Emily Pullen, from Southampton, shares with us a recipe that has been passed down through her family for generations. As she describes it, “it makes a delicious pudding which we like to serve with double cream after Christmas dinner!”
She gives us a few tips for it to be perfect: “it is very easy to prepare but requires many hours of steaming, so it is best to prepare the mixture a reasonable amount of time in advance before you plan to serve it. It is also quite traditional to pour extremely hot, lit brandy (or sometimes rum) over the pudding, so it is presented to the table flaming!”
Ingredients:
- 8oz currants.
- 4oz sultanas.
- 4oz candied peal.
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger.
- 1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg.
- 4oz stoneless raisins.
- 1ox blanched almonds.
- Rind and juice of 1 lemon.
- 4oz flour.
- 4oz bread crumbs.
- 1/2 teaspoon salt.
- 2-3 teaspoon mixed spice.
- 5oz brown sugar.
- 8oz shredded suet.
- 2 eggs.
- 1 tablespoon treacle.
- 2 tablespoon milk.
- 2 tablespoon rum OR another 4 tablespoon milk.
Equipment:
- A large bowl to prepare mixture in.
- Two, one pint basins.
- Grease proof paper.
- Two small cloths (a tea towel for example).
Preparations:
- Wash and dry fruit.
- Chop, peel and blanche almonds finely.
- Sieve flour and spices.
Directions:
- Mix all dry ingredients, then add fruit, nuts, peel, lemon rind and strained juice.
- Beat eggs and stir into mixture.
- Mix in treacle.
- Add sufficient milk and rum to make soft mixture. It should fall heavily from a spoon when shaken.
- Stir well together.
- Put mixture into two one pint, well greased basins and fill to 1 inch from the top.
- Cover in grease proof paper and tie on pudding cloth over the top of the basins.
- Steam for the first time for 4 hours.
- Steam for the second time for another 3 hours before serving hot on the day.
Enjoy!
Author: Pullen’s family
Editors: C.L.C., E.R.S.
Image: E.R.S.