Make the Perfect English Christmas Pudding

Make the Perfect English Christmas Pudding
Angie Mohr

In my family, it simply wouldn't be Christmas without our plum pudding and white sauce; a common British ending to a large holiday feast.

Plum pudding (or Christmas pudding as it has been called since the mid-1800's) evolved over the centuries from the first plum pottages made with meat and suet in the 1600's. Gradually, like mincemeat, the meat was left out and a more dessert-like pudding was formed. Plum pudding has never contained plums. In old England, plum referred to any dried fruit. It has always been customary to bake small charms or coins into the plum pudding to represent wealth, health, and love in the coming year. In modern times, this is rarely done for safety and sanitary reasons.

Plum pudding takes time to make and time to age. All the effort is worth it in the end to have your family and guests swoon over this rich and wonderful dessert. Traditionally, in England, the Sunday before Advent was called "Stir-Up Sunday" because it is the day usually set aside to make the plum pudding. This is generally in late November. It is not necessary to age that long, though, and, if you have a vacuum sealer, you can make it as late as Christmas eve.

Christmas Pudding

4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 cup butter, room temperature
½ cup milk
½ cup rum
2 eggs, beaten
¾ cup molasses
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins, coarsely chopped
1 cup dates, coarsely chopped
½ cup walnuts or pecans, chopped
1 large apple, finely chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and shredded
¼ cup mixed candied fruit, finely chopped
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cloves

Soak raisins in a bowl filled with the rum for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight if possible. Mix together wet and dry ingredients separately in two bowls. Remove raisins from rum and add to dry ingredients. Stir rum into wet ingredients.

Slowly add dry to wet, beating constantly until thoroughly mixed. Pour into greased pudding molds or heat-proof bowl. Cover tightly with aluminum foil. Fill a large roasting pan half full of water and heat on stove to boiling.

Set a baking rack or trivet in the bottom of the pan and set puddings on rack, slightly apart so that they do not touch. The water should come about two-thirds up the side of the molds. Add more water if necessary. Reduce heat to medium low, cover pan and boil gently for 5 to 6 hours. Check water level occasionally and add more if needed. Pudding is done when toothpick stuck into the center comes out clean.

Unmold and cool on a baking rack. Soak enough cheesecloth to cover the pudding two layers thick in rum for 1 hour. Wring out cheesecloth and wrap around puddings, completely covering. Wrap in butcher paper and store in a cool dark place or in refrigerator until Christmas.

If making plum pudding close to Christmas, you can vacuum seal pudding in a sealer bag or sealer container for 8 hours before preparing to serve. This "ages" the pudding and allows the flavors to marry quickly.
To serve, unwrap completely and steam over boiling water for 1 hour. Serve with sauce of your choice.

White Sauce for Plum Pudding

1 cup sugar
½ cup flour
1 tablespoon butter
2 cups milk
¼ teaspoon nutmeg

Mix together flour and butter in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture is hot. Add milk in small increments, whisking constantly, until sauce is bubbling and the desired consistency. Add sugar and nutmeg, stirring until incorporated. Serve over hot plum pudding. May add rum to replace part of milk additions.

Lemon Hard Sauce

1 stick (1/4 pound) butter
1 cup powdered sugar
¼ cup limoncello liqueur

Melt butter in small saucepan over low heat. Beat in sugar until dissolved. Add limoncello and stir until bubbling. Serve over hot plum pudding. (663 words)



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Copyright 2011 Angie Mohr