Recipe: Plum Pudding

Recipe

Plum Pudding

Serving Size: 12
Preparation Time: 4:00

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups dark raisins
1-1/2 cups currants
1/4 pound citron—finely chopped
1/2 cup walnuts finely chopped
1 tablespoon lemon peel—grated
1-1/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup suet (crisp white beef fat)—(2 oz) finely—grated
1 cup dark molasses
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup brandy
1-1/4 cups bread crumbs—(dry and fine)
1/4 cup brandy
Hard Sauce—(See recipe at end)

Preparation

Liberally grease a 2 quart pudding mold with a tight fitting cover.

In a large bowl combine fruits, nuts, lemon peel, and 1/2 cup flour.

Sift the remaining flour with the soda, salt and spices.

In a small bowl with a rotary beater beat eggs well. Add to the fruit mixtures along with the sugar, suet, and molasses, buttermilk, 1/4 C. brandy, the bread crumbs, and the flour mixture until well combined.

Turn into a prepared mold; covered. Place the mold on a trivet in a large kettle; pour in enough boiling water to come halfway up the side of the mold; cover the kettle.

Steam the pudding for three hours. The water in the kettle should boil gently;add more water as needed.

Cool, uncovered, 10 minutes. Then unmold onto a wire rack:let it cool completely.

Wrap in a cheesecloth moistened with brandy; then wrap in plastic wrap and foil. It may be stored in the refrigerator for several weeks. This will improve the flavor.

To serve: Replace the pudding in the mold; cover and steam for about 50 minutesusing the same method as directed above. It should be served piping hot.

Use 1/4 cup of brandy to flame the unmolded pudding. Serve with hard sauce. Serves 12.An extremely generous portion as it is very rich.

Hard Sauce

2/3 C. butter, softened
2 t. vanilla extract
2 cups confectioners sugar.

Cream the butter until light. Add the vanilla and confectioners sugar. Beat until smooth and fluffy. Makes 1-1/2 cups Serve softened at room temp. In England, dried fruits were called plums.

Notes: Janice was a student of mine who wanted to try an old recipe for Christmas. She made this one andserved it at thelast class party. I hope it will grace your Christmas table for years to come.