Plum pudding
By Jeni Wright
A traditional, long-life Christmas plum pudding that’s deliciously dark, rich and fruity
- Ready in about 25 mins, plus steaming
- Serves 8
- Easy
Nutrition per serving
-
kcal 481
-
fat 17g
-
saturates 8g
-
carbs 77g
-
sugars 19.5g
-
fibre 2g
-
protein 6g
-
salt 0.45g
Ingredients
- 85g self-raising flour
- ¾ tsp ground mixed spice
- 140g shredded suet
- 85g fresh white breadcrumbs
- 140g dark muscovado sugar
- 140g raisins
- 140g sultanas
- 140g currants
- 25g mixed candied peel, chopped
- finely grated zest and juice of 1 small orange
- finely grated zest and juice of 1 small lemon
- 25g glacé cherries, chopped (optional)
- 1 small carrot, grated
- 3 tbsp sweet stout (we used Mackeson)
- 2 tsp black treacle
- brandy, to feed
Method
Stir the flour, spice, suet, breadcrumbs and sugar in a large bowl. Tip in the fruit, peel, cherries (if using) and carrot, then stir well to mix. Add the remaining ingredients and beat until thoroughly combined.
Spoon the mixture into a buttered 1.2 litre pudding bowl (with a buttered disc of greaseproof paper in the bottom) and press down well, leaving room for the pudding to rise a little during steaming. Cover with a circle of buttered greaseproof paper, then cover with pudding cloth or foil and tie securely with string.
Stand the bowl on an upturned saucer in a saucepan and half fill with boiling water. Cover tightly and steam for 8 hours, topping up the water as necessary. Leave to cool in the pan.
Remove the pudding from the pan and discard the cloth or foil and paper. Then cover with fresh greaseproof paper and cloth. Store your pudding in a cool, dry place until required - you can feed it with a few tablespoons of brandy once in a while. Before serving, steam again for 2-3 hours.
