Stir up Sunday

[Methuselah]

I've just realised that it's today - a bit short notice I know, but does anybody have a good Christmas pudding recipe they can recommend?

Only the 2nd time ever it's been up to me to make it, and I'm blowed if I can remember which recipe I used last time!

(The recipes online vary wildly in ingredient ratios)

 

[Puzzicato]

Very late notice! I had to write ours out for my mum recently (this is why you should share recipes - when you lose your bit of paper you can get it back) so I will see if I can find it!...

Family Size Boiled Pudding
250g butter
1 cup brown sugar
1tbs grated orange zest
1tbs grated lemon zest
4 eggs
250g each dates, raisins, sultanas
1 small apple
1 small carrot
125 g mixed peel
2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
1 1/2 cups plain flour
pinch salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp mixed spice
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
3tbs brandy

Cream butter & sugar. Add zests and eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Chop dried fruit. Peel & grate apple & carrot. Stir fruit, carrot, peel and breadcrumbs into creamed mixture. Sift and fold in dry ingredients. Put the mixture in a scalded and well-floured pudding cloth and tied it 1" above the mixture, boil for 4 hours then 2 hours on day of serving.

 

[Methuselah]

Wow, thanks for the recipe. I don't have all of that to hand though.
Never seen bicarb as an ingredient for a pudding before, I'll defo have to try your recipe out sometime.
Anyway, I took the recipes from Delia Smith, BBC, Mrs Beeton, Eliza Acton, Dairy Book of Home Cooking, and the Hairy Bikers (!!!), I then averaged out the quantities, rounded off, and disregarded anything I didn't have & came up with this:

• 8oz suet
• 8oz Muscovado sugar
• 4oz plain flour
• 4oz white breadcrumbs
• 24oz dried fruit (sultanas, raisins, currants, dates, prunes etc.)
• 4oz candied peel
• 2oz sliced blanched almonds
• 4 medium eggs
• 1 level teaspoon mixed spice powder
• 1 level teaspoon powdered cinnamon
• 1 level teaspoon grated nutmeg
• zest of 1 orange
• 1 cup (1/4 pint) strong milky tea
• 1 small wine glass brandy

It looks like a pudding mixture, and is steaming as we speak.
Not sure if it will work, but the proof is in the pudding

 

[Puzzicato]

Milky tea? Whose recipe is that from?!

Mine is Australian Women's Weekly (hence the lack of suet, which is hard to come by in Oz). Your mixture looks like it will be beautifully moist - good luck!

 

[Methuselah]

Milky tea? Whose recipe is that from?!

My improvisation, as I only had a bit of milk (most recipes I found on the net say 1/4 pint milk)
Didn't have time to go to the shops & steam the pudding for 6 hours before bed-time!
I have other old cake recipes that call for tea, gives cake a nice flavour - 'cup of tea cake' rather than 'teacakes' which don't contain tea. [huh]
e.g. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/real_food/article7137142.ece

 

[Puzzicato]

I've made cakes with black tea, just never milky tea!