Tue, 15 November 2016
Believe it or not; its that time of the year yet again when you have to get the plum pudding ready ahead of Christmas. Catherine Leyden joined us in the kitchen this Wednesday!
Ingredients
75g/3oz Odlums Self Raising Flour
175g/6oz Shamrock Light Muscovado Sugar
175g/6oz Butter or Margarine
3 Eggs
½ teaspoon Goodall's Cinnamon
½ teaspoon Goodall's Nutmeg
1 teaspoon Goodall's Mixed Spice
Pinch of Salt
225g/8oz Shamrock Raisins
225g/8oz Shamrock Sultanas
125g/4oz Shamrock Mixed Peel
100g tub Shamrock Cherries
100g packet Shamrock Ground Almonds
175g/6oz Breadcrumbs
1 bottle Stout (300m/1/2 pint)
Note : Above quantities may be doubled if more than one pudding is required.
Method
1. Cream the butter/margarine and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the lightly beaten eggs and mix well. Stir in the sieved flour, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and mixed spice. Next add the raisins, sultanas, mixed peel, cherries and ground almonds. Mix well. Finally, add the breadcrumbs and bottle of stout. Stir well, cover and leave to stand overnight.
2. Transfer to a 1½ litre/3 pint greased and base-lined pudding bowl. Cover pudding with greaseproof paper and secure with string or tinfoil.
3. Place pudding in a saucepan with water half way up the side. Cover and steam for 5 hours or longer. The longer the pudding cooks the richer and darker it becomes. Top up saucepan with boiling water as required and don't let it boil dry.
To steam pudding in oven
• Put two long strips of tin foil crosswise on work top. Place roasting tin on foil. Sit pudding bowl into the tin and fill with boiling water to within 2cm/1" of top of tin. Then bring tin foil around to form a parcel, which should be airtight to prevent any steam escaping.
• 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. Serve warm with a dollop of freshly whipped cream or drizzled in custard. Enjoy!