Christmas Pudding

1) Soak dried fruit for one night in rum, beer, lemon and orange juice.

(Adding a little calvados or brandy never really hurts). Mix with plums.

2) Grate apple incl. peel

3) Mix butter with sugar until creamy, add lemon and orange peel and sugar syrup.

4) Beat the eggs and add them to the mixture, stirring well in between.

5) Add flour, spices, salt, breadcrumbs, nuts and dried fruit incl. soaking liquid, mix well

(5, 5) Traditionally, a one-mark piece is also added to bring good luck)

6) Pudding mixture in a greased dish form – either ovenproof glass

or metal

7) Cover bowl with two layers of baking paper and one layer of aluminum foil, tying layers tightly.

8) Steam the pudding for a total of 10-12 hours.

(I usually steam for 10 hours a couple weeks ahead, let the whole cool and then steam again for 2-3 hours before the whole is to be served).

To bring to the table:

Turn out the pudding, heat up a ladle full of brandy rum, calvados or other (40%!), pour it over the pudding, light it and bring it to the table in a festive way.

Serve:

Vanilla sauce tastes quite good, but is perhaps too rich. I serve my puddings with whipped cream (unsweetened!!!) and “Brandy Butter”: Stir butter and sugar in equal amounts and add (lots of) brandy as desired, maybe a little grated orange peel as well.

Such a pudding should be Warm gereichtd