrex Classic Bowls. I have discovered that the large pudding fits in their 1L 16cm bowl and the small pudding fitts in the ½L 14cm Bowl. These bowls are relatively cheap and hardwearing, this is important for the storage. The clear nature of the glass also allows you to see the contents without being tempted to break the seals.
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| Loaded into the bowls |
Divide the mixture between the bowls and the you need to seal them. I always use a double layer of greaseproof paper followed by a layer of tin foil. Each is tied with string, tight to produce a durable airtight seal. Sealing them is a two person job unless you are highly practiced. Make sure you put a pleat into each layer to allow for some expansion. There is a nice YouTube video showing this technique: How to prepare a pudding for steaming (She uses buttered parchment paper rather than greaseproof but the method is basically the same). I do recommend ensuring you have some type of handle in the arrangement in order to lift the pudding easily when they are hot and wet. Also make sure you use good quality string, I have had problems in the past with the string disintegrating in the cooking process.
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| Grease proof paper applied and secured with string, note the pleat for expansion |
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| Foil applied over the paper and secured with string, note the pleat for expansion |
In some recipes you will see extensive greasing of the bowl being recommended, I have never done this. The pudding shrinks back in the cooking process and has always dropped out when the bowl is upended on a plate, however, it probably won't hurt.
Steaming
The pudding is initially steamed when it is made and then re-steamed prior to eating. The recipe states:
- 10 hours steaming for the large (1L) pudding
- 7 Hours steaming for the small (½L) pudding
I have always done this in a multi-tiered hob top steamer, just make sure you keep an eye on it to ensure that is doesn't boil dry.
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| Multi-tiered hib top steamer |
For some reason most commercially available steamers have two baskets, therefore you need to do the small puddings in two goes, hence the 14 hour cook time.
Storing
Once steamed, the pudding can be kept in the cupboard to mature. In this time they will actually improve. In our family it is said that they reach optimal taste after three years. However, they have been safely eaten after seven years when one got lost in a move. The key rule is: DO NOT BREAK THE SEAL, they will quickly go mouldy. If the seal does get inadvertently damaged, for example the foil in punctured by accident, I have resealed and then steamed them to sterilize the pudding with success.
Christmas Day
On christmas morning put the steamer on again so that the pudding will be ready at the right time:
- 4 hours steaming for the large (1L) pudding - 12 servings
- 3 Hours steaming for the small (½L) pudding - 8 servings
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| Ready for eating, with Brandy Butter on the side |
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