Steamed ‘plum pudding’ is a traditional Christmas dish in the UK. This recipe is sugar and practically flour free, making it light after the rest of the ‘heavy’ Christmas meal. The sweetness comes from the fruit. It is based from Margaret Costa’s Four Seasons Cookbook, and she has based her recipe on a pudding recipe in Eliza Acton’s Modern Cookery of more than a hundred years ago.
Ingredients:
1/4lb (115g) glace cherries (I used a mixture of diced: dried dates, dried apricots and dried cherries)
1/2lb (225g) mixed candied peel – diced/chopped
1 1/2lb (675g) seedless raisins
1/2lb (225g) currents
1/4lb (115g) ground almonds (if tolerated)
3/4lb (350g) fine Gluten-free breadcrumbs
3/4lb (350g) shredded beef suet (ask your butcher for some, as the packets of shredded suet in the supermarket is coated with flour. You may need to prepare it (clean and get rid of blood) and shred it yourself)
1tsp cinnamon
1tsp nutmeg
1tsp ginger
8 eggs beaten, or use your preferred egg substitute
¼ pint plus 6tbsp (240ml) pineapple juice
The quantities will fill one 2 pint (1.2l) and one 1½ pint (850ml) pudding basin (pottery or oven proof-glass with a rim).
The recipe does scale well if you want to make either larger or smaller amounts (I made two puddings at 1lb (450g) – two full 500ml basins, ie, 2/3rd of the recipe).
First, cut out small rounds of greaseproof paper (doubled) to fit the bottom of the bowls, and grease them with butter and put them in the basins. Cut double rounds of greaseproof paper, larger than the tops of the pudding basins (enough to go over the sides and down to the base of the rim. Butter on the side that’s placed on top of the pudding. Butter the sides of pudding basins well. Traditionally cloth is used to cover the tops of the basins for storage, if used scold and wring out and flour the inside. You can use foil in its place, it needs to be larger than the top of the bowl so that it can be tied on, under the rim of the pudding bowl.
Place the fruits in a large bowl, sprinkle with G-F flour (eg, Buckwheat) and pinch fruit and flour together as if you are making pastry, ensure all fruit is coated with flour and shake off the residue.
Add in ground almonds, suet, breadcrumbs and spices.
Vigorously beat the eggs until they are light and frothy and stir into the dry mix.
Stir in pineapple juice, just enough that the mix drops easily from the mixing spoon, and is other than runny.
Divide the mixture between the prepared pudding bowls, filling to just over three-quarters full (to allow for some expansion), smooth the top and make a slight hollow in the middle. Cover with the prepared (greased and floured) greaseproof rounds and the pudding cloths/foil, tying them on firmly, and making a string handle.
Stand the basins on a rack in a large saucepan, and pour in boiling water to a depth of two-thirds of the way up the sides of the basins. Cover the pan and steam for two hours before topping up with water if necessary.
A pudding in a 1pt (600ml) basin needs at least 4hrs steaming altogether, a 1 1/2pt (850ml) pudding 6hrs, and a 2pt (1.2ml) pudding 7 to 8hrs.
Fortunately, pressure cooking saves time, and reference Pressure Cooking Properly Explained by Dianne Page, the timings are as follows, both for cooking and reheating.
Pudding weight; Basin capacity; Steaming unpressurised over a low heat; Pressurised cooking (reduce pressure in the normal way); Reheating
1lb (450g); 1pt (600ml); 15mins; 1 3/4hrs; 20mins
1 1/2lb (675g); 1pt (600ml); 20 mins; 2hrs; 30mins
2lb (900g); 2pt (1.2l); 30mins; 3hrs; 30mins
Either eat immediately (I ate a very small one last night, it was delicious), or leave to go cold completely, and store in a dark, dry, cool, airy place until required, then reheat.
If you are unable to mix and cook the puddings on the same day, put them, covered, in the fridge overnight.
Traditionally, Christmas pudding is served (flaming in brandy) with brandy butter.
As spirits are outlawed, I’m considering using a lemon and pineapple juice butter (1lb (450g) butter, 1/2lb (225g) sugar, 2tsp grated lemon rind, 1tsp lemon juice, 1/4tsp grated nutmeg and 4tbsp pineapple juice), or a modified Sabayon sauce (3 egg yolks, 3oz (85g) sugar, 1tsp vanilla essence, grated rind of ½ lemon, 1 wineglass pineapple juice, 1/4tsp arrowroot). Have yet to make either.
Ingredients:
1/4lb (115g) glace cherries (I used a mixture of diced: dried dates, dried apricots and dried cherries)
1/2lb (225g) mixed candied peel – diced/chopped
1 1/2lb (675g) seedless raisins
1/2lb (225g) currents
1/4lb (115g) ground almonds (if tolerated)
3/4lb (350g) fine Gluten-free breadcrumbs
3/4lb (350g) shredded beef suet (ask your butcher for some, as the packets of shredded suet in the supermarket is coated with flour. You may need to prepare it (clean and get rid of blood) and shred it yourself)
1tsp cinnamon
1tsp nutmeg
1tsp ginger
8 eggs beaten, or use your preferred egg substitute
¼ pint plus 6tbsp (240ml) pineapple juice
The quantities will fill one 2 pint (1.2l) and one 1½ pint (850ml) pudding basin (pottery or oven proof-glass with a rim).
The recipe does scale well if you want to make either larger or smaller amounts (I made two puddings at 1lb (450g) – two full 500ml basins, ie, 2/3rd of the recipe).
First, cut out small rounds of greaseproof paper (doubled) to fit the bottom of the bowls, and grease them with butter and put them in the basins. Cut double rounds of greaseproof paper, larger than the tops of the pudding basins (enough to go over the sides and down to the base of the rim. Butter on the side that’s placed on top of the pudding. Butter the sides of pudding basins well. Traditionally cloth is used to cover the tops of the basins for storage, if used scold and wring out and flour the inside. You can use foil in its place, it needs to be larger than the top of the bowl so that it can be tied on, under the rim of the pudding bowl.
Place the fruits in a large bowl, sprinkle with G-F flour (eg, Buckwheat) and pinch fruit and flour together as if you are making pastry, ensure all fruit is coated with flour and shake off the residue.
Add in ground almonds, suet, breadcrumbs and spices.
Vigorously beat the eggs until they are light and frothy and stir into the dry mix.
Stir in pineapple juice, just enough that the mix drops easily from the mixing spoon, and is other than runny.
Divide the mixture between the prepared pudding bowls, filling to just over three-quarters full (to allow for some expansion), smooth the top and make a slight hollow in the middle. Cover with the prepared (greased and floured) greaseproof rounds and the pudding cloths/foil, tying them on firmly, and making a string handle.
Stand the basins on a rack in a large saucepan, and pour in boiling water to a depth of two-thirds of the way up the sides of the basins. Cover the pan and steam for two hours before topping up with water if necessary.
A pudding in a 1pt (600ml) basin needs at least 4hrs steaming altogether, a 1 1/2pt (850ml) pudding 6hrs, and a 2pt (1.2ml) pudding 7 to 8hrs.
Fortunately, pressure cooking saves time, and reference Pressure Cooking Properly Explained by Dianne Page, the timings are as follows, both for cooking and reheating.
Pudding weight; Basin capacity; Steaming unpressurised over a low heat; Pressurised cooking (reduce pressure in the normal way); Reheating
1lb (450g); 1pt (600ml); 15mins; 1 3/4hrs; 20mins
1 1/2lb (675g); 1pt (600ml); 20 mins; 2hrs; 30mins
2lb (900g); 2pt (1.2l); 30mins; 3hrs; 30mins
Either eat immediately (I ate a very small one last night, it was delicious), or leave to go cold completely, and store in a dark, dry, cool, airy place until required, then reheat.
If you are unable to mix and cook the puddings on the same day, put them, covered, in the fridge overnight.
Traditionally, Christmas pudding is served (flaming in brandy) with brandy butter.
As spirits are outlawed, I’m considering using a lemon and pineapple juice butter (1lb (450g) butter, 1/2lb (225g) sugar, 2tsp grated lemon rind, 1tsp lemon juice, 1/4tsp grated nutmeg and 4tbsp pineapple juice), or a modified Sabayon sauce (3 egg yolks, 3oz (85g) sugar, 1tsp vanilla essence, grated rind of ½ lemon, 1 wineglass pineapple juice, 1/4tsp arrowroot). Have yet to make either.
