Classic Christmas pudding with brandy butter
Serves: 12
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
Recipe photograph by Maja Smend
Classic Christmas pudding with brandy butter
Serves: 12
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
See more recipes
Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
0Kcal
Fat
0gr
Saturates
0gr
Carbs
0gr
Sugars
0gr
Fibre
0gr
Protein
0gr
Salt
0gr
Rosemary Shrager
Chef, cookery school doyenne, reality show survivor and TV judge, Rosemary Shrager has been teaching people to cook in her inimitable extrovert style for more than 40 years.
See more of Rosemary Shrager’s recipes
Rosemary Shrager
Chef, cookery school doyenne, reality show survivor and TV judge, Rosemary Shrager has been teaching people to cook in her inimitable extrovert style for more than 40 years.
See more of Rosemary Shrager’s recipes
Ingredients
For the Christmas pudding
- 2 large eggs
- 50ml dark rum
- 75ml fresh orange juice
- 100ml dessert wine
- 2 tsp treacle
- 75g self-raising flour
- 100g suet, regular or vegetarian
- 100g fresh white breadcrumbs
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground allspice
- 200g dark brown soft sugar
- 1 medium dessert apple, cored and grated (with skin)
- 150g raisins
- 150g currants
- 50g flaked almonds
- 125g sultanas
- 50g candied orange and lemon peel, finely chopped
- 1 medium carrot, peeled and grated
- soft butter, for greasing
- icing sugar, redcurrants and a sprig of rosemary, to decorate
For the brandy butter
- 175g soft unsalted butter
- 175g icing sugar, sieved
- 3 tbsp brandy
Step by step
Get ahead
Make up to the end of step 5 up to a year ahead.
-
FOR THE CHRISTMAS PUDDING:
Put the eggs, rum, orange juice, wine and treacle in a bowl; whisk together.
- Put all the other pudding ingredients in a large bowl and stir well. Add the egg mixture and stir again. Cover with clingfilm and chill overnight.
- The next day, spoon the mixture into a buttered 1.5 litre pudding basin.
- Cut out a square of nonstick baking paper big enough to cover the top of the basin, and butter one side. Cut out a square of kitchen foil the same size and put it on top of the non-buttered side of the baking paper. Make a pleat in the middle of both sheets so the pudding can expand as it steams. Place them over the top of the mixture in the basin (baking paper first, buttered-side down). Tie string around the rim of the basin to secure the paper and foil, and make a string 'handle' so you can lift the pudding out. Trim any excess paper and foil.
- Steam the pudding for 4 hours. Cool; wrap it in fresh baking paper and foil. Store in a cool place (not the fridge).
- Steam the pudding for a further 2 hours on Christmas Day before turning out on to a serving plate.
- FOR THE BRANDY BUTTER: Put the soft butter into a bowl and whisk with the icing sugar; add the brandy a little at a time. Chill until firm.
- Dust the Christmas pudding with icing sugar, garnish with redcurrants and rosemary and serve with the sauce.
