Suet puddings?

[Pleater]

It depends on the flour, I think - taking it from the tab end of an old bag of self raising flour from the back of the cupboard will not give light puddings, nor will old baking powder.

I make a lemon suet pudding which is very light, and has a lemon in the middle of it.

The steam for hours method of cooking is not what I do - microwave for three minutes is more my style and it works.

I soak the fruit in vermouth, then add rum after cooking and brandy later, just to be sure, but not too much, as it can overpower every other flavour and be downright horrible if overdone.

Rather than a cooking apple I try to find some Cox's orange pippins, which are small oval and browny red, and are everything Autumn, but they are rare things these days.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

[Angstrom]

Oh, I'm sure "light" is possible. The recipe I've been using as a guide has no leavening, and probably emphasizes sheer density -- caloric and otherwise -- over elegance. Just carrying it to the table lets you know it's got substance. Dropping it on your foot would be tragic for all involved.

[Pleater]

Ah - you are missing a delightful experience by making only the solid sort of puddings, and it is great fun to watch a pudding loosely tied in a cloth expanding as it cooks, seemingly intent on climbing out of the pan, or rising up in a bowl to make a mushroom shaped top.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

[Tobus]

I'm late to the party, although I read this thread back when it first started and apparently it put a bee in my bonnet, because last night I went out and bought ingredients to make a Christmas pudding... something I've been meaning to try for years and never gotten around to. I missed "Stir up Sunday" but I figure if I make it this weekend it will still have adequate time to mature.

Yikes, I've nearly missed the boat as well! Looks like I'm going to have to rearrange my weekend schedule and get busy on my holiday cooking. Time to get the Black Bun started so it can age for Hogmanay. I can't believe it's the end of November already. This year has flown by.

I decided to try Nigella Lawson's recipe because the ingredient list is more manageable than many I've seen, and because I have had some excellent desserts prepared from other recipes by her. I'd love to track down some suet, but as my sister is a vegetarian I will probably use frozen, grated crisco. Now I just need to lay my hands on some Pedro Ximenez sherry.

That recipe does look pretty good. I think I shall give it a try (using real suet) for Christmas. A couple of questions, though:

1. If I can't find muscovado sugar, will regular brown sugar work OK? Is there any adjustment needed on quantities for this substitution?

2. I'm not sure I understand the measurement of 1 teaspoon of cinnamon sticks. How the heck do you measure cinnamon sticks in teaspoons? Is this a measurement of grated cinnamon from a stick? Or will a teaspoon on cinnamon powder from a can work equally well? Should there be any adjustment needed if using cinnamon powder instead of (presumably) grated fresh cinnamon sticks?

3. Just to be certain, what does she mean by "1/4 ground cloves"? Is this 1/4 of a clove, ground into powder? Or was it supposed to be 1/4 teaspoon?

Ah - you are missing a delightful experience by making only the solid sort of puddings, and it is great fun to watch a pudding loosely tied in a cloth expanding as it cooks, seemingly intent on climbing out of the pan, or rising up in a bowl to make a mushroom shaped top.

When steaming a pudding, isn't the bowl or pudding basin supposed to be tightly covered to prevent moisture intrusion? If it rises up to make a mushroom top, I would assume it's exposed to the steam/moisture... does that change the nature of the finished pudding?

As I don't own a proper pudding basin, I'm going to have to use a ceramic cookware bowl, either covered with foil or with a plate, or both. Any suggestions here for alternative ways to do it?

[Angstrom]

Based on other gingerbread/spice cake recipes, my best guesses:

1) Regular dark brown sugar should be fine.

2) Use 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3) Use 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

The instructions I have for steamed puddings call for the pudding to be covered with a cloth that has been greased & floured on the pudding side. It does not keep moisture out. I have no experience using basins with lids or trying to keep the pudding dry.

I've used pyrex and stainless-steel mixing bowls as pudding basins. The important consideration was having enough of a lip to catch the string that ties on the cloth.

[usonian]

In lieu of muscovado sugar I figured I might take the same approach I've read for making your own brown sugar: white sugar plus molasses. Dark brown sugar plus molasses should equal even darker brown sugar.

[Pleater]

The moisture is kept out by either a flour strewn damp cloth or greaseproof paper, but both are left loose so the pudding can expand during cooking.

The greaseproof paper is usually folded into a central box pleat before being tied over the basin with string. It is advisable to create a handle with the string so that the basin can be hoisted out of the pan on the handle of a wooden spoon or similar without risking scalding.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

[usonian]

Thanks Anne! I just came across this, which expands on both the string handle and pleated parchment paper technique a little bit:

http://allrecipes.co.uk/how-to/47/ho...s-pudding.aspx

[Angstrom]

Good find! Thanks!

The method I've been following is to grease & flour a circle on a square pudding cloth(plain muslin), place that over the pudding, and tie it on with string around the lip of the basin. The opposite corners of the cloth are then knotted over the top to form a handle.

This probably prevents water from splashing onto the pudding, but the cloth is saturated by the steam and there's certainly moisture geting to the pudding. For some recipes that's probably OK.

[Pleater]

Perhaps the problem is that the flour on the cloth is not getting heated enough. To make the starch grains burst and create a waterproof membrane dip it into boiling water and ensure that there is a complete layer off goo - if you strew the flour onto damp cloth then lift the corners so the flour is on the inside and dip it into the pan, then let it cool enough to be safe to handle then you should find that the water doesn't get in.

Or you could boil up a flour and water paste until it thickens and pour it onto the cloth then spread it around to make a disc large enough to cover the basin.

Anne the Pleater :ootd: