A Classic Christmas Pudding Recipes

HISTORICAL RECIPE: CHRISTMAS PUDDING

Steps:

• Cream butter and brown sugar until smooth. Add in raisins, carrot, potato and egg. Stir in flour and baking soda.
• Grease 2 small glass bowls or one large bowl. Fill with pudding. Leave about an inch between the top of the pudding and the top of the bowl to give it room to rise.
• Cover the bowl with a piece of parchment, followed by a piece of tin foil, secured with string. My grandmother used a clean piece of muslin instead of the parchment.
• The pudding can be steamed in a double boiler, or you can place the pudding in a large pot, placing the pudding bowl on a small ramekin or mason jar ring to keep it off the bottom of the pot. Pour water in the bottom to no more than 1/3 of the way up the sides of the bowl.
• Steam the pudding for 2 - 3 hours, or until a toothpick comes out clean. My small puddings are usually done at 2 hours, with a large pudding taking the full three. Add additional hot water to your pot as necessary to keep your pot from boiling dry.
• Turn the pudding out onto a plate and serve hot with brown sugar sauce.
• Brown Sugar Sauce Instructions
• Melt butter in a saucepan. Whisk in brown sugar and continue to stir constantly until boiling. Boil for two minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in milk and vanilla. Return to the heat and stir constantly until the mixture once again comes to the boil. Thin with more milk or cream if necessary. Serve warm.

CHRISTMAS PUDDING

Steps:

• The day before you want to steam the pudding: In a large bowl, thoroughly mix the suet, brown sugar, sifted flour, breadcrumbs, allspice, clove, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Gradually mix in the currants, sultanas, raisins, candied peel, and almonds, followed by the apple and citrus zests. In a small bowl, whisk together the rum, barley wine, and stout, and then beat in the eggs. Pour this mixture over the dried fruit and nut mixture. Mix thoroughly. It should be somewhat loose; if it needs a little more liquid, add some stout. Cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight.
• The following day: Butter a 1-pint pudding mold and pack the pudding mixture into it. Cover with a double piece of parchment and a sheet of foil and tie securely with a string across the top to make a handle. Place the pudding mold in a covered steamer set over a saucepan of simmering water, and steam for 8 hours. Check the water level, adding boiling water as needed. When the pudding is finished, let it cool and then remove the papers and foil. Replace with fresh paper and make a new string for easier maneuvering. Set in a cool place away from light (under the bed works well).
• To reheat, set a saucepan with boiling water over medium heat and put a steamer on top. Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer, set the pudding in the steamer, cover, and let steam for 2 1/4 hours. Top up the water a bit if necessary.
• To serve, remove the pudding from the steamer and take off the wrapping. Slide a palette knife around the pudding, and then turn it out onto a warm plate. Garnish with a sprig of holly. To flambe the pudding, warm a ladleful of brandy over direct heat, and when it is hot, carefully light the brandy. Place the flaming ladle over the pudding, but do not pour until at the table. When you do slowly pour it over the pudding, sides and all, watch it flame! Serve with rum sauce if desired.
• This recipe was provided by professional chefs and has been scaled down from a bulk recipe provided by a restaurant. The Food Network Kitchens chefs have not tested this recipe, in the proportions indicated, and therefore, we cannot make any representation as to the results.

CLASSIC CHRISTMAS PUDDING

Steps:

• Get everything for the pudding prepared. Chop the almonds coarsely. Peel, core and chop the cooking apples. Sharpen your knife and chop the candied peel. (You can chop the almonds and apples in a food processor, but the peel must be done by hand.) Grate three quarters of the nutmeg (sounds a lot but it's correct).
• Mix the almonds, apples, candied peel, nutmeg, raisins, flour, breadcrumbs, light muscovado sugar, eggs and 2 tbsp brandy or cognac in a large bowl.
• Holding the butter in its wrapper, grate a quarter of it into the bowl, then stir everything together. Repeat until all the butter is grated, then stir for 3-4 mins - the mixture is ready when it subsides slightly after each stir. Ask the family to stir too, and get everyone to make a wish.
• Generously butter two 1.2 litre bowls and put a circle of baking parchment in the bottom of each. Pack in the pudding mixture. Cover with a double layer of baking parchment, pleating it to allow for expansion, then tie with string (keep the paper in place with a rubber band while tying). Trim off any excess paper.
• Now stand each bowl on a large sheet of foil and bring the edges up over the top, then put another sheet of foil over the top and bring it down underneath to make a double package (this makes the puddings watertight). Tie with more string, and make a handle for easy lifting in and out of the pan. Watch our video to see how to tie up a pudding correctly.
• Boil or oven steam the puddings for 8 hrs, topping up with water as necessary. Remove from the pans and leave to cool overnight. When cold, discard the messy wrappings and re-wrap in new baking parchment, foil and string. Store in a cool, dry place until Christmas.
• To make the brandy butter, cream the butter with the orange zest and icing sugar. Gradually beat in the brandy or cognac and chopped stem ginger. Put in a small bowl, fork the top attractively and put in the fridge to set. The butter will keep for a week in the fridge, or it can be frozen for up to six weeks.
• On Christmas Day, boil or oven steam for 1 hr. Unwrap and turn out. To flame, warm 3-4 tbsp brandy in a small pan, pour it over the pudding and set light to it.
• Get everything for the pudding prepared. Chop the almonds coarsely. Peel, core and chop the cooking apples. Sharpen your knife and chop the candied peel. (You can chop the almonds and apples in a food processor, but the peel must be done by hand.) Grate three quarters of the nutmeg (sounds a lot but it's correct).
• Mix the almonds, apples, candied peel, nutmeg, raisins, flour, breadcrumbs, light muscovado sugar, eggs and 2 tbsp brandy or cognac in a large bowl.
• Holding the butter in its wrapper, grate a quarter of it into the bowl, then stir everything together. Repeat until all the butter is grated, then stir for 3-4 mins - the mixture is ready when it subsides slightly after each stir. Ask the family to stir too, and get everyone to make a wish.
• Generously butter two 1.2 litre bowls and put a circle of baking parchment in the bottom of each. Pack in the pudding mixture. Cover with a double layer of baking parchment, pleating it to allow for expansion, then tie with string (keep the paper in place with a rubber band while tying). Trim off any excess paper.
• Now stand each bowl on a large sheet of foil and bring the edges up over the top, then put another sheet of foil over the top and bring it down underneath to make a double package (this makes the puddings watertight). Tie with more string, and make a handle for easy lifting in and out of the pan. Watch our video to see how to tie up a pudding correctly.
• Boil or oven steam the puddings for 8 hrs, topping up with water as necessary. Remove from the pans and leave to cool overnight. When cold, discard the messy wrappings and re-wrap in new baking parchment, foil and string. Store in a cool, dry place until Christmas.
• To make the brandy butter, cream the butter with the orange zest and icing sugar. Gradually beat in the brandy or cognac and chopped stem ginger. Put in a small bowl, fork the top attractively and put in the fridge to set. The butter will keep for a week in the fridge, or it can be frozen for up to six weeks.
• On Christmas Day, boil or oven steam for 1 hr. Unwrap and turn out. To flame, warm 3-4 tbsp brandy in a small pan, pour it over the pudding and set light to it.

A CLASSIC CHRISTMAS PUDDING RECIPE

Steps:

• These ingredients will make puddings to fill basins totaling 7 1/2 pints. If this is too much for your family use half quantity of all the ingredients and make 2 smaller puddings or 1 large one.
• Put the flour, breadcrumbs, salt, mixed spice, grated nutmeg and the grated rinds of the orange and lemon into a large bowl. Chop the suet and add to the dry ingredients with the sugar; mix thoroughly. Add the fruit to the dry mix together with almonds. Stir very well. Peel and core the apples, chop and add to the mixture together with the grated carrot.
• Beat the eggs and add to the pudding with the juice from the orange and lemon, the brandy and the barley wine or milk. Mix all very thoroughly and leave for 1 day, stirring occasionally. The mixture should 'squeak' when mixed - if it seems too dry, add 1 or 2 more eggs.
• Turn the mixture into greased pudding basins filling them to the brim. Seal the tops well with a flour and water paste (1 lb /450g plain flour mixed to a stiff dough with approximately 1/2 pint / 300ml) cold water, cover with greaseproof paper, tie down well and boil the puddings for 8 hours.
• Remove the greaseproof paper and flour and water paste and leave the puddings to cool. Cover with fresh greaseproof paper and store in a dry cool place. When required, boil the puddings for 2-4 hours depending on the size.
• NB: For a nice glossy Christmas pudding you can dust the greased basins with brown sugar before putting in the mixture.