Christmas Plum Pudding

Total Time: 6 hrs Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 5 hrs

Ingredients

• 2 cups sultanas (golden raisins)
• 1 1/2 cups raisins (chopped)
• 1 cup prune (chopped)
• 1 cup mixed peel, chopped (mixed candied fruit)
• 1 lemon, zest of
• 1 orange zest
• 1/2 cup blanched almond, chopped
• 1 large carrot, grated
• 250 g butter
• 2 cups soft breadcrumbs
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup plain flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon mixed spice (i think pumpkin pie spice is similar)
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 200 ml stout beer (guiness is ok)
• 50 ml brandy

Recipe

• 1 grease 2 large pudding basins.
• 2 bring two large saucepans of water to the boil with a trivet or rack in the bottom of each.
• 3 (i actually use two old pottery saucers in the bottom of mine) mix all dry ingredients together.
• 4 rub butter into dry ingredients with your fingertips, add prepared fruit and grated carrot.
• 5 mix egg, milk, stout, brandy and rinds together.
• 6 mix the moist and dry ingredients together.
• 7 (i find this easier to do with my hands).
• 8 place mixture in basins, allowing a little room at the top of the basins for the puddings to swell.
• 9 cover with greasproof paper, then two thicknesses of aluminum foil.
• 10 tie securely with string.
• 11 place the puddings into the prepared saucepans-- water should reach halfway up them-- and boil steadily for 5 hours.
• 12 as the water boils away replace with more boiling water.
• 13 on the day the pudding is to be served, boil for 1 hour mmore.
• 14 serve with cream, icecream, custard or brandy sauce (or all of these!).
• 15 last year, i discovered it works fine just to microwave individual slices rather than reheating for 1 hour.
• 16 we also love the leftovers cold or re-fried in butter!