A Traditional Christmas Pudding | Recipes | Delia Online

www.deliaonline.com
Your recipes
0

Servings: 11

Cost: $4.35 /serving

A Traditional Christmas Pudding | Recipes | Delia Online

Ingredients

Remove All · Remove Spices · Remove Staples

Export 18 ingredients for grocery delivery

Instructions

Helping creators monetize
Show ad-free recipes at the top of any site

Begin the day before you want to steam the pudding.Take your largest, roomiest mixing bowl and start by putting in the suet and breadcrumbs, spices and sugar. Mix these ingredients very thoroughly together, then gradually mix in all the dried fruit, peel and nuts followed by the apple and the grated orange and lemon zests. Don’t forget to tick everything off as you go to make sure nothing gets left out.Next in a smaller basin, measure out the rum, barley wine and stout, then add the eggs and beat these thoroughly together. Next pour this over all the other ingredients and begin to mix very thoroughly. It’s now traditional to gather all the family round, especially the children, and invite everyone to have a really good stir and make a wish!The mixture should have a fairly sloppy consistency – that is, it should fall instantly from the spoon when this is tapped on the side of the bowl. If you think it needs a bit more liquid add a spot more stout.Cover the bowl and leave overnight.Next day stir in the sifted flour quite thoroughly, then pack the mixture into the lightly greased basin, cover it with a double layer of baking parchment and a sheet of foil and tie it securely with string (you really need to borrow someone’s finger for this!). It’s also a good idea to tie a piece of string across the top to make a handle. Place the pudding in a steamer set over a saucepan filled with simmering water and steam the pudding for 8 hours.Do make sure you keep a regular eye on the water underneath and top it up with boiling water straight from the kettle about halfway through the time. When the pudding is steamed, let it get quite cold, then remove the baking parchment and foil and replace them with some fresh ones, again making a string handle for easy manoeuvring.Now your Christmas pudding is ready for Christmas Day. Keep it in a cool place away from the light. Under the bed in an unheated bedroom is an ideal place.On Christmas Day: Fill a saucepan quite full with boiling water, put it on the heat and, when it comes back to the boil, place a steamer on top of the pan and turn it down to a gentle simmer. Put the Christmas Pudding in the steamer cover and leave to steam for 2hrs 15 mins. You'll need to check the water from time to time and maybe top it up a bit. When you are ready to serve the pudding, remove from the steamer and take off the wrapping. Slide a palette knife all around the pudding and turn it out on to a warmed plate. Place a suitably sized sprig of holly on top. Now warm a ladleful of brandy over direct heat and, as soon as the brandy is hot, turn out the flame and ask someone to set light to the brandy using a long match.Place the ladle, now gently flaming, on top of the pudding - but don't pour it over until you reach the table (if you don't have a gas hob, warm the brandy in a small saucepan). When you do, pour it slowly over the pudding, sides and all and watch it flame to the cheers of the assembled company! When both flames and cheers have died down, serve the pudding with Christmas Rum Sauce, Cumberland Rum Butter or Brown Sugar Brandy Butter - see below.If you have any left over, it will reheat beautifully, wrapped in foil, in the oven next day.If you want two smaller puddings, use two 570ml basins, but give them the same steaming time.If you want to make individual Christmas puddings for gifts, this quantity makes eight 175ml pudding basins. Steam for 3 hours, then resteam for 1 hour before serving. They look pretty wrapped in baking parchment and muslin and tied with attractive bows and tags.To make this recipe gluten-free: Replace the suet with either gluten-free or gluten-free vegetarian suet. Use gluten-free white flour and breadcrumbs made from gluten-free bread, and replace the stout and barley wine with the same amount of sherry. If you are using gluten-free flour, you will need to add a pinch of baking powder to the gluten-free white flour.

Top similar recipes

Traditional Christmas Fruit Cake | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending218 views

Traditional Christmas Fruit Cake | ...

deliaonline.com

240

Traditional Lancashire Hotpot | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending1429 views

Traditional Lancashire Hotpot | Rec...

deliaonline.com

Traditional Bread Sauce | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending311 views

Traditional Bread Sauce | Recipes |...

deliaonline.com

Traditional Apple Charlotte | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending189 views

Traditional Apple Charlotte | Recip...

deliaonline.com

45

Light Christmas Cake | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending283 views

Light Christmas Cake | Recipes | De...

deliaonline.com

180

Traditional Lemon Meringue Pie | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending373 views

Traditional Lemon Meringue Pie | Re...

deliaonline.com

Traditional Seville Orange Marmalade | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending288 views

Traditional Seville Orange Marmalad...

deliaonline.com

Gingernuts | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending253 views

Gingernuts | Recipes | Delia Online

deliaonline.com

15

Delia's Classic Christmas Pudding with Brandy Sauce | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending165 views

Delia's Classic Christmas Pudding w...

deliaonline.com

135

A Very Chocolatey Mousse | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending133 views

A Very Chocolatey Mousse | Recipes ...

deliaonline.com

Boeuf Bourguignon | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending454 views

Boeuf Bourguignon | Recipes | Delia...

deliaonline.com

180

Rhubarb Compôte | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending921 views

Rhubarb Compôte | Recipes | Delia O...

deliaonline.com

Jacket Potatoes | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending1192 views

Jacket Potatoes | Recipes | Delia O...

deliaonline.com

Beef Stock | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending1168 views

Beef Stock | Recipes | Delia Online

deliaonline.com

Garibaldi Biscuits | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending196 views

Garibaldi Biscuits | Recipes | Deli...

deliaonline.com

15

Risotto Verde | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending2536 views

Risotto Verde | Recipes | Delia Onl...

deliaonline.com

Wholemeal Loaf | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending3559 views

Wholemeal Loaf | Recipes | Delia On...

deliaonline.com

Seeded Loaf | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending646 views

Seeded Loaf | Recipes | Delia Onlin...

deliaonline.com

Chicken Véronique | Recipes | Delia Online-image
trending1021 views

Chicken Véronique | Recipes | Delia...

deliaonline.com

40