Description
A classic Christmas pudding
Ingredients
For the pudding
- 145 mL Guinness
- 45 mL rum (I used Gosling’s)
- 45 mL brandy
- 225 g dried fruit (I used 45 g each dark raisins, golden raisins, currants, dried chopped dates and dried cranberries)
- butter, lard or shortening (for greasing the pudding basin)
- 110 g all-purpose flour
- 225 g suet (see notes)
- 225 g white breadcrumbs
- 225 g light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon molasses
- 110 grams whole blanched almonds
- 55 grams walnut pieces
- 110 grams chopped apple
- 1 small lemon, zest and juice
- 1 small orange, zest and juice
- 2 eggs
- 110 g glace cherries
- 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/8 teaspoon mace
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the hard sauce
- 1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, softened
- 3 cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 cup brandy
Assembly
- 125 mL brandy (to flame the pudding)
Instructions
For the pudding
- Six weeks before Christmas, soak the dried fruit in alcohol for 24 hours.
- Grease your pudding basin with butter, lard or shortening.
- Combine all ingredients and mix until well combined.
- Pack mixture into your pudding basin and secure the top. Wrap the entire basin in aluminum foil to ensure no water leaks into the basin.
- Put basin in a large pot and fill with water about two-thirds up the side. Heat to a simmer and cover. Steam for five hours.
- Remove basin from the pot and put aside for 6 weeks or as long as you have (I only had 3 weeks and it turned out fine). I put the basin (still wrapped in foil) in my linen closet on a plate because it’s a little bit fatty.
- On Christmas, steam for another five hours. Un-mold onto a platter. Let stand while you make the hard sauce.
For the hard sauce
- With a hand mixer, combine butter, powdered sugar, vanilla extract and nutmeg. Mix until light and fluffy. Slowly add the brandy until well incorporated.
- Remove to a serving dish.
Assembly
- Warm the brandy over low heat in a small saucepan, not allowing it to boil. Set fire to the alcohol in the pan and pour over the pudding (see notes).
- Serve with hard sauce.
Notes
- I got suet frozen from my butcher. It’s a type of hard animal fat. I have no idea if this is right, but I grated it with a cheese grater into the pudding mixture, which seems to have worked fine.
- Personally, I set fire to the alcohol and poured it over the pudding at the dining room table, but if you’re more safety-minded, you might want to do the pouring in the kitchen and bring the flaming pudding wherever you intend to eat it.