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Rich Christmas pudding with muscat custard

A traditional pudding, rich with dark fruit and spiked with muscat.
Rich Christmas pudding with muscat custard

Rich Christmas pudding with muscat custard

Ben Dearnley
12
30M
5H 35M
6H 5M

This traditional pudding is rich with dark fruit and spiked with muscat. Serve with plenty of fresh raspberries for a taste of summer. You’ll need to begin this recipe a day ahead.

Ingredients

Muscat custard

Method

Main

1.Combine prunes, currants, raisins, cranberries, dates, almonds, candied orange peel and orange rind in a bowl. Combine orange juice, muscat, Grand Marnier and quince paste in a small saucepan, stir over low heat until quince paste is melted (4-5 minutes), then pour over dried fruit mixture, stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and stand for 4 hours or overnight, stirring occasionally.
2.Beat butter and sugar in an electric mixer until light and fluffy, add eggs one at a time, beating well after each, then transfer mixture to a large bowl. Add breadcrumbs, flour, milk, spices, bicarbonate of soda and ½ tsp sea salt, stir to combine, then stir in dried fruit mixture. Spoon mixture into a well-buttered 2½ litre-capacity pudding basin, cover closely with a round of baking paper, then with two layers of foil, and secure with string.
3.Place pudding in a large saucepan, pour in enough hot water to reach just below rim, cover and simmer over low heat for 5 hours, adding more hot water as necessary. Cool in basin for 20 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, for muscat custard, bring cream, milk, vanilla bean and vanilla seeds to the simmer in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Whisk yolks and sugar in a heatproof bowl until thick and pale (2-3 minutes), then pour over cream mixture, whisking continuously to combine. Return to pan, stir over medium heat until mixture coats the back of a wooden spoon thickly (3-4 minutes), strain through a sieve into a bowl, stir through muscat and set aside. Serve warm or chilled. Makes about 1 litre.
5.To serve, unmould pudding, dust heavily with icing sugar and serve with muscat custard and raspberries. Pudding can be refrigerated for up to 1 month. To reheat, steam again in basin in a large saucepan of simmering water for 1½ hours.

Drink Suggestion: Old Rutherglen muscat. Drink suggestion by Max Allen

Notes

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