Over the weekend I finished making this year’s Christmas pudding. If you’re thinking “calm down, it’s only November” then I’ll tell you this… the earlier it’s made the more brandy you can feed it! Only joking (partly), the length of time allows the flavour to develop.
Our Christmas traditions:
- I make a homemade Christmas pudding.
- We all choose a new bauble for the tree (this year Baby Pink has a personalised first Christmas bauble).
- Well, that’s it so far, our family is young!
I think that Christmas pudding tastes so much better when homemade. It’s really easy to make at home, it’s just a case of getting in all of the ingredients and spendinh most of the day indoors to steam it.
If you’ve never made one before then how about giving it a go this Christmas? And if you have made one before then why not try something different this time? I usually make Delia Smith’s Traditional Christmas Pudding Recipe but this year I’ve opted to make one with a whole candied orange at the centre, like Heston’s Hidden Orange Christmas Pudding. It took three days to make the orange as it had to be boiled and cooled twice, so I’m hoping the extra effort pays off!
How To Make A Candied Orange
You will need:
1 orange
1 litre of water
1 kg white sugar
½ cinnamon stick
1 tbsp marmalade
Tip 1: Start the orange 3 days before you plan to steam the pudding.
Tip 2: Use a large pan because the sugar will rise, I found this out the hard way when it spilt everywhere! In the end I used a steam cooker because the pan is really high.
Nothing is spilling out of this pan!
- Pierce the orange several times with a pin or toothpick (don’t use a skewer because it will just open up when you boil it), then boil the orange in the water for 30 minutes to soften it.
- Remove the orange from the pan. Add the sugar, cinnamon and marmalade to the water and bring it to the boil again, then add the orange. Heat on medium for 45 minutes.
- Remove the orange and cool overnight.
- The next day bring the syrup back to the boil and boil the orange again for 30 minutes.
- Remove the orange and allow to cool overnight. And now the orange is ready to use the next day.
How To Make The Pudding
1 carrot
1 Bramley apple
500g mixed dried fruit (raisins, sultanas, currants and mixed peel)
50g glazed cherries
115g suet
115g plain flour (sifted)
100g ground almonds
1 ½ tsp mixed spice
115g dark brown sugar
100g ale
1 tbsp black treacle
3 eggs
Tip: Make the pudding mixture the day before you will steam it because it will need to be left to sit overnight.
- Grate the carrot and apple and put in a bowl with the mixed fruit and cherries.
I could eat this as it is!
- Add the suet, sifted flour, ground almonds, spice and sugar and stir.
- Add the ale, black treacle and eggs, and begin to mix very thoroughly.
- Leave to sit overnight.
- The next day grease the pudding bowl and fill half way. Add the orange, then add the rest of the mixture.
Burying the treasure!
Christmas pudding or chilli?
- Cover the bowl with a double sheet of baking paper and a sheet of foil. Tie tight with string.
It can’t escape now!
- Tie a piece of string across the top to make a handle so that it’s easy to take out.
- Place the bowl in a steamer over a pan of simmering water and steam for 8 hours, making sure you keep the water topped up from time to time.
Only 7 hours 59 minutes to go!
- After 8 hours turn off the heat and when the pudding has cooled remove the cover, prick a few holes at the top and pour on a teaspoon of brandy. Put new cover on and store in a cool dry place.
- Once a week remove the cover and feed with brandy.
“Feed me!”
- On Christmas day steam again for 3 hours, then go around the inside of the bowl with a knife and tip upside down into a plate.
So now my pudding is sleeping in my kitchen cupboard, and I’ll wake it up once a week to feed it brandy. Hopefully it is the best christmas pudding ever, but we’ll have to wait for Christmas day to find out.
Life is Pink and Blue 